Company cutbacks are so severe right now that many are skipping the annual holiday party. Scott Jagow talks to Jo Bennett of Battalia Winston Amrop, which does a survey about corporate holiday events.
Dan Yates runs a tour boat company in Portland, Oregon, and he's trying to keep the spirit alive in a down economy. In our latest "Here's what I'm doing," he tells us he doesn't believe in cutting back on the party.
African Americans could lose up to $90 billion from foreclosures, according to a recent study. As Jenee Darden reports, some predominantly black churches are offering help to those in need of a financial rescue.
She gets a script and she finds a place to shoot it. And then there are the little things involved. We follow Locations Manager Nancy Haecker around as she preps for features and TV shows.
For the last 10 years, bank fees have been going up consistently. Scott Jagow talks to Bankrate.com's Greg McBride, who tells us where customers are getting stung the most.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson has shifted his focus to consumer lending, but not to foreclosures. Economics correspondent Chris Farrell tells Scott Jagow we need more across-the-board solutions.
The cost of childcare is outpacing inflation, leaving parents with a tough call: Find more money or find another way to care for their kids. Jaime Bedrin reports.
With retail sales having their biggest drop in record in October, the holiday shopping season is looking pretty bleak. How bad will it be? Scott Jagow gets the report from Marketplace's retail maven, Stacey Vanek-Smith.
How much did you pay for that set of golf clubs you never used? Don't be ashamed, you're not alone. Eve Troeh reports that folks are coming out of the closet to tell tales of money wasted — and to find help.
This week, Scott Jagow and economics correspondent Chris Farrell answer questions on what a church should do with a large donation and how a teenager should invest her $500.
Is it really so bad that consumer confidence continues to erode? Commentator Amity Shlaes says that if consumers aren't spending, then they're saving, investing or beefing up that college fund, and that can be a good thing.
The $700 billion bailout isn't just about banks anymore, and automakers are begging for a cut. Kai Ryssdal recaps the week with David Leonhardt of The New York Times and Leigh Gallagher of Fortune magazine.
Hedge fund investors can withdraw their money only once a year, and Nov. 15 is the day. Fund managers say requests to get out are unusually high this time. Sally Herships reports on what that could mean.
Leaders of the world's 20 biggest economies are meeting in Washington to work on the global economic crisis. Washington Bureau Chief John Dimsdale reports.
Google's ad business was supposed to be recession-proof. But Google and companies like it rely on search-related ads and fewer people are clicking on them. Stacey Vanek-Smith reports.
If you've got a Citigroup credit card in your wallet, be prepared. The company plans to start raising interest rates for some customers. And it's rumored to be considering tens of thousands more job cuts. Jeremy Hobson reports.
Retail sales for October have had the biggest drop since the Commerce Department started keeping track back in 1992. This even beats the decline after 9/11. Alisa Roth reports this is really bad news.
Today's the deadline for banks who wish to apply for money through the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP. But the program doesn't come without its potential disadvantages. Ashley Milne-Tyte reports.
This weekend, leaders from the world's 20 largest countries will meet to discuss the global financial crisis. John Dimsdale reports it may not be very productive, but will help the countries appear unified.
Thanks in part to inflation, oil prices and dried-up credit, all countries using the Euro have been hit with a recession. Kyle James reports it may be a less brutal but perhaps longer recession than the U.S.
Thanksgiving travel on U.S. airlines is expected to dive about 10 percent from last year. But you're still likely to be sitting on a full plane when you fly back home for that big dinner. Janet Babin tells you why.
Perhaps no one in the sports business has been affected quite like NASCAR, who will be laying off several workers due to lack of sponsorship. Scott Jagow talks race cars with sports commentator Diana Nyad.
In a difficult move for European car makers, three big credit insurers in Europe have revoked coverage from auto parts suppliers. Scott Jagow talks to Alisa Roth about the major effect this has for auto makers overseas.
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is in Frankfurt, Germany this morning to talk about coordination between the world's central banks. Jeremy Hobson reports this could become a regular part of European banking life.
China played a huge part in America's consumption and borrowing binge, while Chinese consumers weren't buying much of anything. But Chinese savers plus Western spenders might add up to trouble for both sides. Scott Tong explains
As President-elect Obama goes about staffing his administration, there's one job that's first among equals — Treasury Secretary. Commentator John Steele Gordon has some advice on what to look for.
