This week investors will deal with the largest drop in GDP in 26 years, and are expecting lower earnings as 137 companies from the S&P 500 index report earnings this week. This quarter may be shaping up to the worst quarter for corporate profits in nearly a decade.

As the economy continues to worsen, Obama's economic advisors have been hard at work raising its target to create 4.1 million new jobs. The news comes out just one day after reports were released that the nation lost 524,000 jobs in December bringing the total job loss for 2008 to 2.6 million. Thus far Obama has remained relatively private on the details of its $775 billion plan.

Job losses in the U.S. continue to mount with employers cutting nearly 524,000 positions in December. The December job losses make 2008 the worst year for job losses since World War II. Overall, 2.6 million jobs were lost in 2008 with 1.9 million wiped out in just the last 4 months.

Consumer borrowing dropped by $7.9 billion in November, as American continue to cut back and boost savings. The drop in consumer borrowing fell at a 3.7 percent annual rate in November, the largest percentage decline since January 1998.

Doug Shulman, the commissioner for the federal tax office, stated that the IRS is set to announce a number of steps in order to work with tax payers who maybe unable to pay their taxes for the first time this year due to recent issues in the economy. IRS agents are set to suspend collection actions, reduce monthly tax payments, or allow skipped payments when necessary in order to avoid a default.... More

Higher gas taxes are needed In order to repair aging roads and bridges and ease congested highways. The transportation commission is set to proposal higher taxes on gasoline later this month. The commission is looking to raise the gas tax by as much as 10 cents per gallon.

President-elect Obama is considering extending unemployment benefits to part-time employees as well as covering the cost of health insurance for laid-off employees. The proposal are part of Obama's two-year stimulus package, which is likely to cost over $775 billion.

The Dow Jones Industrial average soar over 3 percent to close over 9,000 Friday, its best close in over two months. Fred Dickson, chief market strategist at D.A. Davidson, stated, \"It feels good to get off to a good start on the first trading day of the year.\" Investors hoping to get in at what may be bargin prices ignored news released from the Institute for Supply Management indicating that overall... More

The stock market closed yesterday with its worst year since 1931 leaving many analysts wandering what's next. The Dow Jones Industrial average dropped 34% for the year; however, most broader market indexes, including the S&P 500, lost much more than the Dow as nearly $7 trillion of shareholder wealth was wiped out. In the past stocks have rebound after large sell offs; however, analysts caution that... More

The number of Americans filing claims for unemployment dropped below 500,000 for the first time since November. The initial jobless claims for the week ending December 27th across the U.S. dropped by 94,000 to 492,000.

Crude oil prices jumped 13 percent Wednesday, after a government report indicated a smaller than expected gain in U.S. fuel supplies. Ehsan Ul-Haq stated, "we are very near the bottom in oil prices, or will reach the bottom in the next few weeks." Oil is expected to rebound to $60 a barrel next year as OPEC continues to cut production.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 184 points Tuesday following the Treasury's move to provide $5 billion to GMAC, the financial arm of General Motors.

With the price of oil under $40 a barrel, gas prices continue to fall. The national average price of gasoline has dropped for nine consecutive days to reach $1.627 a gallon. Prices are down 60 percent from the record high of $4.114 a gallon in July. The lowest gas price in the nation is in Missouri at $1.44.

U.S. manufacturing most likely contracted at the fastest pace since 1980 as financial meltdown continues to spread into the rest of the economy. According to Joshua Shapiro, chief U.S. economist at Maria Fiorini Ramirez Inc, "Manufacturing is getting it from every direction." Domestic demand continues to drop while foreign demand is also tanking.

An energy analyst reported that Americans are paying $1 billion less per day for gasoline compared to July when the national price for gasoline was over $4 a gallon. Currently, the national average for a gallon of a gas is $1.61. Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst for Oil Price Information Service, stated that next year they expect prices to remain low at least until the peak driving season begins in the... More