Stores face buying season but consumers wary

The bottom line is that “consumers will buy what is cheap but do not have deep pockets for the impulse sales that drive the holiday,” Steven Ricchiuto, chief economist at Mizuho Securities in New York, said | 12/14/11 13:07:47 By - Diane Stafford, Mark Davis and Steve Everly

Congress is stymied, as usual, on year-end must-do list

President Barack Obama and a bitterly divided Congress have 18 days to figure out whether to continue a Social Security payroll tax cut, avoid a huge drop in Medicare payments to doctors and maintain many unemployment benefits. But Tuesday no one knew where the two warring political parties could find common ground. | 12/13/11 18:52:00 By - David Lightman

With U.S. awash in dollar coins, Obama to cut production

The federal government has too much money on its hands. That may be surprising, especially since the government is flat broke, with a $15 trillion national debt. But it's also awash in shiny one-dollar coins, with more than a billion of them going unused by the public and piling up at bank vaults across the country. | 12/13/11 16:42:37 By - Rob Hotakainen

Buyers can build homes for less in 2011

New homes cost less to build this year than in 2009, according to a national survey, and local builders say that some lower construction costs and smaller profit margins are making homes more affordable for buyers, who are slowly starting to make the decision to build. | 12/13/11 13:15:51 By - Adva Saldinger

Malaysian company says Miami casino won't be largest in the world

The Malaysian company pushing for a massive resort on the Miami waterfront said Monday it does not want to put the world’s largest casino there, calling that idea a “myth.” | 12/13/11 12:49:21 By - Douglas Hanks

Texas projects a $1.6 billion surplus in recovery

After a long run of tough times brought on by a sour economy, Texas lawmakers got some good news Monday as the state's chief fiscal officer projected a $1.6 billion surplus that could provide a much-needed financial cushion for the next session of the Legislature. | 12/13/11 12:07:42 By - Dave Montgomery

Southwest buys 150 new Boeing 737s

Southwest Airlines announced Monday morning that it will buy 150 Boeing 737 MAX and that it will be the first customer to receive the new re-engined aircraft in 2017. | 12/13/11 12:05:10 By - Andrea Ahles

Tom Brokaw: 'Greed and excess' led to Great Recession

Retired NBC “Nightly News” anchor Tom Brokaw congratulated the nearly 2,700 students who picked up their degrees from the University of South Carolina Monday by challenging them to rely more on their humanity and less on emerging technology to meet today’s challenges. | 12/13/11 07:23:16 By - Wayne Washington

Cuba shows U.S. its response plans in case of oil spill

As Cuba prepares to embark on a new round of exploratory offshore drilling, U.S. officials are slightly more enlightened about the island nation's plans in the event of a catastrophic oil spill on the scale of last year's Deepwater Horizon explosion. | 12/12/11 18:30:00 By - Erika Bolstad

Competition for pet medicines may drive up vet bills

It has been years since the entry of mail-order veterinary pharmacies, which have since morphed into online merchants like Wisconsin-based Foster & Smith. But in 2010, Target launched its PetRX pilot program in more than 100 stores in Georgia, North Carolina, Georgia and Minnesota, and other retailers are getting into the business. | 12/12/11 16:14:03 By - Barry Schlacter

Body scanners finding plenty of creative uses in U.S.

If Doug McMakin's latest experiment is successful, it's going to save travelers some time and hassle at the airport someday soon. | 12/11/11 00:01:00 By - Rob Hotakainen

Europe takes a big step on debt, EU integration

European leaders closed a pivotal week Friday with an agreement in principle to join a new treaty that would force all but one European Union nation into common budget discipline and would empower EU courts to enforce the new rules. | 12/09/11 17:55:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Jobs bill would encourage new business startups, senators say

Debate over how to create jobs has, unsurprisingly, become mired in the politics of 2012. But two lawmakers on Thursday offered what they say is a bipartisan solution. | 12/08/11 16:57:00 By - David Goldstein

Senate Republicans block Obama nominee to head consumer finance agency

As expected, Senate Republicans on Thursday blocked a confirmation vote on President Barack Obama's choice to lead the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. | 12/08/11 16:21:00 By - Tony Pugh

South Carolina economy looking good for 2012

More workers will find jobs, employees will get raises and modest homes could increase slightly in value in South Carolina next year, according to economists at USC | 12/08/11 13:41:25 By - Jeff Wilkinson

Former Sen. Corzine testifies about collapse of investment bank MF Global

The disgraced former CEO of failed investment bank MF Global told Congress on Thursday in testimony compelled under subpoena that he has no idea where a missing $1.2 billion went and insisted that he never instructed anyone to misuse customer funds. | 12/08/11 12:12:04 By - Kevin G. Hall

KFC, Taco Bell parent company Yum avoided state taxes for three years

The Louisville-based parent of such companies as Kentucky Fried Chicken and Taco Bell paid no net corporate income taxes to states over the past three years, even as it generated more than a billion dollars in profits for shareholders, according to a new report. | 12/08/11 08:38:38 By - Linda B. Blackford

Study: Glass ceiling for women in business remains intact

A new UC Davis study suggests that the glass ceiling remains firmly in place for female executives in California … and likely will stay there for a long time. | 12/08/11 06:52:04 By - Mark Glover

Merrill Lynch fined for violating cotton-speculation limits

A key financial regulator said Wednesday that it had fined Wall Street powerhouse Merrill Lynch $350,000 for violating rules that limit how many speculative contracts it can hold in markets where bets are made on the price of cotton for future delivery. | 12/07/11 17:35:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Post-eviction, Occupy Wall Street movement stays engaged

Since police evicted Occupy Wall Street activists from Zuccotti Park on Nov. 15, one new place has become increasingly important to organizing their daily operations: an office 12 floors above the sidewalks of Manhattan's financial district a short walk from the New York Stock Exchange. | 12/07/11 15:13:00 By - Gianna Palmer

In lofty speech, Obama appeals for a new commitment to a fair America

President Barack Obama cast the national debate and developing 2012 presidential campaign Tuesday as a battle between two visions of the economy, government and society. “The free market is the greatest force for economic progress in human history. It’s led to a prosperity and standard of living unmatched by the rest of the world,” Obama told an audience of about 1,200 in a high school gym in Osawatome, Kansas. | 12/06/11 19:43:56 By - Steven Thomma

Jobless take their grievances directly to Congress

America's unemployed workers brought their message of frustration and despair directly to the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday as they filled the congressional offices of dozens of lawmakers and refused to leave until they met with their elected representatives. | 12/06/11 19:18:00 By - Tony Pugh

Pa. revenue from Marcellus Shale less than expected

A re-evaluation of state personal income tax returns has shown Pennsylvania received much less tax money than it expected from natural gas royalties. | 12/06/11 11:33:52 By - Cliff White

Shell oil to unveil massive icebreaker ship in Alaska

A longtime Shell contractor has nearly completed a massive, customized icebreaking ship for the company's drilling projects in the Chukchi Sea off Alaska. | 12/06/11 11:05:20 By - Lisa Demer

Obama to echo Theodore Roosevelt in a big thematic speech on Tuesday

Franklin Roosevelt had the New Deal. Harry Truman had the Fair Deal. John Kennedy had the New Frontier. Now President Barack Obama takes his stab at wrapping his presidency under one great mantle. | 12/05/11 19:12:00 By - Steven Thomma

Europe confronts its debt crisis in key meetings this week

After months of dithering and false starts, Europe faces a pivotal week as investors await a credible last-ditch solution to its debt crisis. The outlines of a potential solution emerged Monday, and how the rest of the week plays out will have significant bearing on ordinary Americans as well as Europeans. | 12/05/11 17:43:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

When a thief steals your ID, and IRS refund

Without a hitch, Miami natives Ed and Kelley Brill had filed their joint income-tax returns from the same home address for 14 years. But this year, after obtaining an extension, the Miami Shores couple were shocked to learn that the Internal Revenue Service had rejected their electronically filed return. It turned out that a thief had stolen Kelley’s identity, Social Security number and employer’s name, then filed a falsified refund claim — beating the Brills to the punch | 12/05/11 14:14:10 By - Jay Weaver

Nightmare: squatters claim more than $8 million in Fort Worth properties

While county officials were asleep at the wheel, Tarrant County, Texas, became a magnet this year for an odd assortment of squatters claiming other people's houses all over the area. | 12/05/11 13:35:25 By - Yamil Berard

Shell Oil bets billions on Arctic Alaska plan

Standing in front of a brightly colored, 3-D image of the geology far below the floor of the Chukchi Sea, Steve Phelps pointed to the "giant opportunity" that has prompted Shell Oil to pour billions of dollars into the Alaska Arctic. | 12/05/11 06:46:35 By - Lisa Demer

Unemployed and liberal groups to hold protests in D.C.

