Week of November 7th, 2011

Posted by Christina Huh…

Professor Steven Weber discusses the history of Europe as a political and monetary union, and what's next for the eurozone.

Could this weekend's fights on Fox be the "ultimate" challenge to boxing's dominance?

Reviewing the week's headlines on Wall Street. This week: the super committee's deadline for fixing the deficit is nearing; Europe's woes continue.

The news that didn't quite make the headlines. This week: Who eats the most fast food, the exclusivity of Occupy Harvard, and the bizarre behaviors surrounding 11/11/11.

Italy hopes small businesses can pull it out of the present crisis but red tape abounds and Italian regional disparities make a bad situation worse.

Posted by Chau Tu…

Question: Where can I find information about managing my own retirement IRA: I believe I can do no worse than the "expert" who manages mine and…

A big fight is schedule this weekend in Las Vegas, between Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez. What kind of impact do these fights have on the local economy in Vegas?

You knew it had to happen, right? Toys R Us has come out with the Nabi, a tablet computer designed just for kids. It comes pre-loaded with…

Go to the homepage of Steam, an online gaming site, and you'll be greeted with foreboding pictures of aliens, dark planets and calls to war. This,…

As we've said before, this was more like political homesteading than legitimate policy making but Senate Republicans got their vote on blocking the…

The Chromebook launched earlier this year and is reportedly a real dud. Chromebooks are designed to be pretty much portals to the internet and not…

It's the Logitech Revue, which Logitech will stop making and stop supporting and will no longer invite to Sunday dinner and will change the subject…

That's what Sony CEO, Howard Stringer told the Wall Street Journal. So what does that mean? A TV that's shaped like a huge pyramid? A gelatinous TV…

The Federal Trade Commission has all but signed on the dotted line in a settlement regarding Facebook's privacy settings. In late 2009, Facebook…

Apple released an operating system update last night, which claims to fix a couple problems people have been complaining about since it came out a…

When you climb very high mountains, at about 26,000 feet you enter the Death Zone. At that altitude, there's simply not enough oxygen in the air to…

Posted by Mary Dooe…

President Obama is in Hawaii today for an APEC meeting. We speak to Chris Low, from FTN Financial, about the possible good that could come out of this weekend.

Weeks ago, Moody's put France under observation regarding its credit rating. Now, a false announcement of a downgrade is giving the French government reason to investigate such agencies.

Europe isn't the only one with debt concerns — the U.S. has a deadline in two weeks to figure out a way to cut down our own deficit. But that deadline might not be too firm.

The financial problems in Italy stem from years of mismanagement and even corruption.

The Globalist's Stephan Richter administers his latest quiz on consumption, and where emerging countries are overtaking the developed world.

This weekend, President Obama hosts the 21-nation Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Honolulu. At the top of the agenda is a proposal for a Pacific free trade zone. How would it work?

The CEO of UPS, Scott Davis, talks about the troubles of the U.S. Postal Service, and how it and the rest of economy is affecting the shipping business.

Next week, the House will take up a bill that would offer incentives for employers who hire out-of-work veterans.

New apps are being developed to help veterans manage symptoms of post-traumatic stress.

It's Friday and the end of another tumultuous week on the markets. It's fair to say that many investors suffering from crisis fatigue decided to let loose a bit today.

President Obama heads to Hawaii today for the APEC summit of 21 economies along the Pacific Rim. And Japan this morning said it would participate in talks to build a free trade zone among those nations. Nine countries are on board so far, including the United States. The Italian Senate has just passed the economic reform bill that Europe is demanding. Once it passes the lower house of parliament, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi says he’ll quit. An erroneous downgrade of French sovereign credit rating by Standard & Poor’s rating agency on Thursday was a very serious incident and will have to be investigated, the European Commission said on Friday.

Apps will help veterans and others manage post-traumatic stress disorder.

In a special partnership with The New York Times, Marketplace Money takes a look at how housing fits into today's American Dream.

