Marketplace®

Daily business news and economic stories
  • Leaders in Washington D.C. are talking about changing the current height regulations on buildings in the city.

  • Over 50 percent of a small village in northern Spain has voted in favor of a plan to allow marijuana to be grown there. The aim is to generate money for the village to help wipe out its debt. However it's still unclear if the idea will go ahead.

  • Sri Lankan men sit on a boat at a beach in Galle on April 11, 2012.
    Ishara S.KODIKARA/AFP/Getty Images

    The stock market isn't the only thing ailing Europe today: the market for carbon credits. Prices have tanked for allowances to spew carbon. There's a tsunami warning in effect across the Indian Ocean. Will today's earthquake impact the countries there as harshly as past disasters? And Terry Branstad, the Republican governor of Iowa, weighs in on the "lean finely-textured beef" vs. "pink slime" debate.

  • The desk of U.S. President Barack Obama sits in the newly redecorated Oval Office of the White House August 31, 2010 in Washington, D.C. U.S.
    Brendan Smialowski-Pool/Getty Images

    It's been more than four years since the giant investment bank Bear Stearns collapsed, and the banking system is still in trouble — but bank stocks have been soaring recently. Facebook is making its biggest purchase yet, as it gears up to go public. This Sunday is the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, and Belfast, Northern Ireland is hoping to become the center of Titanic tourism.

  • Turns out, many Americans who purchase a hybrid car end up going back to a non-hybrid the next time they hit the car lot.

  • There was one tiny bright spot to March's unemployment report: 164,000 fewer people were looking for work. One particular demographic that has dropped out of the search — Baby Boomers who are choosing to retire prematurely.

  • China correspondent Rob Schmitz reveals what he found on his recent trip inside a Foxconn factory. Sony is reportedly set to cut 10,000 jobs; it's the first major move by its new CEO. Investors are urging British grocer Tesco to ditch its U.S. chain of Fresh & Easy stores. Stove Top stuffing is trying to woo consumers year-round. And Mike Huckabee launches his syndicated radio show today, bringing new competition to Rush Limbaugh.

  • The Labor Department reports the U.S. economy added 120,000 jobs in March, a disappointing number compared to economists' expectations. Manufacturing, though, continues to play a major role in the U.S.'s economic recovery. Apple users got a wake-up call after 600,000 Macs were reportedly infected with a virus. AT&T workers could strike this weekend if negotiations fail. Youth unemployment in Europe is at dangerous levels. And a financial trader known as the "London Whale" is making a splash on Wall Street for making massive bets on complicated financial markets.

  • A couple walk past a closed down orthopedic shop on November 10, 2011 in Madrid, The current eurozone debt crisis has left Spain with crippling economic problems.
    Denis Doyle/Getty Images

    President Obama is slated to sign the JOBS Act into law later today. It's a plan to spur hiring by easing some regulations on small businesses looking for investors, and one provision legalizes something called "crowdfunding." In Spain, the debt crisis continues to worsen, leaving many worried that it will follow in the footsteps of troubled Greece. The Masters golf tournament starts today, and Tiger Woods is back on the heels of his first PGA win in two years.

  • General view of Rolls Royce at the Rolls-Royce Hamptons Brunch Produced By Rand Luxury on July 23, 2011 in Watermill, New York. What would it be like to be a billionaire for a day, complete with a chauffeured Rolls Royce?
    Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for Rand Luxury

    One New York Times reporter recently received the best assignment ever: to play billionaire for a day. We chat about what his day was like, and what surprised him.

Mid-day Update