Roughly 3,000 unemployed workers from around the country are expected in the nation's capitol next week for four days of protests with labor, religious and social justice groups that say Congress cares more about America's wealthiest 1 percent than it does the masses of struggling middle-class families. | 12/02/11 17:53:00 By - Tony Pugh

Battered Europe looks to Brazil, which has its own problems

The prospect of Brazilian aid to Europe offers the latest indication that the financial world as Americans have known it has been turned on its head. Developed nations are producing financial crisis and political paralysis while emerging markets are widely seen as sources of uplift and stability. | 12/02/11 17:19:00 By - Vinod Sreeharsha

Despite partisan divide, Congress likely to extend payroll tax cut

Sometime just before Christmas, Congress is expected to approve extending this year's 2 percentage point Social Security payroll tax cut and to stave off a huge cut in Medicare payments to doctors. It also may extend expiring federal unemployment benefits. But first, lawmakers have to figure out how to pay for all this. | 12/02/11 15:55:00 By - David Lightman

Jobless rate drops sharply to 8.6 percent in November

The surprising drop in November's unemployment rate to 8.6 percent overshadowed what may be a more significant positive trend, a sharp upturn in hiring by the nation's small businesses. Overall, U.S. employers added 120,000 jobs in November, according to a Labor Department report. | 12/02/11 08:51:25 By - Kevin G. Hall

Railroads, unions reach deal to avoid pre-Christmas strike

The nation's freight railroads and two labor unions representing 26,500 railroad employees reached a tentative agreement Thursday to avoid a strike that threatened to halt shipments of consumer goods three weeks before Christmas. | 12/01/11 23:17:00 By - Curtis Tate

Tax hike awaits if Congress doesn't act

If Congress doesn't vote to extend a payroll tax cut by Dec. 31, Democrat Patty Murray warned Thursday, a Washington state family with a yearly median income of $56,000 will pay an additional $1,130 in taxes next year. | 12/01/11 19:35:07 By - Rob Hotakainen

Did banks illegally foreclose on active-duty troops?

The U.S. Treasury Department is investigating whether Bank of America, Wells Fargo and eight other major banks may have illegally foreclosed on about 4,500 active-duty servicemen and women. | 11/30/11 18:36:50 By - Franco Ordonez

Amazon, eBay face off over state sales taxes

Capitol Hill clash between Amazon.com and eBay complicates California's hopes for an online sales-tax fix. The fight flared Wednesday, underscoring how big differences between the Internet sales giants stand in the way of congressional efforts to help California and other states collect hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes. | 11/30/11 18:19:00 By - Michael Doyle

Sudan says it will seize South Sudanese oil as talks fail

Sudan vowed Wednesday to confiscate a portion of South Sudan's oil as it passes through a pipeline in Sudan as talks between the countries failed to produce any agreement on how to split oil revenues. | 11/30/11 18:05:00 By - Alan Boswell

Video: Speculators driving up the price of cotton

Texas cotton grower Brad Heffington's been sidelined from the cotton futures market, thanks to a surge of financial speculators into the market, which originally was designed to protect farmers like him against price shifts. | 11/30/11 17:02:33 By -

Speculators drive cotton price volatility, hurting farmers and consumers

Texas cotton grower Brad Heffington speaks Wall Street's language of hedges, correlation charts and the like as easily as he discusses weevils and pesticides. Yet today his financial knowledge is of limited use. | 11/30/11 15:16:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Coordinated central bank moves prompt monster stock rally

A surprise coordinated move Wednesday by the Federal Reserve and five other central banks to keep credit flowing amid the worsening debt crisis in Europe sparked a huge rally on Wall Street, but experts doubted the momentum would hold. | 11/30/11 13:14:51 By - Kevin G. Hall

Obama hits the road to tout a tax-cut plan Republicans seem to like

President Barack Obama jets to Scranton, Pa., on Wednesday to ramp up pressure on Congress to extend and perhaps expand a payroll tax cut for another year — a move that Senate Republicans suggested Tuesday could happen, at least the extension. | 11/29/11 19:12:00 By - Lesley Clark and David Lightman

Can coal plants afford EPA's new air-toxics rule?

America has never had a nationwide limit on mercury and other toxic emissions from coal-fired power plants. That's about to change, though, and it will cost companies such as American Electric Power, which runs the Tanners Creek power station here on the Ohio River, billions of dollars. | 11/29/11 14:43:00 By - Renee Schoof

Peanut butter prices going up

Peanut butter is disappearing from some food bank shelves, particularly in the Midwest, as peanut butter manufacturers raise their wholesale prices by 20 percent to 40 percent. | 11/29/11 13:54:57 By - John Gillie

In Modesto, Calif., latinos hit hardest by foreclosures

Latinos in Stanislaus County are nearly four times more likely to have lost their homes to foreclosure than homeowners nationwide. And black and Asian-American homeowners in the county haven't fared much better, a study on foreclosures shows | 11/29/11 13:38:51 By - J.N. Sbranti

Huge solar plant proposed in Fresno County, California

A subsidiary of the multinational Sharp Corp. is looking to build what would be one of the state's largest solar energy plants in western Fresno County. | 11/29/11 13:02:24 By - Kurtis Alexander

Chiquita relocating headquarters to Charlotte, N.C.

Chiquita Brands International will move its global headquarters to Charlotte, lured by $22.7 million in state and local incentives. The company is set to bring 417 jobs to the city. It | 11/29/11 12:51:10 By - Ely Portillo

American Airlines files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

American Airlines' parent company, AMR Corp., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Tuesday morning and its chief executive, Gerard Arpey, has retired. The Fort Worth-based carrier said it will continue to operate a normal flight schedule for American Airlines and its regional subsidiary, America Eagle, while it is reorganizing in bankruptcy. | 11/29/11 08:26:16 By - Andrea Ahles

Shepherd of financial regulation law Barney Frank to retire at crucial time

The surprise announcement Monday by long-serving Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., that he won't seek re-election to the House of Representatives will give opponents of new financial regulation more room to seek a rollback of important curbs on big banks and powerful financial firms. | 11/28/11 18:20:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Alaska's film industry subsidy program draws questions

In the winter woods of Kincaid Park, an Anchorage police detective played by Jon Voight tells a greasy kidnapper to let the child go. Voight's breath steams in the cold. Crack! One gunshot. Then another. | 11/28/11 06:33:13 By - Kyle Hopkins

Insurance customers in North Carolina irked by policy linking

This year, two of the most popular underwriters of homeowners insurance policies in North Carolina - Allstate and N.C. Farm Bureau - have adopted underwriting guidelines that link homeowners policies with auto policies across the state. | 11/25/11 07:20:53 By - David Ranii

Salvation Army’s Season Passes alert bell ringers that you’ve donated

You’ve been there before. You drop a buck or two in the Salvation Army kettle outside the hardware store. You dig into your pocket again as you walk by the gal ringing the bell at the mall. Then when you pass by the guy collecting donations outside the grocery store, you want to tell him you gave twice already in the last hour.

Such is the reason for the Season Pass button being sold by the Kansas and Western Missouri Division of the Salvation Army. Give $20, pin the button to your coat, and smile without shame the next time you pass a red kettle. It’s an idea borrowed from the Salvation Army in western Wisconsin, where it was dubbed a guilt-free button.

“So many people aren’t carrying cash anymore,” said Amanda Waters, the Salvation Army’s community relations director. “You feel kind of bad if you don’t have money. … This is kind of a pass.”

The buttons can be bought at Hy-Vee supermarkets, Roger’s Sporting Goods in Liberty and DealBug.com.

Elsewhere around the country this year, the Salvation Army is taking credit-card payments at test sites in Dallas, San Francisco, Chicago and New York. The organization has teamed up with Square, a mobile payments startup that has a little card-reader that plugs into smartphones and other mobile devices. | 11/25/11 07:08:15 By - Scott Canon

Despite public disgust, lawmakers are likely to stay gridlocked

Why don't Washington lawmakers understand that the public hates Congress? Don't they worry that debacles like this week's supercommittee failure are likely to mean political peril for incumbents? No. | 11/23/11 16:04:00 By - David Lightman

Supercommittee failure creates new headwinds limiting economic growth

This week's failure by Congress to reach a deficit-reduction deal is likely to have negative short-term and longer-term economic consequences. The failure puts more headwinds in front of the sluggish U.S. economic recovery, whereas a successful deal would have created a significant tailwind to give it a boost. | 11/23/11 14:49:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Little guys pass on Black Thursday in San Luis Obispo, Calif.

Black Thursday is replacing Black Friday among national retailers hoping to get a jump on holiday shopping, but local merchants say it doesn’t make sense for them to open early on Thanksgiving Day and try to compete with the big-box stores. | 11/23/11 13:49:31 By - Stacy Daniel

Occupy Boise plans wandering 'consumer zombies' for Black Friday

Members of the 75-person Occupy encampment on the grounds of the Old Ada County Courthouse in Boise plan to send "consumer zombies" out to wander among Boise shoppers on Friday in silent protest of what they consider unnecessary consumerism. | 11/23/11 13:12:20 By -

Kansas Gov. Brownback says he'll fight to keep Boeing in Wichita

Gov. Sam Brownback said he and the state’s congressional delegation "will fight and fight hard" to keep Boeing in Wichita, and he said he would remind Boeing officials of the promises they made while he and others fought to secure a massive aerial refueling tanker contract. | 11/23/11 07:05:47 By - Brent D. Wistrom

Feds consider new labels on wine

Read the label on that Thanksgiving bottle of wine now chilling in the fridge. It might get edited, if federal regulators step in. One proposal that worries major U.S. winemakers in the vineyard-rich state of California could impose stricter definitions on label terms such as "estate," "reserve" and "vineyard." | 11/22/11 16:49:00 By - Michael Doyle

Thanksgiving myth: It's the worst travel day

Thanksgiving myth: The November holiday is consistently the worst time of the year for travel. Thanksgiving truth: It’s reputation is worse than the reality. | 11/22/11 14:17:04 By - John Gillie

How to survive the Thanksgiving trip home to Miami

Travelers this holiday week won’t have much to be thankful for — at least not where their trip is concerned. The AAA holiday forecast predicts a 4 percent increase in travel compared to 2010 over the long Thanksgiving weekend, which starts Wednesday. | 11/22/11 13:44:06 By - Hannah Sampson

Congress starts blame game; N.C lawmakers react

North Carolina's congressional delegation expressed frustration and shame Monday after a special bipartisan supercommittee failed to reach agreement on cutting at least $1.2 trillion from federal deficits. | 11/22/11 11:06:04 By - Franco Ordoñez

