As the global downturn has intensified, Beijing is starting to keep more of its money at home, a move that could have painful effects for American borrowers.

Negative business sentiment, a hard-hit banking system and a global downturn are working their way through Europe with a vengeance.

After decades of reinvention, two of the biggest sectors of the local economy are education and health care, among the most resistant to downturns.

Historians are looking to the struggles of the 1930s for hints on how baseball teams will hold up in a downturn.

The most recent report about retail sales showed double-digit declines in some closely watched categories, but also indicated the numbers were stabilizing.

A debate persists over the most effective form of stimulus and what role tax cuts should play.

The Institute for Supply Management said its services sector index rose as new orders and employment picked up. Another report showed pending home sales fell to a 7-year low.

A series of market reports on the fourth quarter of 2008 showed an abrupt decline in transactions, tottering prices and buyers who are still looking but unwilling to sign a contract.

Gasoline prices have risen by several cents amid indicators that the national average could jump to $2 a gallon or higher this spring.

Amid legions of layoffs, it is comforting to consider that nonprofit companies are a robust source of employment.