Photograph by jayKayEss on Flickr The private research organization the National Board of Economic Research says its economists have confirmed the U.S. is in a recession--and has been in on since December 2007. The Daily News adds, "What will they tell us next - that oxygen is good for the lungs?!" You can read the full text of the NBER statement here, but here's an excerpt:The committee determined that a peak in economic activity......

According to research firm ShoperTrak, Black Friday sales increase 3% over last year. Still, ShopperTrak says that's the smallest gain for "Black Friday" (the day after Thanksgiving) sales in three years--2007 Black Friday sales were 8.3% higher than in 2006. And the data is also tempered by the fact that many retailers offered deeply discounted items, which cuts into their profitability. On the online sales side, Amazon and eBay say their sales jumped on Friday--Amazon......

The new bike lane on Grand Street that a local shop owner recently called the possible "demise of Little Italy" continues to draw attention with complaints that fire trucks are struggling to maneuver around the new setup of the block. Ernest Lepore, owner of Ferrara Cafe who originally talked to Villager, appears to have taken his case against the lane to the Post, telling the paper, "I saw one truck back up four or five......

Update: Here's the government's bailout plan for Citigroup: The government will invest $20 billion directly into Citigroup while also backing $306 billion in loans and securities (the Times says the plan is "complex"). In return, Bloomberg News says the government gets "$27 billion of preferred shares paying an 8 percent dividend." The NY Post notes, "Under the deal, the government will have the right to slash the huge pay packages and bonuses that Citi's executives......

The new bike lane that extends along Grand Street between Varick and Chrystie Streets has been warmly received by many cyclists who like the way it's separated from traffic by a row of parked cars. Not so pleased are business owners through Soho, Little Italy and Chinatown, some of whom fear the bike lane will "hurt business and create a dangerous situation," according to The Villager. Ernest Lepore, owner of Ferrara Little Italy, says, "Last......

The Dow ended above 8,000, rising 494 points (+6.54%), most in the closing hour. The Nasdaq rose 5.19% and S&P 500 was up 6.32%. The enthusiasm was due to news (or yet another leak) that President-elect Obama will nominate Timothy Geithner as Treasury Secretary. Geithner, who was born in Brooklyn, has been the New York Federal Reserve Bank President since 2003 and has also worked at the IMF and Council on Foreign Relations. While one......

Photograph of the Citigroup building in Long Island City, seen beyond a cemetery in Queens by Seth Wenig/AP Crain's says that Citigroup's announced 52,000-employee reduction is the "second-largest job cut ever undertaken by any company." (The largest one is from 1993, when IBM let go of 60,000.) Citigroup's job cuts--which many don't think are enough given its current condition--are global and some will be through asset sales (about half are layoffs). But Citi is......

Yesterday morning, the New York Stock Exchange's opening bell was rung by Grandma the Clown from the Big Apple Circus. The Post has details on what happened next: Master of Ceremonies Carrie "Harvey and Grandma wandered the floor trying to spread joy and merriment, placing funny red noses on exchange officials to touch the funny bones of even the most shaken traders." Alas, though stocks attempted a rally, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 337......

The Dow Jones fell 5.1% yesterday as worries about the economy returned with data about service sector-activity falling more than expected and jobs losses increasing more than expected. Futures are looking down again today, and that's in spite of the Bank of England slashed its key lending rate from 4.5% to 3%--its lowest since 1955. In fact, the BoE's rate cut was so unexpected that none of 60 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News predicted it......

Today, the NY Times looks at how layoffs are beginning at a "broad array of businesses across the New York region." Basically, it distills everything you've been hearing, thinking and fearing. One data point: For the week ending October 11, "New York led all states with an increase of 5,224 first-time unemployment claims." The job reductions are not only at Wall Street firms, but at law firms, publishing companies, digital media, construction, and more. Conde......

Stocks were expected to fall this morning, as Asian markets were significantly down (Nikkei -6%, Hong Kong -13%, Shanghai -6%) as are the European markets, but U.S. new home sales rose unexpectedly in September by 2.7%, so stocks declined less severely than thought for this morning. Bloomberg News said that sales were "propelled by a drop in prices ahead of the latest turmoil in financial markets." Stocks are down about 1% now. The director of......

"Worse-than-expected weekly jobless numbers" plus overall worries about a recession are driving stock future down today. CNBC reports that jobless benefits claims rose by a "larger than expected 15,000 last week." Additionally, there's also the news that Goldman Sachs will lay off 10% of its 32,500 employees, joining a number of other firms that will be firing employees after companies consolidate (Bank of America's purchase of Merrill Lynch, Barclays' takeover of Lehman Brothers). Also interesting......

Photograph of traders on the New York Stock Exchange floor by Richard Drew/AP The S&P 500 fell 6%, ending under 900 points at its lowest level since April 2003, today as disappointing earnings data shook investor confidence. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell almost 700 points in the final hour, but ended the day down 514 points, at 8,519. A strategist at Stifel Nicolaus told Marketwatch, "What's the problem? Everything is for sale again,......

A number of big companies, including Boeing, Wachovia, and AT&T, are announcing disappointing earnings, which are moving stock futures to a lower open. Notably Wachovia, which is being taken over by Wells Fargo, had a $23.9 billion loss in the third quarter--"compared with net income of $1.6 billion" during the same period last year. Yahoo posted losses yesterday, but Apple says its 26% rise in third quarter profit was due to the new 3G iPhone;......

After one of the most volatile weeks in Wall Street history, stock futures are higher this morning. Marketwatch is optimistic, reporting that "traders grew more confident that government measures to stabilize the financial system will be successful." Credit Suisse strategists say, "The strongest reasons for believing that we are near the end of a very extreme panic is the overwhelming policy response that this unprecedented episode has now -- finally -- produced. In effect, we......