U.S., Britain tighten financial screws on Iran

The United States and its allies on Monday increased financial pressure on Iran with targeted sanctions on that nation's energy sector and central bank as further punishment for pursuing nuclear weapons technology. | 11/21/11 19:18:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Congress' supercommittee collapses in failure, stock markets plunge

The failure Monday of Congress' supercommittee — the bipartisan panel that was supposed to cut at least $1.2 trillion from looming federal deficits — will trigger a fresh series of partisan clashes over taxes, spending, Social Security and a host of other fiscal matters, clashes likely to be begin immediately. | 11/21/11 18:34:00 By - David Lightman and William Douglas

Poll: Glimmer of hope on economy, Obama's handling of it

A nearly 2-1 majority of voters think that President Barack Obama inherited, rather than caused, today's slumping economy, and more Americans trust him to create jobs than they do the Republicans in Congress, according to a new McClatchy-Marist poll. | 11/21/11 18:03:00 By - Lesley Clark

Highest income-inequality tract in America is gentrifying

The nation's newfound concern for income inequality and economic justice is old hat on the streets of Cincinnati's Over-the-Rhine neighborhood. For the last 40 years, crime, resident flight, unemployment and inadequate housing have made this poverty-stricken area the city's most downtrodden and feared neighborhood. | 11/21/11 15:17:00 By - Tony Pugh

Texas might cut Medicaid reimbursements

Therapy and physician groups in Texas are alarmed about proposed cuts in government healthcare reimbursement rates that they say would hurt the sickest and poorest Texas patients, most of them children. | 11/21/11 07:40:03 By - Darren Barbee

Is sex expo being unfairly targeted in Illinois?

Organizers of a sex convention say they are being unfairly targeted after aldermen said the city will check if event vendors have permits. STL3 Inc. has organized a "Spanksgiving" conference from today to Sunday at the Four Points by Sheraton hotel in Fairview Heights, Ill. for about 250 people who will explore bondage, discipline, sadism and masochism in sexual relationships. | 11/18/11 13:00:17 By - Jaqueline Lee

Unions join Occupy activists in mass protest marches across America

The Occupy Wall Street movement — looking to show staying power after losing prime real estate in various cities — got a boost of support across the country Thursday from labor and progressive organizations in what union organizers said is the most visible sign that they're working with the activists to press for change. | 11/17/11 19:30:00 By - Lesley Clark and Gianna Palmer

Poll: Public expects congressional supercommittee to fail

People have little confidence that Congress' supercommittee can reach agreement on how to cut at least $1.2 trillion from the federal deficit, according to a new McClatchy-Marist poll. | 11/17/11 18:11:00 By - David Lightman

House to vote Friday on a balanced-budget amendment to Constitution

The House of Representatives plans to vote Friday on a constitutional amendment mandating a balanced federal budget — an effort expected ultimately to fail, but one that could have lingering political impact. | 11/17/11 16:57:00 By - David Lightman

Report: Housing crisis has a long way to go

At least 2.7 million homes nationwide have been lost to foreclosure during the past five years, and more than 3 million more are at serious risk of being lost as well, according to a report released Thursday by the Center for Responsible Lending and Center for Community Capital at UNC Chapel Hill. | 11/17/11 14:00:26 By - Kerry Singe

Erskine Bowles, Alan Simpson aren't optimistic Congress can bite the bullet on debt

Though more optimistic than before, the co-chairmen of the president's deficit reduction panel said Wednesday night that there's a slim chance a congressional committee will "go big" and agree on a long-term solution to America's debt crisis. Erskine Bowles, along with fellow co-chair Alan Simpson, warned of dire consequences if the committee fails to agree on a deficit plan. | 11/17/11 07:18:41 By - Jim Morrill

In Charlotte, hunger rises as food donations dwindle

With just a week left until Thanksgiving, North Carolina's Mecklenburg County's network of food pantries is facing a crisis of too many hungry people and not enough food. | 11/16/11 18:29:05 By - Mark Price

Police interventions fire up Occupy protesters

As they prepare for a "national day of action" on Thursday, protesters from Seattle to New York are feeling energized, preparing to turn out perhaps the biggest crowds yet of the 2-month-old Occupy Wall Street movement. Unions and liberal groups are teaming up with Occupy groups across the country in an attempt to boost the turnouts. With thousands expected to participate, all eyes will be on the police, who have cracked down on protesters from coast to coast in recent days. | 11/16/11 17:56:00 By - Rob Hotakainen and Gianna Palmer

Bank of America starts layoffs

Layoff notices are going out to Bank of America employees this week, a sign the significant staff cuts announced as part of a company-wide initiative have begun. | 11/16/11 12:55:07 By - Andrew Dunn

Bank of America CEO Moynihan promises transparency on fees

Bank of America Corp.'s recent foray into debit-card fees - and the pullback that followed - illustrates the difficulties in today's financial sector, chief executive Brian Moynihan said Tuesday, adding: "We learned from the experience." | 11/16/11 07:21:55 By - Kirsten Valle Pittman

Green probe has guitar maker, Gibson, playing the blues

A fight between the Obama administration and iconic guitar manufacturer Gibson has reignited debate about just how much a U.S. company must know about its foreign trade partners and how much control it must exert over those from whom it buys. | 11/15/11 16:13:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

New book warns how to avoid Ponzi schemes

A book to be published Tuesday and written by a somewhat obscure federal regulator uses real-world examples of recent financial fraud to help investors protect themselves from those who'd prey upon them. | 11/14/11 19:00:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Deficit cutters target upper-income Medicare beneficiaries

In the scramble to come up with a deficit-reduction deal by Thanksgiving, members of Capitol Hill's supercommittee appear to have one group squarely in their crosshairs: high-income Medicare beneficiaries. | 11/14/11 15:55:00 By - Mary Agnes Carey and Marilyn Werber Serafini

Latin America better prepared to weather a slowdown in global economy

With jitters about the euro zone crisis spreading, fears that a Greek default may still be in the cards and the possibility of a slowdown in the Chinese economy, questions loom for Latin America and the Caribbean. | 11/14/11 15:10:39 By - Mimi Whitefield

Occupy Wall Street is many things, but one thing it's not is partisan

The Occupy Wall Street protest may be a movement, a momentary phenomenon or something in between, but one thing its most fervent activists insist that it's not is a team of shock troops for any partisan political campaign. | 11/13/11 13:14:00 By - Gianna Palmer

Clyburn at odds with fellow Democrats over Medicare cuts

House Assistant Democratic Leader Jim Clyburn has emerged as the defender of the poor and elderly on the deficit-reduction panel weighing deep spending cuts against a ticking clock, balking at a plan by other Democrats on the "supercommittee" because, he says, it trims Medicare too much. | 11/11/11 17:53:00 By - James Rosen

Pennsylvania farmers warn North Carolina farmers of shale gas drilling

Two Pennsylvania farmers who leased land to shale gas drillers in their state and dreamed of a big payoff painted a bleak picture of the gas industry Thursday. | 11/11/11 15:03:51 By - John Murawski

Obama administration delays decision on Keystone XL oil pipeline

A decision on whether to build a pipeline from Canada's oil sands to Texas will be delayed, probably until 2013, to allow time to consider rerouting a section in Nebraska, the State Department announced Thursday. | 11/10/11 18:52:00 By - Renee Schoof

U.S. economy remains at risk from European financial mess

Stocks around the globe returned to positive territory Thursday, a day after European worries sparked steep losses. Europe's woes, however, remain a clear and present danger to the fragile U.S. economic recovery. | 11/10/11 17:59:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Thanksgiving meal will cost 13% more with commodities run-up

It's going to cost a bit more to put a traditional Thanksgiving dinner on the table this year. It's a result of soaring costs for commodities that are raising prices for food makers, grocers and consumers. The costs for nearly everything from cranberries to pumpkin pie are up. But the biggest price hike is for the main course: a 16-pound turkey costs 4 percent more this year at $21.57. | 11/10/11 13:20:26 By -

NLRB documents shed light on Boeing fight in South Carolina

Lawyers for the federal labor agency fighting Boeing’s new factory in North Charleston, N.C., repeatedly joked among themselves about the dispute and exchanged a political cartoon portraying S.C. Sen. Glenn McConnell as a crass-speaking confederate soldier, according to internal documents released Wednesday. | 11/10/11 12:49:32 By - James Rosen

Hurricane Irene costs N.C. tobacco farmers $114 million

As their crops come in and they count their gains and losses, Eastern North Carolina farmers are finding that much of their profit this year was dried up by drought or blown away by Hurricane Irene. Even before the storm left North Carolina, growers and agricultural extension agents knew that Irene would hurt tobacco and cotton the worst, but they couldn't quantify the damage until the harvest. | 11/10/11 07:12:01 By - Martha Quillin

After GOP criticism, Christmas tree program farmers sought is suspended

Republican heat led the Obama administration Wednesday to suspend plans for a Christmas tree-promotion program that growers long had sought. | 11/09/11 19:30:00 By - Michael Doyle

Romney's plan would change Medicare fundamentally

Mitt Romney's plan to overhaul Medicare follows a familiar Republican prescription: Use the power of the marketplace to bring down costs and improve care. Yet such a move would change the nature of the popular program fundamentally, and it treads close to a House of Representatives Republican proposal that sparked controversy earlier this year. | 11/09/11 15:01:00 By - Mary Agnes Carey and Marilyn Werber Serafini

Supreme Court skeptical of California's slaughterhouse rule

Supreme Court justices carved into California's ban on the commercial slaughter of lame livestock Wednesday, leaving the state law's future in doubt. | 11/09/11 15:46:00 By - Michael Doyle

Christmas tree farmers hope ads will stem growth of artificial trees

The Christmas tree ad wars are about to heat up, albeit in a rather jolly way. Following an extended debate that pit one region against another, the Agriculture Department on Tuesday gave the green light to a new industry-funded Christmas tree promotion program. | 11/08/11 16:26:23 By - Michael Doyle

Peanut industry, allergy sufferers search for common ground

Farmers, scientists, politicians and lobbyists in Georgia, where roughly half the nation's peanuts are produced, are scrambling to do an image makeover of sorts on the politically embattled legume. | 11/08/11 12:38:00 By - Halimah Abdullah

82 year old parade will be held after all in Fresno, Calif.

