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Early estimates show that the United States economy began to grow again in July, August and September. The three-and-a-half percent growth was the first expansion in more than a year, and the strongest in two years. The government said increases in consumer spending and exports and improvements in business investment led the growth. So did increased federal spending and housing investments. But high unemployment could limit growth for some time. President Obama had this reaction to a report at the end of October on the gross domestic product — a wide measure of goods and services in... 

America's economy has started to grow again. Now what about jobs? The government says productivity jumped in July, August and September. That meant companies produced more with fewer workers. Also, new claims for unemployment aid fell at the end of October to the lowest number since January. But eight million jobs have disappeared since the recession began in December of two thousand seven. Jack Strauss at Saint Louis University in Missouri says recent recoveries have been slow to create jobs. Experts debate the reason for these so-called jobless recoveries. But Professor Strauss says a banking... 

A major reform of the American system of health care and insurance has moved farther in Congress than ever before. President Obama wants a final bill passed by the end of the year. But a difficult road still lies ahead. On November seventh, the House of Representatives passed a bill with an estimated trillion-dollar price over ten years. The president called the vote historic. President Obama said the Affordable Health Care for America Act will provide stability and security for Americans who have insurance. It will provide quality affordable options for those who dont. And it will bring down... 

Women are on their way to holding more than half of all American jobs. The latest government report shows that their share of nonfarm jobs nearly reached fifty percent in September. Not only have more and more women entered the labor market over the years, but the recession has been harder on men. In October, the unemployment rate for men was almost eleven percent, compared to eight percent for women. Industries that traditionally use lots of men have suffered deep cuts. For example, manufacturing and building lost more jobs in October. But health care and temporary employment services have had... 

In two thousand nine, Junior Achievement marked its ninetieth anniversary of educating young people about business and economics. The nonprofit organization is the largest of its kind. Jack Kosakowsky is executive vice president. He says: «We are the oldest business and economic education organization in the world. Were now serving nine-point-two million young people around the globe in one hundred twenty-three different countries.» Programs begin in elementary school and continue through middle and high school. The education is based on the ideas of market-based economics and entrepreneurship. Junior... 

In recent years, a shining city grew in the desert of Dubai on — and even off — the Gulf coast. An island shaped like a palm tree was built for hotels, homes and entertainment. In October of two thousand eight the same developer announced plans for the world's tallest building yet. But the economic downturn soon forced the Nakheel company to suspend those plans. Dubai is in the United Arab Emirates, a thirty-eight year old federation of seven territories ruled by emirs. But, unlike its neighbor Abu Dhabi, oil has not fueled Dubai's growth. Oil is only six percent... 

Dubai's recent debt problems have brought attention to the growth of Islamic finance. A government-owned group of companies, Dubai World, has been seeking to restructure twenty-six billion dollars of debt. About six billion of it is in Islamic bonds, including a three and a half billion dollar bond set for repayment in December. The biggest difference between Western and Islamic finance involves beliefs about charging interest on borrowed money. In Islam, the basic idea is that you should not make money from money itself. Instead of interest, lenders charge fees. Ghiyath Nakshbendi at American... 

In December, President Obama told some of the nation's top bankers that they need to explore «every responsible way» to make more loans. The president said: «Americas banks received extraordinary assistance from American taxpayers to rebuild their industry. And now that theyre back on their feet, we expect extraordinary commitment from them to help rebuild the economy.» Major banks have been doing well since the worst of the financial crisis shook Wall Street more than a year ago. Banks including Bank of America, Citigroup and Wells Fargo have recently announced plans... 

There is a place where Christmas lives all year long. It is called Bronners CHRISTmas Wonderland in Frankenmuth, Michigan. The family-owned business calls itself the worlds largest Christmas store. The late Wally Bronner started the business in nineteen forty-five. Wayne Bronner, Wallys son, is president and chief executive of what is now a multi-million dollar corporation. He learned the business from an early age. Some of his best memories are traveling to other countries with his father to find new products for the store. Bronners sells more than fifty thousand holiday products from seventy... 

Two thousand nine may be remembered as the year the world avoided an economic depression. In the United States, stock prices sank to their lowest levels in March. But stocks recovered strongly for the year. The S & P Five Hundred index gained over twenty percent — its largest increase in six years. As two thousand nine ended, the nations biggest banks rushed to repay money from the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP. In October of two thousand eight, Congress approved up to seven hundred billion dollars to rescue the financial industry. In December, the United States Treasury announced... 

