Archive for the ‘Dollars & Cents’ Category

THE FEDERAL RESERVE PREPARING FOR THE WORST AS DEBT TALKS STALL. By Jeff Reeves
WASHINGTON (InvestorPlace.com) – Reports emerged last night that the Federal Reserve is actively preparing for a government debt default. With negotiations over the debt ceiling still going nowhere, it’s clear that Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and his fellow central bankers don’t want [...]

CHINA LEANS TOWARD EURO- WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR THE DOLLAR? By Julianne Malveaux
NEW YORK – China has more than $3 trillion in currency reserves, more than any other country in the world.  They’ve decided to use some of their reserves to invest in the euro, the currency of the European Union.  In putting money [...]

BLACKS & POOR AMERICANS LIST UNEMPLOYMENT AS LARGER PROBLEM. By Janell Ross
WASHINGTON (HuffingtonPost.com) – To a large number of Americans, an economic recovery without jobs is not really a recovery at all. Overall, 55 percent of Americans picked either the general economy (29 percent) or joblessness (26 percent) as the country’s most important problem, according [...]

UNEMPLOYMENT RATE DROPS TO 9%, BUT BLACK JOBLESSNESS AT 15%. By Wayne Hodges

WASHINGTON — First, the good news. Last month, according to the Department of Labor, the U.S. unemployment rate dropped to 9 percent; its lowest level in nearly two years. However, only 36,000 new jobs were created; the fewest in four months. This is [...]

BLACK FRIDAY STATISTICS ARE OUT: MORE SHOPPERS, MODEST SALES. By CNNMoney.com
NEW YORK – Preliminary reports of Black Friday sales are starting to come in. The verdict so far: The crowds were bigger and people walked away with arms full of goodies, but shoppers spent only modestly more this year. With shoppers scooping up discounted items, [...]

WALL STREET NEWS: BAILOUT’S HANGOVER JUST WON’T GO AWAY. By Tom Curry
WASHINGTON (MSN.com) – A very unhappy birthday to you, Wall Street bailout! On the second anniversary of Congress’ vote to create the rescue plan for financial firms, even those who voted for it treat it like a toddler with the “terrible twos.” Democrat Rep. [...]

THE U.S. POVERTY LEVEL REACHES 14.3%, THE HIGHEST LEVEL SINCE 1965, Associated Press
WASHINGTON – The number of people living in poverty has climbed to 14.3 percent of Americans, with the ranks of working-age poor reaching the highest level since at least 1965. The Census Bureau said that about 43.6 million people, or 1 in 7, [...]

FINANCIAL NEWS: DOW UP 165 AS BEN BERNANKE CHEERS MARKETS, by Charley Blaine
WALL STREET – Stocks enjoyed their biggest rally in nearly three weeks today, thanks to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s promise in a Wyoming speech to do whatever it takes to support the economic recovery. Plus, the government said economic growth and a [...]

REAL ESTATE RULES AND PRINCIPLES: INSIDE THE MIND OF AN APPRAISER. By Stefanos Chen
KANSAS CITY (AOLNews.com) – First impressions are everything in real estate — a fact Paul Isolda, an appraiser with 22 years of experience, knows all too well. Isolda has seen every home staging disaster under the sun, from tacky cabinetry to dingy [...]

IT’S SO IMPORTANT TO APPROACH YOUR FINANCES WITH A PLAN, by Kimberly Kelly-Rolfe

LOS ANGELES – With so many different financial products out there, it’s hard to choose which one is best; especially in this economy.  Brokers tell me to buy securities. And agents tell me to buy insurance. I need to prepare for retirement. But [...]