ECONOMY

China's Steel Industry Is A Classic Tale Of Overbuilding

2:09pm December 08, 2015

by Frank Langfitt

China's steel sector used to be one of the country's industrial champs, growing at double-digit rates year after year. This year, however, demand has fallen for the first time in two decades.

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Economy

Poverty Ticks Upward in North Carolina, Even As Employment Stabilizes

8:13pm December 07, 2015

by Keri Brown and Sean Bueter

Poverty and food insecurity are on the rise across the state of North Carolina. That's according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Economy

FTC Sues To Block The Merger Of Office Depot And Staples

6:54pm December 07, 2015

by Jim Zarroli

Regulators say the deal would hurt the market for office supplies sold to large corporations.

Charles E. Williams, Founder Of Cookware Giant Williams-Sonoma, Dies

4:32pm December 07, 2015

Almost 60 years ago, Charles E. Williams opened a small store specializing in high-quality cookware, with the hopes of making French cooking more accessible to Americans. Today, Williams-Sonoma is an international name. He died Saturday at the age of 100.

Economy

Taking The Temperature Of The U.S. Economy. Is It Healthy?

3:42pm December 07, 2015

Seven years ago, the Federal Reserve cut interest rates to zero. David Greene talks to David Wessel of the Hutchins Center at the Brookings Institution about what impact this has had on the economy.

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OPEC oil ministers met Friday in Vienna but failed to agree on whether to set new production limits.

Falling Oil Prices Hit Levels Not Seen Since 2009

3:40pm December 07, 2015

by Jim Zarroli

OPEC's failure to agree on production cuts last Friday has sent prices down further.

A woman stands outside a securities firm in Tokyo last week. The government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says employing more women will jumpstart the economy.

Does Japan Need Some Binders Full Of Women?

11:28am December 07, 2015

by Jim Zarroli

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government has been forced to dramatically lower its targets for promoting women in government and the private sector.

Prices for both gasoline and natural gas have fallen this year. An AT&T employee fills up his company van in San Diego last month.

More Jobs, Cheaper Gas And Rising Stocks Help The Economy Look Up

6:45am December 05, 2015

by Marilyn Geewax

The U.S. economy turned up encouraging signs for most Americans. Workers can now find more jobs, and drive to them using cheaper gas. And retirement accounts are getting a boost from rising stocks.

U.N. Delegates Confront The Cost Of Stopping Climate Change

7:23pm December 04, 2015

by Christopher Joyce

Climate conferences over the past decade have foundered on finance, especially on who's going to pay for the huge cost of shifting away from fossil fuels. Most difficult is the disconnect between developing countries, who want money from the rich countries, and the reluctance by those rich countries to agree to open-ended commitments. Moreover, getting risk averse private investors into the new green energy market is turning into a big obstacle in Paris.

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November Jobs Report: Solid Growth

10:57am December 04, 2015

by John Ydstie

Employers added 211,000 jobs to payrolls last month, setting the stage for a Federal Reserve interest rate increase later this month.