The Fresno Christmas parade is back on. Last month, city officials pulled the plug on the parade, citing budget constraints. The parade costs $15,000 to $20,000.

A downtown fixture for decades, the annual parade draws hundreds every year. And downtown supporters did not want to let it die. | 11/08/11 12:11:49 By - Robert Rodriguez

Supreme Court to hear case on downed livestock

California's ban on the commercial slaughter of downed livestock will come before the Supreme Court on Wednesday, in a case that pits state vs. federal power. | 11/07/11 17:58:00 By - Michael Doyle

California dairies find going 'green' expensive

California's new greenhouse rules offer dairies two reasons to be thankful -- an exemption from the limits and a chance to make money by voluntarily cutting back climate-warming methane. But industry officials say it's unlikely that many dairies will get involved because it's too expensive to build a methane-capturing system. | 11/07/11 16:12:41 By - Mark Grossi

Poverty stalks a Fresno, Calif. neighborhood

Maria Cuevas and her 1 1/2-year-old son, Ethan, are regulars at her parents' home just north of downtown Fresno. The small but tidy bungalow near Belmont Avenue is where she lived until a year ago. How much longer these visits will continue, however, remains to be seen. | 11/07/11 16:07:05 By - Kurtis Alexander

Credit unions report uptick in accounts on Bank Transfer day

Credit unions in Charlotte and across the state reported a surge in new accounts this weekend tied to Bank Transfer Day. The social media-driven movement encouraged big-bank customers to close their accounts and join credit unions by Saturday. | 11/07/11 16:01:54 By - Kristin Valle Pittman

For GOP, Arizona mine a job-creating model on U.S. land

In 1955, Republican President Dwight Eisenhower signed an executive order that put a huge swath of rugged Arizona plateau off-limits to all future mining, a bow to recreationists and to American Indians who regard the site as sacred. Fifty-six years later, Republicans in the House of Representatives have another idea in mind. | 11/07/11 15:04:00 By - Rob Hotakainen

Thousands surround White House in protest of Keystone oil pipeline

On a sunny, cloudless day, thousands of protesters encircled the White House Sunday in a show of numbers intended to persuade President Barack Obama to stop a proposed oil pipeline from being built. Organizers estimated that the crowd exceeded 10,000 people. | 11/06/11 18:34:00 By - Daniel Lippman

In Washington state's capital, Occupy protesters coexist with businesses

As Occupy Olympia settles into its fourth week at downtown’s Heritage Park, public agencies and nearby businesses are settling into a routine, too – checking daily or weekly to see how things are progressing at the site or serving hot beverages to those trying to get out of the cold. | 11/06/11 10:36:53 By - Rolf Boone

G-20 summit ends with Europe bailout plan unfinished

Leaders of the world’s most-industrialized nations ended two days of turbulence here, unable to finalize a bailout plan for struggling European Union economies but inching forward on steps designed to prevent a financial crisis from spreading. | 11/04/11 13:48:18 By - Lesley Clark and Kevin G. Hall

South Carolina state retirees take a big hit

The South Carolina State Budget and Control Board voted Thursday to cut retirement benefits for the state’s 137,500 retired teachers, police officers and state employees – the first shot in what is sure to be an emotional battle over the state’s debt-ridden retirement system. | 11/04/11 13:04:44 By - Adam Beam

Scrutiny of founder imperils shoe charity out of North Carolina

Stop in a fitness club, shoe store or church around the Triangle and you're likely to see the purple-and-white "SOS" boxes that collect used shoes for the needy. Jennifer Pierce of Raleigh saw her nonprofit take off when a devastating earthquake hit Haiti in January 2010. But media attention now has brought something else - a spotlight on Pierce. | 11/04/11 12:57:02 By - Dan Kane

Macon's holiday cheer filched by copper thieves

Macon’s traditional downtown Christmas decorations testify through their tatters that the Grinch never sleeps. | 11/04/11 12:26:09 By - Jim Gaines

Some Californians switching from banks to local credit unions

Fed up with rising fees, frustrated customers of national banks are closing their accounts. In particular, credit unions – which are nonprofit organizations – are benefiting from the consumer frustration, with an estimated 650,000 people joining credit unions nationwide since Sept. 29 and shifting $4.5 billion into new savings accounts, according to the California Credit Union League. | 11/04/11 11:56:43 By - Bethany Clough

Recession fears ease as jobless rate drops to 9 percent

Employers added 80,000 jobs in October and the unemployment rate fell one-tenth of a percentage point to 9 percent, the government said Friday in a monthly jobs report that was again dragged down by more government job losses. | 11/04/11 08:58:11 By - Kevin G. Hall

IMF may take role in Europe crisis as G-20 leaders resume talks

George Osborne, Britian's Chancellor of the Exchequer, told BBC Radio that negotiations on boosting contributions to the IMF were ongoing, though whether individual countries would be asked to increase their contributions had not been determined. The U.S. has suggested that the IMF should use its existing resources, saying that it's been bolstered since the U.S. financial collapse. | 11/04/11 08:05:22 By - Lesley Clark

Bank of America considers issuing new common shares

Bank of America is considering issuing up to 400 million new common shares as part of an exchange for preferred stock, a move the bank says is a way to reduce dividend expenditures while increasing capital on favorable terms. | 11/04/11 07:30:44 By - Andrew Dunn

Occupy protesters declare Goldman Sachs guilty, get arrested

In the latest round of demonstrations calling for corporate accountability, 16 Occupy Wall Street protesters were arrested in front of the global headquarters of Goldman Sachs in lower Manhattan. | 11/03/11 20:26:00 By - Gianna Palmer

Europe debt action back on course after Greeks abandon vote

Leaders of the world's most industrialized nations, gathered here for the annual G-20 summit, scrambled Thursday to rescue a European Union deal to restructure Greek debt and prevent a regional financial crisis from spreading and creating further global economic disruption. | 11/03/11 18:40:00 By - Lesley Clark and Kevin G. Hall

Despite label as do-nothing Congress, Boehner boasts of changing debate

House Speaker John Boehner, looking confident and even relaxed, sounded very much like someone ready to compromise on the biggest fiscal issues of the day | 11/03/11 17:44:00 By - David Lightman

As Greece woes ebb, other Eurozone problems surface

While storm clouds in Greece appeared to lift Thursday with political compromise, the broader European Union still faces numerous threats as other struggling economies such as Italy's remain in danger. | 11/03/11 16:04:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

'Bank Transfer Day' garners attention

Bank Transfer Day, a social media-driven exhortation to leave big banks and join credit unions, is scheduled for Saturday and is gaining national attention. Created by an art gallery owner in California, the movement has recruited nearly 75,000 people who have RSVP'd to the group's event on Facebook. | 11/03/11 13:49:55 By - Andrew Dunn

Europe debt action back on course after Greeks abandon austerity vote

Leaders of the world’s most industrialized nations scrambled Thursday to rescue a European Union deal to restructure Greek debts and prevent a regional financial crisis from spreading and creating further global economic disruption. | 11/03/11 13:13:28 By - Lesley Clark and Kevin G. Hall

Obama meets with Sarkozy, Merkel as G-20 tries to solve Greek debt crisis

Warning that the "most important" task for world leaders gathered here is to find a way to resolve Europe's financial crisis, U.S. President Barack Obama huddled privately Thursday with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Prime Minister Angela Merkel on his arrival at the G-20. | 11/03/11 08:10:02 By - Lesley Clark

Bowles to debt panel: Don't 'fail the country'

Former University of North Carolina system president Erskine Bowles warned members of a congressional supercommittee Tuesday of an imminent economic disaster unless lawmakers act quickly to reduce the federal debt. And Bowles openly questioned whether the committee has the ability to do the job. | 11/02/11 17:29:08 By - Franco Ordoñez and David Lightman

Greek debt crisis overshadows G20 summit as Obama arrives

President Barack Obama and world leaders begin two days of pivotal meetings here Thursday, their gathering overshadowed by an unfolding Greek drama. | 11/02/11 19:15:00 By - Lesley Clark and Kevin G. Hall

There's many a gray head in Occupy Wall Street crowd

Vince Taylor doesn't fit the stereotype of unkempt twentysomething protesters at the Occupy Wall Street site in Manhattan, which was clear from the homemade canvas sign he held there. It read: "75 AND DISGUSTED." | 11/02/11 18:57:00 By - Gianna Palmer and Kate Howard

Bernanke: Growth outlook slows, jobless rate frustrating

For the third time this year, the Federal Reserve on Wednesday scaled back its economic growth forecasts for the next two years, projecting a slower economy and higher unemployment than it did back in June. | 11/02/11 17:56:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Washington state Gov. Gregoire: Prisoners needed to pick apples

Even after deploying 105 prison inmates this week to help pick apples in eastern Washington state, Gov. Chris Gregoire says growers still need from 3,000 to 4,000 workers to help harvest before the season's first major freeze. | 11/02/11 17:40:47 By - Rob Hotakainen

Obama demands passage of jobs bill but, again, it's not likely

President Barack Obama stood Wednesday before an aging Washington bridge and urged a bitterly divided Congress to approve his plan to boost infrastructure spending, but the effort is likely to be blocked Thursday in the Senate. | 11/02/11 17:16:00 By - David Lightman

