WASHINGTON — Ben Bernanke sent a message Tuesday to Congress: The Federal Reserve’s low-interest-rate policies are giving crucial support to an economy still burdened by high unemployment. The Fed chairman acknowledged the risks of keeping rates low indefinitely. But he ...

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WASHINGTON — U.S. consumer confidence plunged in January to its lowest level in more than a year, reflecting higher Social Security taxes that left Americans with less take-home pay. The Conference Board says its consumer confidence index dropped to 58.6 ...

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WASHINGTON — U.S. consumers peering over the “fiscal cliff” don’t like what they see. Fears of sharp tax increases and government spending cuts set to take effect next week sent consumer confidence tumbling in December to its lowest level since ...

Tagged with: Business consumer confidence Economy fiscal cliff united states

WASHINGTON — Confidence among U.S. consumers has sunk to its lowest point since July, according to a monthly index. The University of Michigan says its consumer sentiment index for December fell to 72.9, a sharp drop from the November reading ...

Tagged with: Business consumer confidence Economy fiscal cliff

WASHINGTON — U.S. consumer confidence rose this month to its highest level in almost five years, helped by a better outlook for hiring over the next six months. The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index rose to ...

Tagged with: conference board consumer confidence Economy growth jobs Retail shopping

Americans may have slowed their spending in September after splurging during the start of the busy back-to-school shopping season in the month before. But most importantly, they were still spending. September sales rose 3.9 percent — a slowdown from the ...

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NEW YORK — Americans’ confidence in the economy jumped this month to the highest level since February, bolstered by a brighter outlook for overall business conditions and hiring. The Conference Board said Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index rose to ...

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NEW YORK — Americans are feeling worse about the economy than they have in a long time — a fact that could have wide-reaching implications everywhere from Wal-Mart to the White House. Despite improving U.S. job and housing markets, consumer ...

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NEW YORK — Americans breathed a bit easier about the economy in July, as a better outlook on short-term hiring and lower gas prices offset lingering worries about poor income growth. The Conference Board said Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence ...

Tagged with: AAA commerce department consumer confidence economic growth Economy gas prices great recession jobs labor market oil price information service The Conference Board

DETROIT — The raft of gloomy economic news may be starting to hurt U.S. auto sales. Industry analysts and dealers said this week that sales during the first half of July slowed a bit from the robust pace in June. ...

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