Stocks opened lower this morning. The bad news included the data that U.S. retail sales have fallen 1.2% in September, "the most in three years," according to Bloomberg News. It marks three consecutive months of declines (a first since 1992) and an economist at Global Insight Inc. sums it up, "The fourth quarter is guaranteed to be terrible."......

In spite of the Federal Reserve cutting the interest rate to 1.5%, stocks ended down after a volatile day. The Dow fell 189 points (2%) to end at 9258 points; the Nasdaq was down 0.83% and S&P 500 was down 1.13%. An analyst at Shaeffer's Investment Research, Richard Sparks, told the NY Times, “This is an extremely weak market with a tremendous amount of uncertainty. The Fed, worldwide government agencies and central banks have......

Photograph of the NASDAQ building--with a news ticker reflected on a window--yesterday by Mary Altaffer/AP After global stock markets fell--and the U.S.'s Dow Jones Industrial Average fell below 10,000 points for the first time since 2004-- the Federal Reserve announced it would create a new facility to buy the short-term debt (aka commercial paper) various companies hold. The "Commercial Paper Funding Facility" will "purchase three-month unsecured and asset-backed commercial paper" and "this facility should......

Photograph of a display showing how Hong Kong's Hang Seng index--which ended the day almost 5% down--by Vincent Yu/AP What bailout bill that was signed into law over the weekend? Stock markets around the world fell: Japan was down 4%, China 5%, the FTSE 5%. Iceland and Russia suspended trading after falling 14%. The futures index in NY is down, and it's believed the Dow will open down 200 points. UBS economist Larry Hatheway......

Photo of editor Seth Lipsky addressing The Sun staff yesterday courtesy Konrad Fiedler/The Sun. Despite a record-breaking month for advertising revenues, The Sun published its last edition today. Started in 2002, the neoconservative daily lasted just long enough to publish on the first day of Rosh Hashanah, surviving into year 5769 of the Jewish calendar. Editor Seth Lipsky addressed the staff in the paper's Lower Manhattan newsroom yesterday; excerpts from his remarks were published......

Congressional leaders and the White House agree on a bailout plan that will aid troubled financial firms, but now it must be passed by Congress. The Wall Street Journal reports the bill, which would "effectively nationalize an array of mortgages and securities backed by them -- instruments whose deteriorating value has clogged the nation's financial system," was finished late yesterday, and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi says it's "frozen"--as in no more changes. Here's......

If some lawmakers aren't jumping the gun, there seems to be progress with getting the $700 bailout plan for financial firms approved. Rep. Barney Frank said, "I'm convinced that by Sunday we will have an agreement that people can understand on this bill." Earlier this morning, President Bush sought to reassure the public, since discussions spectacularly flamed out last night, “We will rise to the occasion. Republicans and Democrats will come together and pass a......

After key lawmakers felt a bailout plan agreement would be reached, talks "imploded" as the day progressed. Here's how the NY Times reports what happened:The day began with an agreement that Washington hoped would end the financial crisis that has gripped the nation. It dissolved into a verbal brawl in the Cabinet Room of the White House, urgent warnings from the president and pleas from a Treasury secretary who knelt before the House speaker......

John McCain, who announced yesterday afternoon that he was heading back to Washington D.C. to work on the bailout plan and temporarily suspending his campaign starting tomorrow, ended up canceling his appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman. Letterman wasn't too happy about that—especially since McCain was at the CBS News studios for an interview with Katie Couric. Watch the clip (Letterman sees a live feed of McCain getting makeup for his interview with......

Mayor Bloomberg voiced his thoughts on the souring economy and the steps the city and federal government are taking to address it. On his $1.5 billion request for city agencies to cut their budgets--$500 million this year, $1 billion next--he said at a civic meeting last night, "We're going to have some tough times. I don't think anybody doubts that ... we have to reduce expenses." He also characterized the cuts as "annoying" but not......

Photograph of Treasury Secretary Paulson, left, and Fed Chairman Bernanke, right, from the AP Yesterday was a mixed day for the financial sector. Congress still had questions about the government's proposed $700 billion bailout plan for financial firms, sending the market down. But the after-market close announcement that Warren Buffett would invest $5 billion in Goldman Sachs has sent stock futures higher. But now there's word that the FBI is searching for possible fraud......

Well, if it's good enough for Warren Buffett... The Oracle from Omaha's company announced it will invest $5 billion into Goldman Sachs, the investment bank-turned-bank holding company. The Wall Street Journal reports, "In addition to the $5 billion from Berkshire Hathaway, which comes in the form of perpetual preferred shares, Goldman will raise at least $2.5 billion in common equity in a public offering." Goldman chairman Lloyd Blankfein said, "We are pleased that... Warren Buffett,......

The stock market fell over 161 points today, as the market waited for the government to make a decision about the $700 billion bailout plan. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke both testified before the Senate Banking Committee; the NY Times reported, "While senators agreed that they needed to act quickly, they also said they wanted to take a close look at the legislation." Which made investors anxious: BPU Investment Management......

Sure, as the NY Times reports, "Bailout Talks Advance" between Congress and the Bush administration over the $700 billion financial institutions bailout. But the two sides have differences of opinions on things like executive pay, reducing "mortgage payments of borrowers facing foreclosure," and whether the taxpayers should get a stake in companies the U.S. bails out. The Wall Street Journal also details some of the issues with the plan, from both Republicans and Democrats. All......

The Dow fell 372 points today, amid worries about the government's bailout. Wachovia Securities' chief market strategist Al Goldman explained, "It's the fear of the unknown. We got used to writeoffs ... we had so many shoes drop that it didn't mean anything. Then, over the weekend, we get Wall Street has changed forever. This is a real shock."......