On today's show, we looked at how the seeds of the eurozone debt crisis were sown in the formation of the European Union half a century ago, and at the different regions of Italy and how they're surviving. Mixed martial arts, or MMA, has overtaken boxing as America's favorite contact sport. The labor movement is trying to join forces with Occupy Wall Street, and gain recognition.

Investors buying into a classic 'delay and pray' strategy as the markets ignore European debt for the day and end the week on an up note.

The mayor of Portland, Ore., is giving demonstrators until midnight Saturday. Oakland's police union wants protesters out too. But organized labor's building inroads.

Consumer sentiment reports are out today, and Juli Niemann of Smith, Moore and Company, thinks that even though the markets are still down, Americans are willing to spend — especially during the holidays.

The Marketplace Daily Pulse is up today. The U.S. consumer – that beaten-down, bedraggled, hopeless character – seems to be getting a shot of opt…

Everyone from McDonald's to Chinese brides are celebrating the 11/11/11 holiday today. Why is it so valuable for companies?

The markets took a little break from yesterday's panic and rallied around some economic bright spots

There isn't an easy solution to the eurozone debt crisis, but here's what America's politicians and government officials are trying to say about it.

A victory for environmentalists as Obama delays a proposed pipeline until after the election.

Automakers look in a new direction for increased mileage: The good ole gas engine.

Zynga could go public for as much as $20 billion later this year. But company founders reportedly regret handing out stock options and shares so freely in the beginning, and now the social gaming company is telling some employees to give those shares back or lose their jobs.

Walmart moved Black Friday up to Thursday night. Some dedicated shoppers must now choose between Thanksgiving dinner and bargain hunting.

If your computer's acting weird and you don't know why, who you gonna call? Operation Ghost Click!…

The football scandal could cost the university in multiple ways off the field.

Checking the Marketplace's Daily Pulse, our offbeat take on the health of the U.S. economy. There's word today that just over half of working mo…

How many times have you heard that the only way we can simultaneously reduce unemployment and pay down debt is to "grow our way out"? One gets th…

Here's a list of reasons why we save. A lot of things can go wrong. Age to die Need for extraordinary health care Close relative needs money Lo…

Question: I have a question that's more philosophical than practical, but it's something I've never received a satisfactory answer to. Assuming…

Posted by Chau Tu…

Michael Woodford, the former CEO of Olympus, speaks about where the company went wrong, and how it can make a comeback.

The Supreme Court meets today to decide on the fate of a number of cases. Among them is the suit surrounding the legality of the Affordable Care Act.

Posted by Mary Dooe…

Boxee is a device people use to connect their TVs to the web and watch videos on sites like Netflix and Vudu. It's convenient if you're into…

Yesterday the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Federal Communications Commission conducted the first ever nationwide test of the…

Facebook has restored the option of seeing the News Feed of status updates and activities of all your Friends (I insist on capitalizing Friend when…

DigiTimes is reporting that Amazon.com has increased its production of Kindle Fire from 4 million units to 5 million units. This follows an earlier…

The software giant and patent lawsuit fan will introduce an ultra cheap PC as part of the FCC's program. It's rolling out a $250 PC next year for…

We're starting to really see how extensive the push is for this new FCC initiative to bring broadband access to low income households. The…

And so begins the extradition process for the F.B.I.'s Operation Ghost Click. Along with the Estonian police, the F.B.I. announced the arrests of…

It's a bipartisan bill introduced yesterday by Senators Dick Durbin (D-Ill), Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn), and Mike Enzi (R-Wyo). The Senators say…

We speak to Adolfo Laurenti of Mesirow Financial on the ongoing European debt crisis, and whether the U.S. is on the same track.

Even as leadership turns over in Italy and Greece, fear is growing that debt problems in Europe will continue to spread to even bigger economies like France.

The largest municipal bankruptcy filing in U.S. history happened in Jefferson County, Ala., yesterday.

Thus far, the Obama administration has not done much regarding the situation in Europe. But as shown in last night's Republican debate, the crisis could soon be a hot-button domestic issue.

