Category: VOA Economics Report

Here are some of the top economic stories of two thousand ten. The world continued to struggle with a slow recovery from the financial crisis two years earlier. Greece admitted to bigger-than-expected budget deficits. Investors punished Greece with much higher borrowing costs. The sixteen countries that use the euro joined the International Monetary Fund in …

At the end of December, publisher Merriam-Webster released its list of top ten words of the year for two thousand ten. “Austerity” was at the top. The company made its list based on how often people looked up definitions using its online dictionary. Merriam-Webster defines “austerity” as “enforced or extreme economy.” Greece and Ireland face …

The season for buying Christmas gifts was the busiest time for most stores and online retailers in the United States. Final numbers for the holiday season including after-Christmas sales will not be known for a while. But a report on retail sales in November suggested that economic growth may be gaining speed. The Commerce Department …

President Obama announced an agreement with congressional Republicans in December. It would extend for two years the tax cuts put in place by former president George W. Bush. The tax cuts were to end in January. The compromise extends current income tax rates for all Americans for two years. That includes rates for the richest …

Commodities are basic materials that are used and traded worldwide. The price of commodities helps determine how much a business can charge for a product and the profit it can make. Commodity prices have reached a two-year high since falling sharply during the world financial crisis. Hard commodities are materials like iron ore, oil and …

On December first, Ireland’s Prime Minister Brian Cowen announced measures to cut the biggest budget deficit in Europe. He said: “Today we’ve come to announce a four-year plan, between now and two thousand fourteen. It’s to bring certainty for our people. It’s to ensure they have hope for the future.” The plan aims to cut …

Continuing debt problems in Greece and Portugal. The banking crisis in Ireland. A trillion-dollar deficit in the United States. These are all reasons why high levels of public debt are a big worry around the world. Countries that keep spending a lot more than they earn may not be able to repay their debts. That …

Microfinance is a fast-growing part of the financial industry in many developing countries. Micro lenders give small loans to poor people to start or expand businesses. Microcredit offers a chance to improve lives and reduce poverty. But officials in Andhra Pradesh, in southern India, are investigating whether debt collections are linked to a series of …

The Federal Reserve calls America’s economic recovery “disappointingly slow.” So the Federal Reserve decided to add six hundred billion dollars to the financial system by the middle of next year. To do this, the central bank will buy Treasury securities from dealers. The action is known as quantitative easing. The goal is to reduce long-term …

When we print something, a flat page comes to mind. For example, you might use a photocopier.Photocopiers print in two dimensions.Now, imagine how this would work for three dimensions. A machine prints layers of material — usually plastic — one on top of the other. The layers are very thin — usually one-fifth or one-tenth …

Since January, lenders have seized or begun the process to seize about two million American homes. In September alone, banks and other financial companies reclaimed over one hundred thousand properties because of unpaid loans. That was the most yet since the housing collapse that led to the recent recession. Now, efforts to speed a housing …

Today we continue our report on the group of chemical elements known as rare earth metals. These are mined from the earth and used to make technology from mobile phones to missiles. The United States once led the world in rare earths. Today China controls almost all production. Premier Wen Jiabao says China will not …

Few people had ever heard of the natural elements known as rare earth metals before a recent dispute between China and Japan. Yet these metals are used in devices like smartphones, flat screen televisions, hybrid car batteries, MP3 players and military equipment.In September, Japan detained a Chinese ship captain near disputed islands in the East …

They are not even five millimeters long and cannot fly or jump. Yet bedbugs strike fear in homeowners and business owners. Well, not all business owners. Some see money in these little bloodsuckers. Missy Henriksen speaks for the National Pest Management Association. She says they are now seeing bedbugs in unusual places: schools and hospitals, …

American businesses are still slow to hire and unemployment remains near ten percent. But an economic research group reported in September that the recession in the United States ended in June of last year. It was the longest recession since the nineteen thirties. James Stock is on the committee that dates the rises and falls …

The financial crisis of two thousand eight brought attention to a big problem with banks. Many banks did not have enough money in reserve to protect against their losses. Now there is a proposed solution. In September, banking supervisors from twenty-six nations and Hong Kong met in Basel, Switzerland. They announced proposals to make banks …

In September, President Obama proposed new measures to lift the economy. The central bank in its latest report said there was continued growth in the past several weeks, but with “widespread signs” of slowing. Congressional elections are November second. One new survey showed that forty-nine percent of likely voters think Republicans should control Congress. Other …

I’m Alex Villarreal with the VOA Special English Economics Report. America’s biggest carmaker accepted fifty billion dollars in federal aid from the Obama and Bush administrations. People joked that GM meant “Government Motors.” Now, General Motors could be on the road to recovery. The company recorded over two and a half billion dollars in profit …

I’m Alex Villarreal with the VOA Special English Economics Report. Businesses are structured in different ways to meet different needs. The simplest form of business is called an individual or sole proprietorship. The proprietor owns all of the property of the business and is responsible for everything. For legal purposes, with this kind of business, …

In August, Verizon and Google proposed a plan they say could keep the Internet open while supporting investment in high-speed Internet service.Verizon has the nation’s biggest wireless network while Google is the biggest Internet search engine. The proposal was a surprise because the two companies have been on opposite sides of the debate over net …