Economic Recovery | featured news

The Federal Reserve expects unemployment will stay high over the next two years because recession-scarred Americans are likely to stay cautious, making for only a moderate-paced economic recovery.

Hopes that the economy can sustain its recovery drew support Wednesday from news that industrial ouput rose for a seventh straight month and home construction hit a six-month peak in January....

The number of newly laid-off workers seeking unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week to the lowest total in a month, a sign the job market may be improving.

The economy's service sector grew in January for the first time since September while the pace of job losses moderated, a private trade group said Wednesday.

Most banks have stopped toughening their lending standards for consumers and businesses, and manufacturing activity is at the highest levels in five years—both further signs of a strengthening U.S. economy.

Personal incomes rose more than expected in December and consumer spending increased for the third straight month, helping the economy slowly recover from the worst recession in decades.

President Barack Obama renewed his pledge on Saturday to make job creation his top priority in 2010 but said it was also critical to rein in a record budget deficit that threatened economic recovery.

At the end of last year, the economy likely grew for the second straight quarter - possibly at the fastest pace in nearly four years....

The government said the economy shed 85,000 jobs last month, surprising forecasters, while the unemployment rate held steady at 10 percent.

Analysts had expected an increase. The number of newly laid-off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits dropped unexpectedly last week, the Labor Department reported today, a sign the job market is healing as the economy slowly recovers.