The unemployment rate in the euro zone hit 9.6% in August - the highest in over a decade after the number of jobless rose by 165,000 during the month, bringing the total jobless number using the single currency bloc to 15.17 million. The 10-year high comes despite the fact that many [ Read More → ]

WASHINGTON - The recession has hit middle-income and poor families hardest, widening the economic gap between the richest and poorest Americans as rippling job layoffs ravaged household budgets. The wealthiest 10 percent of Americans , those making more than $138,000 each year , earned 11.4 times the roughly $12,000 made by [ Read More → ]

SAN FRANCISCO - Social Security provides a majority of the retirement income for about two-thirds of Americans over age 65, but if you’re in your mid-50s or younger, it’s time to make alternate arrangements. The program’s dismal outlook has long been known, but the recent economic crisis further scarred the program’s [ Read More → ]

Investors are just not sure where the economy is headed, so the stock market may be in limbo for a while. After stocks stumbled last week on disappointing reports on housing and manufacturing, investors are concerned that the economy’s rebound will be slower than originally thought. They may cool their buying [ Read More → ]

Citizens Advice celebrates 70 years Photo: CAB The charity said it was currently handling around 9,300 new debt cases and talking to 8,000 people with benefit problems every working day as the recession continues to take its toll. The group said the number of people contacting it because they were struggling [ Read More → ]

CHICAGO — Few words sting like the ones that inform you that you’re being laid off — especially today, with jobs so hard to come by. If you’re a homeowner, the blow of a job loss can be even worse. In households with more than one wage earner, halving the monthly [ Read More → ]

NEW YORK — Investors moved back into stocks after a four-day slide as they awaited a key government report on unemployment. The Dow Jones industrial average tacked on 64 points today after sliding 300 points since Friday. Stocks held to a tight range in light trading volume as some investors [ Read More → ]

NEW YORK — Stocks moved higher in early trading today, breaking a four-day losing streak after the latest reading on the jobs market and mixed retail sales reports. The moderate gains in stocks came as the Labor Department said the number of people filing for unemployment claims fell last week [ Read More → ]

A new initiative called “Backing Young Britain” is set to get thousands of young people back to work in the form of apprenticeships or training. The latest official figures show that the jobless rate among 16 to 24-year-olds has surged to almost 20%, with nearly a million classed as unemployed. Leading [ Read More → ]

NEW YORK — The stock market lost more ground today after a private sector report on unemployment failed to ease investors’ concerns about job losses. Stocks fell modestly in early trading after the ADP National Employment Report said employment fell by 298,000 in August following a revised loss of 360,000 [ Read More → ]