Debit fees spark 'anti-big-bank' sentiments

Amid a consumer backlash that went as high as the White House, Bank of America on Tuesday became the latest bank to scrap plans to charge customers a monthly fee to use their debit cards. Consumer resentment against the fees is so great, in fact, that it triggered a viral, grassroots movement that calls for bank customers to shift their money to credit unions and community banks on Saturday, which has been dubbed "Bank Transfer Day." | 11/02/11 13:21:54 By - David Ranii

Harvest time in California's rice bowl

Virtually every piece of sushi made in America uses California rice. Its starchy grains offer just the right consistency. More than 95 percent of California's rice crop grows within 100 miles of Sacramento, with rice covering more than 580,000 acres. | 11/02/11 13:06:35 By - Debbie Arrington

G-20 leaders arrive in Cannes aiming to quell global economic turmoil

President Barack Obama and world leaders open two days of pivotal meetings in Cannes on Thursday, hoping to salvage a package to stabilize the European economy and prevent its woes from sparking a global recession and further weakening a shaky U.S. economy. | 11/02/11 10:41:07 By - Lesley Clark

Some Calif. water customers face 18% rate hike for using less

It doesn't seem fair — and to some it doesn't make sense. If you're worried about water bills and you use less water, you should get a lower bill, right? But that's not happening in the Carmichael Water District. | 11/02/11 06:48:18 By - Loretta Kalb

Congressional debt panel told to be bold or risk economic disaster

Experts from recent bipartisan debt-reduction commissions gave Congress' debt supercommittee stark, sobering warnings Tuesday about imminent economic disaster unless lawmakers act quickly and boldly to cut federal debt sharply. | 11/01/11 18:13:00 By - David Lightman

Global financial turmoil follows call for Greek debt referendum

Global stocks skidded Tuesday after a stunning about-face by Greece on a deal agreed to last week to quell the European Union's debt crisis, as investors and analysts scrambled to understand the impact on the U.S. and global economies | 11/01/11 18:08:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Wells Fargo tailors service to super-rich

Wells Fargo is launching a boutique business to serve families with at least $50 million in assets, an example of the banking industry's increasing focus on high-net-worth customers. | 11/01/11 12:40:38 By - Andrew Dunn

Bank of America cancels planned debit card fee

Facing continued pressure from consumers and big-bank competitors, Bank of America Corp. has eliminated its planned $5 debit card fee, the bank said today. | 11/01/11 12:37:26 By - Kirsten Valle Pittman

Wells Fargo creates servies for super-wealthy

Wells Fargo is launching a boutique business to serve families with at least $50 million in assets, an example of the banking industry's increasing focus on high-net-worth customers. | 11/01/11 07:17:15 By - Andrew Dunn

Coal is king on the rails now, but maybe not forever

A big part of what saved the freight rail industry from disaster lies not far beneath the rolling grasslands of eastern Wyoming. Coal still generates half the country's electricity, but railroads can make money hauling other goods, too, and they aren't spending hundreds of millions of dollars on new facilities to run more coal trains. | 10/31/11 15:39:00 By - Curtis Tate

How railroads came back from the brink and got ahead

More than three decades after the federal government deregulated freight railroads, the industry is enjoying "a new golden age," said Frank Wilner, the author of several books on railroad economics. After being left for dead in the 1970s, railroads reinvested nearly $10 billion in themselves last year, according to industry figures, and they haven't received taxpayer bailouts. | 10/31/11 15:33:00 By - Curtis Tate

What's what you're eating? Mobile app can tell you

Gatorade drinkers wondering about the calcium pantothenate in their favorite sports drink won't have to guess much longer. INRFOOD, a mobile application and website created by a group of Durham startups, will allow users to scan the bar codes of food products and see the ingredients. | 10/31/11 13:57:34 By - Tori Stilwell

Demand for truckers in Modesto, Calif. to last for the long haul

In an area with high unemployment and few opportunities, one profession has continued to have jobs for those willing and able to take the wheel. Trucking, which nationally saw an increase from 1.26 million employees to 1.3 million from July 2010 to July 2011, continues to have high demand for drivers, according to statistics from the U.S. Department of Labor. | 10/31/11 13:42:16 By - Marijke Rowland

Packs of abandoned dogs roam farming areas of South Miami

Starving and with bugs in their fur, six dogs scarf down plates of food on a weedy South Miami-Dade roadside. They stick together at a nursery in Homestead, malnourished and skittish, while neighborhood resident Mirta Maltes drives around and feeds as many as she can. These are only a few of perhaps a hundred in the area. | 10/31/11 13:31:26 By - Margaux Herrera

Report: Watermelons good for heart and health

Watermelon: It's not just for summer picnics any more. University of Kentucky researchers have been studying the fruit's juice and results show that it may be good for keeping your weight down and your heart strong. | 10/31/11 13:19:43 By - Cheryl Truman

Can talking too much about the economy bring it down?

Are all these media sirens, eager-for-airtime pundits and doom-saying Washington partisans rightly reacting to the real hardships that grip and depress us? Or are their columns, cable shows and blame sessions stirring such fear and anger, such hopelessness, that they only further the economic slump? | 10/31/11 13:09:17 By - Rick Montgomery

Kansas home weatherization funds diverted to bio-fuels industry

Kansas lost more than a thousand jobs and the chance to weatherize thousands of homes, thanks to a state-run loan program that rolled out too slowly. When it looked as if the state couldn’t meet a federal deadline, more than $20 million meant for weatherization loans went to a company and a nonprofit in the biofuels industry. | 10/31/11 07:17:22 By - Karen Dillon

Koch Industries is target of weekend protests

About 100 protesters marched on Koch Industries' headquarters near 37th North and Oliver in Wichita over the weekend. They chanted "Main Street, not Wall Street" and "Pay your share" as they marched. They also carried signs that explained why they were marching: "I Can't Afford to Buy My Own Politician. I'm part of the 99 percent," one sign said. | 10/31/11 07:09:57 By - Fred Mann

Alaska Gov. Parnell's natural gas-to-Asia plan has lawmakers intrigued

Alaska politicians are interested in Gov. Sean Parnell's push to try to export the state's natural gas to Asia rather than the Lower 48, with influential lawmakers saying the state should consider paying to help to make it happen. | 10/31/11 06:50:28 By - Sean Cockerham

Bank of America may pull back on debit-card fee

The bank may make it easier for debit-card users to avoid having to pay $5 a month. | 10/29/11 15:53:52 By - Kirsten Valle Pittman

Clyburn most active fundraiser on debt panel

Rep. Jim Clyburn is the most aggressive fundraiser on the special panel set up by Congress to slash the federal deficit, defying calls by government-watchdog groups to stop raising money while weighing huge spending cuts that will impact every economic sector. | 10/28/11 19:46:36 By - James Rosen

U.S. will lack muscle at eurozone crisis meeting

When President Barack Obama arrives in Europe for meetings next Thursday and Friday with leaders of the 20 most-industrialized nations, he'll have limited influence over deliberations on how Europe should proceed in fleshing out its new but incomplete debt-crisis plan. | 10/28/11 17:23:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Partisan divisions prevent Congress from passing jobs bills

After weeks of relentless presidential pressure and congressional votes and debate, the stalemate in Congress between Democrats and Republicans over jobs legislation shows no signs of easing. Partisan politics and deep philosophical differences just can't be bridged | 10/28/11 14:45:00 By - David Lightman

Bank of America derivatives transfer is criticized by Democrats in Congress

Lawmakers are criticizing Bank of America Corp. again, this time over the reported transfer of financial instruments from Merrill Lynch into the bank's deposit-taking arm. It's a move the lawmakers say could put taxpayers on the hook for big losses - three years after the bank received billions in bailouts from the federal government. | 10/28/11 07:15:03 By - Kirsten Valle Pittman

EPA chief meets with college clean-energy activists

College environmental activists met Thursday with Environmental Protection Agency chief Lisa Jackson to tell her what they're doing at their schools to try to shut down campus coal-fired heating plants. | 10/27/11 18:33:00 By - Renee Schoof

Europe averts financial disaster, but much remains to be done

The wee-hour compromise reached by European leaders Thursday was not as complete as it first appeared, and analysts say some of its key terms remain undefined, tenuous and could prove difficult to implement. | 10/27/11 18:27:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

U.S. economic growth gained traction in 3rd quarter

The threat of a double-dip recession eased Thursday with new government data that showed the U.S. economy grew at a 2.5 percent annual rate from June through September. While that's welcome news, the growth was still too weak to knock down the 9.1 percent unemployment rate. | 10/27/11 17:09:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Oil spill fund chief says he welcomes oversight

The administrator of a $20 billion fund to compensate victims of last year's Gulf of Mexico oil spill said he welcomes an independent audit of how much money has been paid out and what calculations were made to arrive at those payouts. | 10/27/11 16:34:00 By - Erika Bolstad

Billion-dollar LNG terminal in full production in Mississippi

In front of tanks already filled with liquefied natural gas, executives will cut the ribbon at the Gulf LNG Energy terminal at the Port of Pascagoula today to mark the completion of the $1.1 billion project. | 10/27/11 11:57:41 By - Donna Harris

GOP presidential candidates' tax plans would benefit the rich

The Republican Party is catching flat-tax fever — and setting up an epic election-year fight with Democrats over whether wealthier Americans should pay higher taxes or get tax cuts. | 10/26/11 19:13:00 By - Steven Thomma

European debt talks grind on as details remain unsettled

A compromise euro-debt plan partially hammered out Wednesday by European leaders amounts to an incomplete step forward, experts said, and thus is unlikely to end soon the region's widening debt crisis, which menaces U.S. and global financial markets. | 10/26/11 19:01:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Obama to block new uranium-mine claims near Grand Canyon

New uranium mining claims on 1 million acres around the Grand Canyon will be blocked for 20 years under a decision the Bureau of Land Management announced Wednesday. | 10/26/11 17:46:00 By - Renee Schoof