This year's Consumer Electronics Show opened January seventh in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event is the world's biggest technology trade show. More than three hundred companies presented more than twenty thousand new products. The goals are to build excitement, make deals and get good reviews in the media. Industry sales dropped eight percent last year during the recession. Gary Shapiro, president of the Consumer Electronics Association, predicted that one area of strong sales this year will be mobile phones. That includes fifty-two million smartphones expected to be sold in the United States.... 

China says it has passed Germany and become the world's top exporter. Exports totaled more than one trillion dollars last year. That was down from two thousand eight, but about thirty billion more than Germany. China's influence in the world has increased with its fast-growing economy. The United States remains the largest economy. China is third and gaining on Japan. Manufacturing has expanded, fueling exports. But China has not imported as much as its trade partners would like. Its policies about valuing its currency and its human rights record have also created tensions. And now there... 

President Obama is proposing rules to limit the size of big banks and the risks they can take. He wants to prevent banks from using government-insured deposits to make risky investments. He also wants to keep them from owning hedge funds or private equity funds. Banks took big losses as they traded mortgage-related securities that went bad. That helped create the financial crisis. Bank shares fell after the president's announcement in January. His earlier efforts at financial reform have faced strong opposition from financial companies and some members of Congress. In the Senate, sixty... 

American children and teenagers have increased their use of entertainment media by more than one hour a day in the last five years. On an average day they now spend seven and a half hours using media. These are the findings of a new survey. It included devices like TVs, computers, mobile phones and MP3 players, but also media like books and magazines. It did not count media use for school. Vicky Rideout at the Kaiser Family Foundation, a health research group, wrote the report. She was surprised that kids could fit even more media time into their day. She found that they spent ten hours and forty-five... 

Toyota became the world's largest automaker in two thousand eight. But after years of building loyalty, the Japanese company may have put its quality brand name at risk, at least temporarily. Toyota is recalling millions of cars and trucks around the world because of cases where vehicles have sped up unexpectedly. Last August, a driver in California was unable to stop. The crash killed him and three of his family members. Toyota says the problem is rare and caused by accelerator pedals becoming stuck open. On January twenty-sixth, the company suspended sales of eight of its top-selling... 

Leaders of the European Union say they will help Greece as it struggles under a mountain of debt. They promise to take action, if needed, «to safeguard financial stability in the euro area as a whole.» But the leaders did not announce any detailed plan for Greece after meeting in February in Brussels. They said that was because Greece has not requested any financial support. European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said this means the government believes it does not need the support. Investors had a mixed reaction to the statements from Brussels. Worries over Greek debt... 

One year ago, President Obama signed the economic recovery bill aimed at pulling the country out of recession. The bill promised jobs — including many in the nuclear energy industry. In February, the president announced plans for the government to guarantee more than eight billion dollars in loans for two new nuclear energy centers in the state of Georgia. The Southern Company plans to build the nuclear power centers. The first would start operations in twenty sixteen. Mister Obama announced the plan at a job training center in Lanham, Maryland. The message was that nuclear energy projects will... 

The United States Congress has been dealing with the safety problems at Toyota. In March, a Senate committee examined the recent safety recalls and the government's response. The House of Representatives held two days of hearings. Lawmakers questioned Akio Toyoda, the head of the company since June. He said he was deeply sorry for any accident that Toyota drivers have experienced. Defects have been linked to at least thirty-nine deaths over the past several years. Toyota has recalled more than eight million vehicles worldwide because of the risk of gaining speed suddenly and uncontrollably. Toyota... 

Recently the United States Supreme Court decided a big case about political speech. Political speech is considered the most protected form of free speech under the Constitution. The case was Citizens United versus the Federal Election Commission. The question was this: With political speech, do corporations have the same rights as people? By a vote of five to four, the conservative majority on the court decided yes. Companies, labor unions and other organizations may now spend as they wish on independent efforts to elect or defeat candidates. The ruling is based on the idea in the United States... 

Laws in the United States and other countries treat a corporation like a person. We talked last week about how this idea developed a long time ago. In the United States, the Constitution protects freedom of speech. The Supreme Court has recognized that this is also true for corporations. But there was still a question about whether corporations could have the same freedom of political speech as real people do. During the two thousand eight presidential campaign, a nonprofit corporation released a film critical of Hillary Clinton. The group, Citizens United, wanted to make «Hillary: The Movie»...