ECONOMY

As the number of renters in Los Angeles increases, construction of new apartments isn't keeping pace with demand, resulting in rents higher than many can afford.

Home, Food Or Health Care: A Choice Many Renters Can't Afford

2:56pm June 16, 2014

by NPR Staff

As of 2012, rentals made up 35 percent of American households. Their numbers are growing, but the demand isn't easing rental rates. Many renters now pay more than 50 percent of their income on rent.

Queue Listen Now

Economy

Volatility Index Indicates Wall Street Is Bored

9:40am June 12, 2014

by David Kestenbaum

An economic indicator commonly called the VIX, volatility index, is also known as the fear index. Whatever you call it, the index is hitting lows not seen since before the financial crisis.

Queue Listen Now

Mallyveen Teah relaxes in his Arlington, Va., apartment after work.

A Campaign To House The Homeless Reaches A Milestone

6:24pm June 11, 2014

by Pam Fessler

The campaign to find permanent homes for 100,000 homeless people, including the chronically homeless, was started four years ago. Now, the group behind the push says it has reached its goal.

Queue Listen Now

Desiree Metcalf, here with one of her three daughters, is one of many poor Americans who find themselves trapped in a system meant to help.

One Family's Story Shows How The Cycle Of Poverty Is Hard To Break

9:59am June 10, 2014

by Pam Fessler

Like her own mother was, Desiree Metcalf is a young, single mom living in poverty. She doesn't have just one or two problems, but a whole pile of them.

Queue Listen Now

A woman and her daughter shop at a Greenmarket in New York City using Electronic Benefits Transfer, or food stamps. Government data show that fewer people were receiving the benefits in February 2014 than at the peak in December 2012.

Economic Upswing Has Fewer Americans Receiving Food Stamps

7:11pm May 29, 2014

by Pam Fessler

Last year, about 1 in 7 people in the U.S. were getting food stamps, or SNAP benefits. But the numbers have started to drop as more people find work and better-paying jobs, analysts say.

Queue Listen Now

Economy

Reverse Food Truck Caters To Hunger Relief Programs

12:57pm May 28, 2014

by Jessica Mador

This summer in Minnesota's Twin Cities, a new kind of food truck is on the streets. Instead of selling food, this truck is collecting it and giving it to people who need it.

Queue Listen Now

Over the next few years China will build a multi-billion dollar railway linking the Kenyan port of Mombasa to Nairobi (shown here), based on an agreement signed earlier this month by East African and Chinese officials. It's one of many examples of China's

China Turns To Africa For Resources, Jobs And Future Customers

2:54pm May 27, 2014

In China's Second Continent, Howard French explores the Chinese presence in 15 African countries. The relationship goes beyond economics: more than a million Chinese citizens have migrated to Africa.

Queue Listen Now

Economy

150 Years After Marx, 'Capital' Still Can't Shake Loose Of 'Das Kapital'

2:54pm May 27, 2014

by Geoff Nunberg

Thomas Piketty's Capital in the Twenty-First Century evokes another famous tome with "capital" in its title, and makes comparisons inevitable.

Queue Listen Now

Second Summer Post-Sandy, Jersey Shore Hopes For Tourist Boom

1:11pm May 26, 2014

by Tracey Samuelson

Memorial Day weekend kicks off the tourism season on the Jersey Shore, an area that's still rebuilding after Superstorm Sandy. At last, homeowners and businesses say, things are looking up.

Queue Listen Now

Economy

Unpaid Court Fees Land The Poor In 21st Century Debtors' Prisons

9:50am May 23, 2014

by Joseph Shapiro

Debtors' prisons were outlawed in the United States back before the Civil War. But an NPR state-by-state survey found that people still get sent to jail for unpaid court fines and fees.

Queue Listen Now