S.C. businesses soon to use E-Verify for their workers

Small businesses in South Carolina will soon have to verify all their workers are legal through an electronic verification system, and state authorities are ramping up efforts to make sure they know how | 10/26/11 11:52:37 By - Grant Martin

Debt panel to meet in public, but few signs of progress yet

The "supercommittee" of Congress charged with finding at least $1.2 trillion in federal deficit savings over the next decade will give the public a rare peek into its thinking Wednesday. | 10/25/11 18:08:00 By - David Lightman

Answers to questions about Europe's debt-deal scramble

European finance ministers on Tuesday scuttled a summit planned for Wednesday as they continued torturous negotiations in search of elusive consensus to address mounting debt woes. The longer they take to find a solution, experts said, the greater the risks grow for the U.S. and global economies. | 10/25/11 17:33:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Halloween meet the Internet: Angry Birds a costume hit

For Halloween this year, some adults are choosing to make the transformation to a video game bird or a sitcom star gone bad. Angry Birds and Charlie Sheen costumes are popular this year, said Alicia Simonton, store manager for Spirit Halloween in Warner Robins. | 10/25/11 13:24:51 By - Angela Woolen

Obscure local gauges can suggest big economic trends

If you don’t need a weatherman to know it stopped raining, will you need an economist to know when these hard times finally soften? Maybe not. Evidence about the health of the economy surrounds us daily, if we just bother to look. | 10/25/11 13:02:02 By - Mark Davis

Stores are doing 'Christmas creep'

Santa? In October? Yep, the "Christmas creep" has retailers displaying holiday merchandise earlier and earlier as they battle to win a share of deal-seeking customers' dollars. | 10/25/11 12:53:21 By - Bethany Clough

After 82 years,California Christmas parade canceled

For decades, a Christmas parade of floats, bands and marchers has been a downtown Fresno tradition, heralding the holiday season. But the parade has been canceled for this Christmas season, in what would have been its 82nd year. | 10/25/11 12:43:49 By - Paula Lloyd

Seeking a shale tax in Pennsylvania

As a statewide citizens’ group called for tighter environmental regulations to be imposed on drilling in the Marcellus Shale, a local protest demanded a gas severance tax to mitigate the imposition of higher income and real estate taxes. | 10/25/11 12:38:39 By - Cliff White

Tax breaks, incentives for companies in Florida haven't produced promised jobs

Florida has given tax breaks and other cash incentives to some of the world’s biggest companies in return for creating jobs. But, new data shows Florida has signed contracts worth $1.7 billion since 1995 in return for promises of 225,000 new jobs. But only about one-third of those jobs have been filled while the state has paid out 43 percent of the contracts. | 10/25/11 06:49:05 By - Michael C. Bender

Congress spars over tightening boiler-pollution rules

Congress is feuding over how quickly the federal government should move in trying to reduce deadly air pollution that comes from industrial boilers and incinerators. | 10/24/11 18:36:00 By - Rob Hotakainen

Administration revises program to boost mortgage refinancing

The Obama administration on Monday rebooted a failing effort to help some homeowners refinance their homes, making it easier for some who owe more than their house is worth to get a new loan. The new effort, however, stops far short of tackling broader problems weighing down the housing sector. | 10/24/11 17:08:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

How much should you spend on a Halloween costume?

It used to be that an inexpensive Halloween costume was one that came out of your parents' closets. Times have changed, and today buying a costume from a store or online is common. But how much should you spend? | 10/24/11 15:28:09 By - Kerry McCray

Stimulus money to prevent homelessness is dwindling in Fort Worth, Texas

More than 4,000 people were helped by area homeless prevention programs in Fort Worth, Texas, paid for by federal stimulus money that are now winding down, federal and state officials say. | 10/24/11 14:13:42 By - Alex Branch

Keep Your Home California program growing too slowly, critics say

A small but growing number of distressed homeowners in California are keeping their houses because of a state program funded with $2 billion in federal stimulus money. | 10/24/11 06:40:19 By - Rick Daysog

Global economic fate hinges on European finance talks

The fate of the global economy, European unity — and the 401(k) savings of ordinary Americans — all hang in the balance as Europe's leaders meet over the weekend to try to resolve a burgeoning debt crisis that threatens to spread globally. | 10/21/11 17:21:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

California birthrate lowest since Great Depression, state data show

California's birthrate tumbled last year to its lowest point since the Great Depression, new state figures show, yet another indication that the difficult economy is reshaping everyday life. | 10/20/11 15:28:34 By - Philip Reese

Jobs increasingly hard to find for disabled Americans

Disabled Americans who want to work face the dimmest job prospects in recent memory. More competition from non-disabled workers, employment discrimination and a sheer lack of jobs have pushed the jobless rate for disabled Americans to more than 16 percent. And the portion who are working has fallen to 21 percent from about 35 percent in the early 1980s, said Richard Burkhauser, a professor of policy analysis and management at Cornell University. | 10/20/11 14:45:00 By - Tony Pugh

Disability benefits program on unsustainable financial path

The leading safety-net program for America's disabled workers is in a financial death spiral in the aftermath of the Great Recession. The sour economy, weak eligibility standards and a wave of aging baby boomers are driving an explosive increase in the number of injured workers who get disability benefits through the Social Security Disability Insurance program. | 10/20/11 14:56:00 By - Tony Pugh

Closing of Kansas City flour mill reflects shift of work to coasts

The Kansas City area, once a national center for grinding wheat into flour and home to dozens of mills, has but two left. Three, if you count Excelsior Springs. The recent shuttering of the Archer Daniels Midland mill in North Kansas City marked another milestone in a generations-long trend. | 10/20/11 13:11:12 By - Scott Canon

Big shift taking place in home ownership rates

The real estate bubble and the subsequent burst in the past eight years has meant fundamental changes to the industry, but home ownership rates show some of those changes were taking place much earlier. | 10/20/11 12:45:02 By - Dave Gallagher

More people depending on food banks to put food on table

A national report, "Food Banks: Hunger's New Staple," recently released by Feeding America, indicates that food pantries have become more than just emergency food providers for needy families: They've become mainstays for people who wouldn't get enough to eat without them. | 10/20/11 12:27:55 By - Jennifer A. Bowen

Bank of America raising the bar for avoiding debit-card fee

As Bank of America's checking account options go through a transition, avoiding the $5 debit-card fee rolling out next year is set to get harder. In essence, customers will need $20,000 with the bank to avoid the fee instead of the $5,000 they'd need under options available today. | 10/20/11 07:41:05 By - Andrew Dunn

Citigroup settles for $285 million; no Wall Street exec jailed yet

Global banking giant Citigroup has agreed to pay $285 million to settle charges that it misled investors about a complex financial instrument tied to the now-crippled housing market, the Securities and Exchange Commission said Wednesday. | 10/19/11 18:47:00 By - Kevin G. Hall and Greg Gordon

Occupy Wall Street shares roots with tea party protesters - but different goals

At first glance, the Occupy Wall Street movement and the tea party movement appear to be polar opposites. One rails against, among other things, the overarching power of wealthy banks, the other assails the federal government's overreach into businesses and people's lives. But a closer look reveals that the two movements are as much alike as they are different, despite assertions by some backers of each that such comparisons are overly simplistic. | 10/19/11 17:24:00 By - William Douglas

Credit unions see rise with consumer fury at bank fees

Charlotte-area credit unions have seen an increase in phone calls and new members in the last two weeks as people upset about new fees at big banks look for new places to park their money. | 10/19/11 12:47:19 By - Andrew Dunn

Mississippi shrimpers say low catches are fishy

Data collected by the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources shows this to be an average to good year for shrimp, but about 100 shrimpers said Tuesday it’s the worst they can remember. | 10/19/11 12:40:29 By - Mary Perez

Debit card fee to encourage more bank use, Bank of America CEO says

Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said Tuesday that a recently announced $5 monthly debit-card fee is a way to encourage people to bring more of their "banking relationships" to the Charlotte-based bank. | 10/19/11 07:27:29 By - Andrew Dunn

Obama motors into Virginia from North Carolina, touting his jobs plan

President Barack Obama on Tuesday accused his Republican critics of trying to pull one over on voters by claiming that his bid to boost jobs will raise their taxes. | 10/18/11 18:42:00 By - Lesley Clark

Federal regulators vote to curb financial speculation in commodities

Big financial speculators will be limited in their ability to manipulate the price of oil and 27 other commodities under a set of new rules adopted Tuesday by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. | 10/18/11 18:12:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Bank of America posts third-quarter profit

Bank of America Corp. posted a $5.9 billion profit applicable to common shareholders in the third quarter, beating analysts' expectations, though the results were largely driven by one-time gains, from accounting changes to asset sales. | 10/18/11 11:33:45 By - Kristin Valle Pittman

Final rule on speculators likely too little, too late for critics

A final rule is expected Tuesday that would curb the ability of large financial speculators to manipulate the price of oil and 27 other commodities, and it's sure to anger critics since the long-delayed rule is unlikely to become effective until mid-2012. | 10/18/11 08:00:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Prohibition was a job-killer for Kentucky's bourbon makers

The idea that Kentucky could vote to ban alcohol seems almost unthinkable today. But historians say it was only typical of a period in which anti-alcohol fervor ran strong and dry forces successfully promoted Prohibition as a solution for many societal ills. | 10/17/11 19:20:02 By - Jim Warren

Wells Fargo posts record-setting quarter in earnings

Wells Fargo posted another record-setting quarter, earning $4.1 billion in the third quarter -- more than 20 percent higher than the same time period last year. | 10/17/11 13:24:09 By - Andrew Dunn

