CHAMPAIGN, Illinois (PNN) - September 15, 2011 - The Illinois unemployment rate shot up almost half a percentage point in August, to 9.9%. It was the fourth straight month of diminishing job prospects that state officials blame on weak consumer confidence and the struggles of the national economy.

WASHINGTON - September 15, 2011 - The U.S. Postal Service unveiled Thursday a drastic downsizing scheme for the embattled public company, including cutting 35,000 jobs, as it seeks to avoid collapse amid a "new reality" in the economy.

NEW YORK - September 15, 2011 - Default notices sent to delinquent U.S. homeowners surged 33% in August from the previous month, a sign that lenders are speeding up the foreclosure process after almost a year of delays, RealtyTrac Inc. said.

LONDON, England - September 15, 2011 - European banks are leaking deposits as savers and money funds are spooked by the region’s debt crisis, a trend that could worsen economic and financial conditions.

WASHINGTON - September 15, 2011 - Consumers paid more for a range of goods and services last month, and unemployment benefit applications jumped last week to the highest level in three months. The latest data offered a picture of an economy facing inflationary pressures and a depressed job market.

The Consumer Price Index rose 0.4% in August, the Department of Labor said Thursday. That followed a 0.5% increase in July. Excluding volatile food and energy costs, core prices increased 0.2%.

WASHINGTON (PNN) - September 13, 2011 - The U.S. poverty rate hit its highest level since 1993 last year with a record 46 million Americans living below the poverty line, according to a government report on Tuesday that depicted the grim effects of stubbornly high unemployment.

Underscoring the economic challenges that face illegitimate President Barack Obama and Congress, the U.S. Census Bureau said the poverty rate rose for a third consecutive year, to hit 15.1% in 2010. The number of people in poverty was the largest since the government first began publishing estimates in 1959.

WASHINGTON (PNN) - September 12, 2011 - Confronted with an economy that has decidedly underperformed this year, economists are scaling back their growth forecasts for 2011 and next year.