European banks are facing a problem: they have to mark down the value of their debt from countries like Greece, but governments still want to borrow money from them.

During the Republican debate on Wednesday night, candidates voiced their opinions on the ongoing problems in Europe.

Possibly the greatest basketball player of all time, Michael Jordan could become the NBA's most unpopular team owner for his tough tactics at the bargaining table during NBA contract negotiations.

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, a.k.a. the Sheriff of Wall Street, discusses the investigation he's co-leading into what caused the mortgage and financial meltdowns.

It isn't an issue of beauty. Marketplace's Paddy Hirsch explains the haircut that banks are getting by taking on Greek debt.

As Europe's economy continues to sour, the impact here isn't borne equally around the nation. In fact, some regions don't feel it at all.

Health care providers have been gradually moving to more information technology in recent years. But a new report indicates the transition is causing a lot of harm along the way.

Health care providers go digital, but, report says, it could spell some trouble.

Greece has a new prime minister-to-be. Lucas Papademos is a former Harvard University professor, and served as vice president of the European Central Bank. Papademos says he wants Greece to continue to use the euro and not get kicked out of the eurozone. But there are critics who say if Greece isn’t removed, the debt crisis will keep spreading. And in Italy, an economist named Mario Monti looks likely to head the next government there. The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage fell below 4 percent for just the second time in history. The foreclosure mess is getting worse. RealtyTrac said this morning more homes went into foreclosure last month.

Republican presidential candidates participated in another debate last night. The football scandal at Penn State could cost the university in multiple ways off the field. Retailers are opening their doors even earlier for Black Friday. As online games company Zynga prepares to go public, it is asking some employees to give back their shares. And in the second part of a two-part series, Amy Scott looked at the tactics used by U.S. colleges to recruit Chinese students.

The markets rallied after yesterdays fall, but Europe's troubles continued.

They are plentiful, they pay full tuition and American colleges and universities are eager to enroll them — despite questions about their credentials.

And finally, to the Occupy protest in Denver. The city's mayor asked the demonstrators to elect a leader, who could be a contact for police when…

This final note today about the GOP debate and what markets can tell us about ourselves.

Three newly elected and re-elected mayors across the U.S. discuss the plans and priorities they have for their cities.

Voices from the streets of Rome on Italian's current debt crisis.

Millions of Americans are out of work. So what can the federal government do?

The government debt market can be as dull as dust. But as Italy is seeing, the hint of economic vulnerability ignites investor fear and wrath.

Alaska Airlines starts a trial run of biofuel-powered jets today.

The worry shifts from Greece to Italy, whose economy is one of the largest in Europe and its debt impacts a number of countries around the globe

Posted by Chau Tu…

How much should I save for retirement? Wouldn't you like to know? Most of us wonder if we've really set aside enough for life's later stages,…

Italy's borrowing cost rose above 7 percent today, causing worry on global markets, but comparisons with Greece overlook a number of key differences.

Question: Having $138,000 in student loans at 9% I would pay just about $160,000 in interest if I go 20 years to get forgiveness for the loan. Is…

The world's biggest container shipping company, Maersk, posted big losses in the last quarter, and that might not bode well for the economy at large.

Today in Italy, citizens are generally happy about the idea that Berlusconi will soon be gone from power. But it isn't fast enough to save the markets.

Raul Castro's daughter, Mariela, signed up for a Twitter account yesterday and within hours of joining, Cuban activist/blogger Yoani Sanchez showed…

There's talk of reducing the tax incentive for giving to charity for the wealthiest taxpayers. Why now? And what impact would that have on…

Microsoft, AOL, and Yahoo! [announced an advertising partnership yesterday](http://online.wsj.com/article…

Politico reports on a flurry of activity this week related to the proposed gobbling up of T-Mobile by AT&T. There have been blog posts, press…

The latest version of Honda's Asimo robot is lighter, smaller, and more versatile than previous editions. By way of explaining the headline above,…