Pawn shops prospering in Sacramento, nationally

Pawn shops, once considered the seamy underside of commerce, have become a mainstream destination for individuals and small businesses looking to cope in today's economy. | 10/16/11 14:11:27 By - Mark Glover

Idaho's wine industry gaining ground

Idaho's Treasure Valley boasts more than half of the state’s 43 wineries, a tally that has nearly quadrupled since 2002, when the state had 11 wineries. | 10/16/11 14:06:00 By - Kristin Rodine

Small Kansas towns struggling

All across Kansas, budget cuts and a sagging economy are dealing blows to communities that have for more than a century survived floods, droughts, dust storms and school consolidations. | 10/16/11 13:32:42 By - Beccy Tanner

Millions of homes lurk on bank inventories, casting doubts of rebound

Officially, there are 3.5 million homes for sale nationwide. But there are millions more lurking in the shadows — hidden neatly away on banks' balance sheets, stalled in foreclosure court proceedings or simply occupied by nonpaying owners as lenders wait months or years before taking action. | 10/16/11 00:01:00 By - Toluse Olorunnipa

Slow to start, Occupy Wall Street hits Miami

Since Occupy Wall Street began on Sept. 17, protests have sprouted from Boston to Los Angeles and Detroit. In Miami, it has been slow to start, but participants expect at least 500 to descend Saturday for a rally. | 10/15/11 14:27:48 By - Lomi Kriel

As merger finalizes, Wachovia era ends

The conversion to Wells Fargo & Co. wraps up today and Monday, three years after the San Francisco bank snapped up Charlotte's Wachovia as it verged on collapse. | 10/15/11 13:20:07 By - Kirsten Valle Pittman

Treasury officials testify on controversial Solyndra loan

Congressional Republicans who question whether the Energy Department broke the law in the way it handled a loan for the California solar company Solyndra called in two senior Treasury Department officials Friday, but the officials didn't provide any evidence of illegal doings. | 10/14/11 19:02:00 By - Renee Schoof

Want an apple this year? Washington state governor to Congress: Help

While much of the talk on Capitol Hill is tough, with opponents of illegal immigration vowing to seal the borders, Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire said Congress should instead focus on a way to get more foreign workers to help with harvesting in Washington state, the nation's top producer of apples. | 10/14/11 17:14:00 By - Rob Hotakainen

Breast cancer fundraisers: Think before you buy pink

It's Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and that means a proliferation of pink. But for many it's also a time to exercise caution. Just because an item is pink or has a pink ribbon on it doesn't always mean a portion of the sales goes to a breast cancer organization, said Kim Irish, a program manager for San Francisco-based Breast Cancer Action. | 10/14/11 12:26:10 By - Bethany Clough

House bill would block EPA oversight of coal ash, leave it to states

Next up for Republicans in the House of Representatives who are seeking to curb the role of the Environmental Protection Agency is a vote Friday on a bill that would give states the power to monitor the disposal of coal ash from power plants. | 10/13/11 18:37:00 By - Renee Schoof

Final Wachovia bank sign coming down in Charlotte

The final Wachovia bank sign is coming down this morning in Charlotte - one of the final moves as Wells Fargo completes its merger with the company. | 10/13/11 11:30:00 By - April Bethea

Cain's 9-9-9 plan: Good for the rich, bad for the poor

Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain's proposed 9-9-9 tax plan would shift the tax burden in the United States, raising taxes on the poor while cutting taxes for the wealthy. | 10/12/11 19:37:00 By - Steven Thomma

Senators urge House to pass China sanctions bill

A bipartisan group of senators from states hit especially hard by the economy on Wednesday hailed Senate passage of a bill that would impose trade sanctions on China if Beijing doesn't stop propping up the yuan. | 10/12/11 18:53:00 By - James Rosen

Washington State apples, potatoes get boost from trade deals

Ending a long stalemate, Congress was expected to pass three new trade agreements Wednesday evening, signing off on deals with South Korea, Colombia and Panama in an attempt to increase U.S. exports and create more jobs. | 10/12/11 18:35:00 By - Rob Hotakainen

Democrats losing patience with Obama over foreclosures

Unhappy California lawmakers on Wednesday escalated pressure on the Obama administration to aggressively aid the state's distressed homeowners. | 10/12/11 18:01:00 By - Michael Doyle

3 trade deals advance, open door to more in future

Business groups hailed Wednesday the expected congressional passage of long-delayed free-trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama, hoping that the action signals a new opening for U.S. exports to Asian markets. | 10/12/11 17:24:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Packers to pay record price for California raisins

Fewer acres, higher demand and competition from the region's wineries pushed the raisin industry's packers to pay a record $1,700 a ton for the 2011 crop. | 10/12/11 16:49:17 By - Robert Rodriguez

Young would-be farmers have a tough row to hoe

The average age of the American farmer has been rising for decades and now is edging toward 60, as rural youth traded work in soil for work in offices. But even as interest in operating farms has returned, the next generation of food producers faces severe economic hurdles to breaking ground. | 10/12/11 16:01:00 By - Gabriel Silverman

Bank of America to reimburse gay employees for extra tax costs on health care

Bank of America will soon reimburse gay employees who insure same-sex partners for the extra federal taxes they pay on health coverage. | 10/12/11 07:21:45 By - Andrew Dunn

China will displace U.S. as top exporter by 2025, HSBC warns

An HSBC forecast released Tuesday projects U.S. trade will rise by $4.4 trillion, up more than 62 percent, over the next 15 years, even as the U.S. share of the world market shrinks. The inaugural Trade Connections forecast by the London-based banking and financial group predicts that the U.S. share of the world market will fall from 11.3 percent (2010) to 9 percent by 2025. | 10/12/11 07:01:35 By - Mimi Whitefield

California farmers welcome free-trade deal

California farmers have waited a very long time for the three free-trade deals set for House approval Wednesday. They have also weighed in, a lot. | 10/11/11 17:31:27 By - Michael Doyle

More schools trying out computers — on kindergartners

A growing number of schools are embracing technology-infused approaches to teaching young students, which proponents say can allow children to move at their own paces and help educators manage larger classes as school budgets are being slashed nationwide. | 10/11/11 16:11:49 By - Jill Barshay

Boeing lobbyist calls NLRB lawsuit 'baseless'

The National Labor Relations Board’s lawsuit against Boeing, an action triggered by the company’s decision to build its new production line in right-to-work South Carolina instead of its unionized home of Washington state, is “meritless” and “baseless,” the company’s new South Carolina lobbyist said Monday following an appearance at the Columbia Rotary Club. | 10/11/11 07:21:32 By - Jeff Wilkinson

After immigration raid, California nursery questions U.S. policy

In recent months, Matsuda's nursery in Sacramento, Calif., has found itself in the cross hairs of the Department of Homeland Security, which under the Obama administration is cracking down on a growing number of businesses for hiring illegal workers. | 10/11/11 06:49:58 By - Stephen Magagnini

China, Europe moves on banks buoy stocks amid skepticism

Government actions in China and Europe on Monday raised hopes that the ongoing turmoil in the global banking sector may soon ease and that that will help lift a factor that has be weighing heavily against U.S. economic growth. | 10/10/11 17:57:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Nobel economics prize won by two American academics

Two American scholars Monday won the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for their separate research examining the cause-and-effect relationships between economic policies, such as tax cuts and interest rate hikes, and the broader economy. | 10/10/11 15:01:42 By - Don Lee

Hospice services growing in Medicare

In the past five years, hospice services have been the fastest-growing Medicare service — climbing an average of 10 percent per year, a Medicare spokeswoman says. Hospice costs in nursing homes have been soaring even faster during that time — up nearly 70 percent — often for care that wasn’t provided or wasn’t necessary, federal investigators say. | 10/10/11 14:20:18 By - John Dorschner

Families tighten belts as food prices soar

Food prices are up across the board, and there are multiple contributing factors. Experts say the biggest factors pushing food prices up are rising energy and transportation costs, as well as global demand for meat and dairy products. | 10/10/11 13:35:55 By - Katy Moeller

Long-term care is an afterthought for many

Recent studies show that much of the aging public remains in denial about the potential need for long-term care, which could wreak financial havoc on the baby boom generation's retirement years. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, more than 70 percent of people 65 and older will require some sort of long-term care, 40 percent of them in a nursing home setting. | 10/10/11 06:44:13 By - Anita Creamer

Calif. conservation groups feel effects of smaller budgets

Nonprofit conservation groups have preserved tens of thousands of acres of land in California — wild places where both hikers and animals roam. Now, some of them say the economic slump could force them to scale back. | 10/10/11 06:36:52 By - Matt Weiser

Employers add 103,000 jobs, easing fears of new recession

Better-than-expected employment numbers Friday eased recession fears, but experts warned that the economy remains vulnerable because employers are adding new jobs at an insufficient pace to make a dent in the high unemployment rate. | 10/07/11 12:05:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Thousands of Idaho acres once earmarked for development revert to agriculture

During the boom years that drove up Boise, Idaho, land and home prices, demand for new homes seemed endless. From about 2005 to 2007, many farmers sold out for cash, or committed portions of their land to developers. Now some of that land is going back into agriculture. | 10/07/11 11:42:36 By - Sandra Forester

U.S. added 103,000 jobs in September, easing fears of new recession

Employers added a better-than-expected 103,000 jobs in September, the government said Friday in a report that also showed job growth was not as weak as it appeared on first blush during the summer. | 10/07/11 08:44:08 By - Kevin G. Hall

Survey: Half of Texas doctors may drop Medicare if cuts enacted

Half of Texas physicians would consider withdrawing from the Medicare program if Congress allows a forthcoming deep cut in reimbursement payments, Texas Medical Association officials said Thursday. | 10/07/11 07:33:03 By - Alex Branch