If you want a job in the Obama administration, you better clean up your resume — and your FaceBook, Flickr and MySpace pages. The applicants are being heavily vetted. Rico Gagliano has the story.
A Congressional committee questioning five prominent hedge fund managers wanted to know what role they might have played in the financial meltdown and whether regulations are needed. Nancy Marshall Genzer has the story.
As economic worries tighten consumer budgets, a new shopping trend has emerged — shoppers are returning merchandise to stores in record numbers. Beth Teitell says this buy-then-bring-back behavior is called "circle shopping."
Public pension funds that invested heavily in real estate are taking a big hit, including the real estate portfolio for California's civil servants, which lost more than a third of its value. Stacey Vanek-Smith reports.
In the first installment of our new interview series "Taking Stock," Kai Ryssdal talks to political economist Ann Pettifor about global debt. She's a fellow at the New Economics Foundation in London and author of "The Coming First World Debt Crisis."
Struggling companies are looking to Congress for relief from pension contributions, and they might actually get it. Alisa Roth explains we may want to look out for new rules and cut backs in the long term.
Germany's high export ratio is one big reason the country has gone into the red. Kyle James reports economic advisors want the government to spend more than $60 billion to help weather the storm.
If "leveraging" means borrowing, shouldn't "deleveraging" mean paying the money back? Not exactly. Sally Herships breaks down what the word means and why it's an important buzz word right now.
A dreary holiday season has been foreshadowed for months, but how bad is it really going to be? Stacey Vanek-Smith reports some figures have losses down $30 billion from last year, but not everyone will do so bad.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson wants to spend $50 billion on the consumer debt market as part of the bailout package. Scott Jagow talks to Steve Henn in Washington about what this would entail and how it might help.
It still costs more to make things in the U.S. than overseas. But the U.S. manufacturing sector has kept a lid on some things better than its foreign counterparts, like employee health care. Jeff Tyler reports.
The saying goes that necessity is the mother of invention. So will a troubled economic system cause a rise in financial innovation? Economics correspondent Chris Farrell tells Scott Jagow that it will.
NASCAR has switched to a bigger, heavier car that was tough on tires, and Goodyear — the exclusive tire supplier for the sport — wasn't able to come up with a tire deemed safe and good on the track. Scott Graf reports.
Democratic Sen. Max Baucus has outlined a proposal that would not only guarantee, but mandate health-care coverage for all Americans. Is there enough money to do that? Steve Henn reports.
The record high prices for copper and other metals that had thieves stealing statues and electrical wires are no more. Commodities prices have crashed, creating a big problem for scrap dealers. Jeff Tyler reports.
There was a time, says commentator David Frum, when GM was one of the biggest employers in America, but that's no longer true. Besides, even with a bailout, more job cuts are coming.
Earlier this year, T. Boone Pickens announced a grand plan to build the world's biggest wind farm and help wean the country off gasoline. Now that natural gas prices have tanked, he's putting the plan on hold. Sam Eaton reports.
With the debate about bailing out GM reaching a fevered pitch, Ashley Milne-Tyte asks, what a GM rescue plan would look like and what would actually happen if the giant automaker failed.
Why hasn't the government's plan to buy up toxic assets worked? Will recapitalizing the banks and providing mortgage relief ease the crisis? Kai Ryssdal puts those questions and more to financial analyst Karen Shaw Petrou.
The Treasury secretary says the government is backing away from buying toxic assets from banks — the centerpiece of the rescue plan when Congress approved it. Washington Bureau Chief John Dimsdale reports.
The European Union is looking at credit-rating rules that could be tougher than those being considered in the U.S. Kyle James reports how the E.U. will be moving forward on agencies like Standard & Poor's and Moody's.
To ease the price banks charge for letters of credit, the World Bank doubled the amount of guaranteed shipments. Jennifer Collins explains what a letter of credit is and why this move helps cargo shipments.
While Africa is not feeling the effects of the financial crisis the same way as many other countries, it's still bracing itself for ripple effects such as cooled global demand. Gretchen Wilson reports.
Congress's bailout package is already half gone, and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is going back to Congress for more. But some lawmakers aren't happy with his spending spree. Nancy Marshall Genzer reports.
