A lack of cash has forced many consumers to charge food and gas on their credit cards, building a dangerous personal debt. Scott Jagow talks to economics professor Steven Fazzari about where this could lead.
The price of oil hit $133 a barrel today. What we want to know is who's pocketing the extra money we're all paying to fill our tanks? Bob Moon tried to find the answer.
Lenders are selling off thousands of houses they've foreclosed on for pennies on the dollar. And now the neighborhoods where those homes are located are crumbling. Mhari Saito reports from Cleveland.
This week we're asking three future economists a simple question. Why take up a discipline that's been called the dismal science? For Andra Ghent it's because in a world full of idealists, economists are the hard-boiled truth-tellers.
The Labor Department says businesses paid more for goods at the wholesale level last month — and that's not counting food and energy. If businesses are paying higher prices for everything else, eventually the rest of us will, too. John Dimsdale reports.
The Conference Board's report of 10 leading economic indicators is forecasting an economy that will show some minimal growth in the next several months. Meantime, a survey of economists is predicting anemic growth. Nancy Marshall Genzer reports.
Fannie Mae, one of the big government-backed mortgage financers, is trying to jump-start the flagging real estate market. It's lowering downpayment requirements for neighborhoods where home prices were falling. John Dimsdale reports.
Demand for gas may be dropping, but worldwide demand for diesel is increasing. And prices have risen nearly three times as fast as for regular gas. So refiners are going all out to boost production. Sam Eaton reports.
Visiting Saudi Arabia, President Bush asked the Saudis to open the taps on their oil production a little wider. The Saudis said sure, they'll boost production, but they'll decide how much. Jeremy Hobson reports.
Economists are forecasting a modest rise in unemployment numbers, but is it enough to call it a recession? Economics editor Chris Farrell tells Bob Moon the numbers indicate a downturn won't be too deep.