Dallas holds 'Occupy Wall Street' style protest

Brenda Marrufo wants to make sure that her 4-year-old daughter has a good education and a bright future. That's why the 26-year-old Garland woman showed up Thursday morning to join growing protests against Wall Street -- this one in Dallas -- to call attention to what she and others say is corporate control and greed. | 10/07/11 07:27:55 By - Anna M. Tinsley

N.C. Sen. Hagan proposes corporate tax holiday to stimulate economy

North Carolina Sen. Kay Hagan Thursday introduced a bipartisan bill to entice U.S. corporations to bring home offshore profits at a sharply discounted tax rate — a move she said could help jump-start a stagnant economy. | 10/07/11 07:14:35 By - Rob Christensen

Demonstrators protest wars, Wall Street in nation's capital

A sun-soaked noon rally within blocks of the White House brought out hundreds of protesters Thursday to mark the 10th anniversary of the Afghanistan War. On Freedom Square, sign-carrying demonstrators banged drums, sang and cheered a series of fiery speeches by anti-war activists, who decried the federal government's continued funding of the Afghan and Iraqi wars while calling for cuts to social programs for the elderly, poor and people with disabilities. | 10/06/11 18:35:00 By - Tony Pugh

Key regulator calls for limits on speculation in commodities markets

Having failed earlier this year to impose congressionally mandated limits on excessive speculation in commodities markets, a key regulator on Thursday called on the Obama administration to immediately impose temporary limits on some Wall Street investments. | 10/06/11 17:45:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Economic signs point to improved hiring

For the first time in months, a host of indicators are pointing to an improving labor market ahead of the monthly jobs report from the government. The latest report from the Labor Department, coming Friday, is likely to cement the view that the U.S. economy is clear of another recession. | 10/06/11 15:21:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Betting on horses from a Keeneland bathroom? There's an app for that

This fall at Kentucky's Keeneland you will be able to bet while watching the horses in the paddock or standing in line for bourbon bread pudding. The track is rolling out its mobile betting application, FastBet, for everybody to use. | 10/06/11 12:52:20 By - Janet Patton

Bank fees are irking customers

Consumers don’t know why banks are raising fees for debit card use, but they know they don’t like it. | 10/06/11 12:30:48 By - Mary Perez

'Occupy Wall Street' spreads all the way to Anchorage

A woman in a boxy blue sedan waited at the light Wednesday on Anchorage's Sixth Avenue when she spotted the protesters along Town Square. Each held a sign. "The people are too big to fail." | 10/06/11 06:44:23 By - Kyle Hopkins

Democrats suggest paying for Obama's job plan with surcharge on millionaires

Senate Democrats, divided over how to pay for President Barack Obama's jobs plan, Wednesday tossed out the White House tax proposals and replaced them with one of their own: A tax increase on millionaires. | 10/05/11 17:28:00 By - David Lightman and Lesley Clark

Bank of America's debit card fee draws politicians' ire

Politicians have seized on Bank of America's newly announced $5 debit card fee, using it as an example of what they consider corporate greed at a time when populist anger against banks and Wall Street is on the rise. | 10/05/11 07:14:20 By - Andrew Dunn

Democrats' hearing criticizes mandatory E-Verify bill

Advocates for farmers and farmworkers warned federal lawmakers Tuesday against a mandatory employee-verification program, underscoring the high hurdles ahead. | 10/04/11 15:52:00 By - Michael Doyle

Glum Fed chief, grilled by GOP, predicts only modest economic boost

The Federal Reserve's latest effort to boost the economy through its holdings of government bonds is meaningful but will have only a modest effect, especially in light of ongoing global financial turmoil, Chairman Ben Bernanke cautioned Tuesday. | 10/04/11 10:49:35 By - Kevin G. Hall

With Obama jobs bill near dead, White House plans fall push for passage

With Republicans killing prospects for a comprehensive jobs bill, the White House is planning a fall strategy it hopes will wrangle enough GOP votes for a package some economists say would add as many as 1.9 million jobs to a sagging economy — at least temporarily. | 10/03/11 18:41:00 By - Steven Thomma and David Lightman

Supreme Court to decide if MDs can sue states over Medicaid

A challenge from physicians to California's proposed Medicaid reimbursement cuts prompted Supreme Court justices Monday to worry about a flood of similar lawsuits in the future. | 10/03/11 14:40:00 By - Michael Doyle

Washington state has big stake in Korean trade deal

While Kia imported its millionth vehicle from South Korea to Washington state's Port of Tacoma in August, Tacoma Mayor Marilyn Strickland wants to see more American cars exported to Seoul, the city where she was born in 1962. | 10/03/11 14:32:00 By - Rob Hotakainen

Lawsuit leaves large gas storage fields in Kansas unregulated

Knox says it's unsettling to know that because of a federal court decision last year, neither the state nor federal governments are inspecting the gas field near his home, or others holding thousands of times the amount of gas that caused havoc in Hutchinson. | 10/03/11 14:19:24 By - Dion Lefler

More seniors seek help to avoid hunger

Across the country, people 60 and older represent the fastest-growing demographic asking for charitable handouts of food. In the parlance of experts, they are among the "food insecure," the growing number of Americans, including 5 million older adults, for whom nutritious meals are either inaccessible or unaffordable | 10/03/11 13:44:06 By - Anita Creamer

Unemployment among young men in Idaho growing

Minh and Tony Le are brothers who took different career paths but landed in the same spot this year — in a growing pool of unemployed young men in Idaho. | 10/03/11 13:06:05 By - Audry Dutton

Why did the chicken cross the road? Here’s why

Many Americans may be surprised to learn that the humble chicken is now synonymous with international trade. | 10/02/11 14:18:31 By - Kevin G. Hall

SEC raps Moody's for revolving door in key post

The Securities and Exchange Commission rebuked Moody's Investors Service on Friday for failings that it said "may compromise" its compliance office, which is supposed to ensure the integrity of the firm's work. | 09/30/11 17:00:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

In South Carolina, free pasta for school fundraisers

The American Italian Pasta Co. — whose behemoth plant in Columbia churns out a full one-quarter of all the pasta consumed in the United States — is donating hundreds of pounds of its Mueller’s pasta to any public school in South Carolina that wants to have a spaghetti night fundraising event. | 09/30/11 13:37:53 By - Jeff Wilkenson

New solar system collects energy, rain or shine

Researchers at UC Merced have created a new kind of solar thermal system that generates high temperatures and efficiency levels without having to track the sun. | 09/29/11 18:51:19 By - Yesenia Amaro

Bank of America to charge monthly debit card fee

Bank of America Corp. plans to charge customers a $5 monthly fee for making debit-card purchases, the bank said today. | 09/29/11 18:46:51 By - Kirsten Valle Pittman

Foreigners filling temporary jobs at North Carolina farms

While more than one in 10 North Carolinians are without work, thousands of farm jobs that pay more than the minimum wage are being filled by immigrants, most of them from Mexico, through a legal, temporary work program. | 09/29/11 18:21:00 By - Gabriel Silverman

Technological advances revive Kansas oil fields

Expensive new technologies that bring new life to old oil fields have prompted several large oil companies to buy up leases on hundreds of thousands of acres in Kansas. | 09/29/11 16:30:14 By - Dan Voorhis

Supreme Court about to start most interesting term in years

California health-care conflicts will kick off a Supreme Court term that will, in time, turn toward the truly dramatic. | 09/29/11 15:34:00 By - Michael Doyle

Mortgage modifications are still messed up, 4 years later

Jose Palomo was surprised when the knock on the door came in August, informing him that his California home had been foreclosed and he'd need to vacate promptly. After all, he'd recently started payments on an in-house mortgage modification with CitiMortage Inc. | 09/29/11 13:02:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

Tiffany opens new manufacturing plant in Kentucky

Tiffany & Co. on Tuesday opened its Lexington manufacturing plant, which will produce Tiffany's classic six-prong engagement ring and several other fine jewelry pieces. | 09/28/11 12:03:03 By - Beverly Fortune

Idaho natural gas fight centers on balance between drilling, environment

As Idaho and two of its counties work to catch up with a new natural gas industry, their struggle could turn this year’s legislative session into another fight between state and local control | 09/28/11 11:52:35 By - Rocky Barker

Report: No indication that Kansas benefit programs discourage marriage

Some Kansas state benefit programs may create a financial disincentive to marriage, but auditors who talked to recipients and to state employees found "little evidence that eligibility rules significantly influence clients' decisions about whether to marry," according to a report released Tuesday. Lawmakers who want to change the rules to promote marriage "likely would have only a limited impact on clients' marital decisions," the audit concluded. | 09/28/11 07:04:22 By - Brent D. Wistrom

California questions $18-million logging industry subsidy

California taxpayers subsidize the logging industry to the tune of $18 million a year, according to testimony at an Assembly hearing Tuesday. The key question before the Accountability and Administrative Review Committee was whether any of that subsidy is justified. | 09/28/11 06:47:50 By - Matt Weiser

Job-based health insurance premiums rise sharply

After modest increases last year, the cost of job-based health insurance for families and individuals has jumped sharply this year, even though insurers are paying less in benefits as cash-strapped American workers opt for less medical care. | 09/27/11 17:03:00 By - Tony Pugh

Small businesses feel left out of the jobs and tax debate

The Obama administration and Republicans each want a broad overhaul of the tax system to close loopholes and lower corporate rates, but small businesses that do much of the nation's hiring feel they're an afterthought in the debate. | 09/27/11 13:17:00 By - Kevin G. Hall

50% of California voters report personal economic situation declined

One in two California voters say their financial well-being is worse off than a year ago, according to a new Field Poll released Tuesday. It marks the fourth straight year in which at least half of Californians reported a decline in their personal situation, the first time that has happened since Field began asking the question 50 years ago. | 09/27/11 13:17:36 By - Kevin Yamamura