The government is working with financial institutions to renegotiate home loans in order to help homeowners. But hedge funds think the plans are a terrible idea. Alisa Roth looks into why.
It's hard to believe that over the summer, oil was at a high of around $147 per barrel. Now, it's dropped down to less than half of that. Jeremy Hobson reports OPEC has cut production to curb a price drop.
Everyone from the auto industry to American Express has been taking advantage of the bailout rescue package. But commentator Robert Reich says Chapter 11 bankruptcy would keep companies going at no cost to the taxpayer.
Some of the ancient treasures in museums were taken illegally from where they originated, and countries have sued to get them back. Kai Ryssdal talks with Sharon Waxman, who writes about the antiquities trade in 'Loot.'
After Brian Hart's son John was killed in Iraq, he concluded there must be better ways to protect the troops. So he developed The Landshark, a robot that diffuses bombs. Monica Brady-Meyerov has more.
Listeners wrote in about creating jobs for out-of-work Americans, student loans and having lobbyist-connected people on Obama's team. Also, Kai Ryssdal learns how to pronounce the name of a South Dakota city.
Dubai's dream of having the biggest and best of everything was believed to be impervious to global economic slowdown, but Kelly McEvers reports there are signs the city is feeling economic malaise too.
Companies that normally spend big bucks on Super Bowl ads are reconsidering the big flash productions for fear of appearing flamboyant during a time of economic trouble. Stacey Vanek-Smith reports.
The first batch of bailout money released by Congress is going fast. Soon, Treasury will have to go back for the rest. This time, though, there are likely to be strings attached. Steve Henn reports.
The government set new terms, including lower interest rates, for homeowners seeking relief from foreclosure, terms that will be adopted by
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Washington Bureau Chief John Dimsdale reports.
We've asked economic and financial experts what they think the fix is for the current financial debacle. But what do you think? Suzie Lechtenberg got some ideas from the general public.
Michelle Obama says she has no plans to take on big policy issues while in the White House, but she will champion causes such as public service and the sacrifices made by military families. John Dimsdale reports.
An economic report says German investor sentiment has improved somewhat since last month, but there is still a great deal of uncertainty. Kyle James looks into the mood and why it could affect the rest of Europe.
Citigroup is launching a program which will reach out to half a million borrowers to help them avoid foreclosure. Jennifer Collins gives details of the plan, which will keep borrowers paying in tinier amounts.
The next presidential inauguration's going to be a big one, and as such hotel rooms will be hard to come by. So some attendees are beating the rush by doing a housing swap on Craigslist. Nancy Marshall Genzer reports.
In the latest installment of our series "What's the Fix?" Scott Jagow talks to Howard Wheeldon, a strategist at brokerage house BGC Partners in London. Wheeldon outlines what government priorities should be.
Two House committees will be considering whether new regulations should be placed on hedge funds, which are struggling in the current financial crunch. Critics claim hedge fund investors would find a way around such rules. Alisa Roth reports.
American Express is changing its status to a bank holding company so it can qualify for federal aid. Jeremy Hobson reports AmEx's move could lead the way for other credit card and non-credit card companies.
How can poverty remain pervasive in African, Asian and Latin American countries that have received billions in aid? Corruption, says Edward Miguel, author of "Economic Gangsters." He talks with Kai Ryssdal about it.
Some economists believe that economic models are dated and deficient, and they're looking for theories that would help make sense of the financial crisis and global economy. Janet Babin has more.
Marketplace presents "Here's What I'm Doing," a series asking people from all walks of life how they're coping with the financial crisis. John Serrantino owns a pizza place in New York's financial district.
Travelers, at least, are in for a happier holiday season. The price of airline tickets is dropping fast amid discount airfare wars between the major carriers. But those extra fees are likely to stay. Stacey Vanek-Smith reports.
In Pierre, S.D., where few medical specialists practice, people live longer than those living in an upscale retirement community in Florida with specialists of all kinds. Commentator Robert Martensen explains why.
When a store goes into bankruptcy, what happens to the plastic gift cards people haven't redeemed? Circuit City, for example, has asked the bankruptcy court to allow it to honor the cards, but no decision yet. Renita Jablonski reports.
China intends to use its $586 billion stimulus package on railways, airports and other infrastructure. Scott Tong reports that the money will boost investor confidence, but won't save the world.
