NPR Audio - Business

It's a good time for U.S. companies that have an international reach. McDonald's, 3M and Amazon – all of which sell products overseas – are doing well this year in spite of the troubled economic situation at home, thanks in part to the depreciated dollar.

Congress is expected to vote this week on legislation to address the home foreclosure crisis, and shore up mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Here, a look at what the bill would do.

Dishwashers and refrigerators are making investors happy; orders for durable goods rose at their fastest pace in four months. We examine the unexpected good news.

Thousands of visitors are expected to attend a birthday party for the vehicle in Richmond, Indiana. Model T owners from 44 states and nine countries are participating. We talk to some Model T owners about their cars.

When times are tough, hamburger consumption goes up, an analyst explains. Nonetheless, McDonald's is planning to raise the price of its dollar menu. We examine the contradiction.

Lawrence, Mass. and Salem, N.H. are just seven miles apart. But if you're out of work and trying to get jobless benefits, they're very different. We visit people coping with unemployment in both places.

A Chinese company has spent nearly $50 million to gain a shipping foothold in the heart of Europe, taking over a German cargo airport. Chinese goods may soon be assembled nearby in order to receive a coveted "Made in Germany" label.

On Saturday, the Senate is expected to lend its approval to a major bill aimed at bolstering the battered U.S. housing market. Economists dislike the bill. Many fear this short-term legislative fix will not address a longer-term problem.

Home foreclosure filings more than doubled in the second quarter of 2008 from a year ago, according to real estate data released Friday by RealtyTrac Inc. Nationwide, 739,714 households — one in every 171 — received at least one foreclosure-related notice from April to June.

A much-debated merger deal between the nation's only two satellite radio companies — XM and Sirius — is on the verge of completion.

Claiming intellectual property infringement, the toy company Hasbro is suing a pair of brothers from Calcutta, India, who created the Internet phenomenon Scrabulous, a Web-based knockoff of Hasbro's board game Scrabble.

The automaker Honda has reported an 8-percent increase in profits, overcoming higher material costs and a stronger yen. North American plants are still operating near full capacity. The company has scaled back SUV and truck production and emphasized fuel-efficient Civics and Accords.

Adam Davidson, NPR business correspondent, and Paul Maeder, co-founder of Highland Capital, offer some perspective on the current economic landscape. How have gas prices, the housing market and Wall Street's highs and lows affected you this summer?

After posting an $8.7 billion loss for the second quarter on Thursday, Ford announces plans to switch manufacturing operations at three North American plants from trucks to small cars. The auto industry has seen a dramatic decline in truck and SUV sales in recent months as consumers react to high gas prices.

A new report from the D.C.-based non-profit Social Compact shows that many "poor" areas have economic potential. The director of the organization discusses what people in these neighborhoods are spending money on and why it makes good business sense to invest there.

Ford posted nearly $9 billion in losses Thursday, largely due to gas-price induced problems selling trucks and SUVs. It's expected to offer an olive branch to investors in the form of more fuel-efficient cars.

Primary care doctors say they're having more and more trouble making ends meet; they're drowning in paperwork and making less than specialists. So, a growing number of general practitioners are adding cosmetic procedures to their offerings as a way to bring in more money.

Even in the midst of the worst housing slump in decades, some people are out there getting mortgages and buying homes. But they're paying more for mortgages these days, and borrowers with shaky credit won't find it easy to get a loan.

Parsing the presidential candidates' tax plans is necessary to understanding their general takes on the economy. Economist Len Burman has been doing just that. He is a senior fellow at the Urban Institute, which has just released a report comparing the candidates' proposed tax policies.

Congress has put the far-reaching housing bill on a fast track to the president. The House passed the measure Wednesday, and it goes to the Senate this week. It would help homeowners facing foreclosure, and put in place a rescue plan for troubled Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Jason Furman has been given the task of formulating Barack Obama's economic policy. He's the presidential hopeful's top economic adviser, and he will talk about where Obama stands on the most pressing economic issues.

A legendary French winery is purchasing a famous winemaker in California. The deal comes decades after the same California winery beat French wines in a blind taste test. Vic Motto, a wine industry investment banker, says it's "a very important merger of two great wine estates."

To win this coming election, presidential candidate John McCain must prove that he is as strong on the economy as he is on military and foreign affairs. His senior economic adviser, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, discusses McCain's approach to economic policy.

Microsoft founder Bill Gates has joined forces with New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg to fight tobacco use in developing countries. Gates donated $125 million to a tobacco-control initiative that Bloomberg launched in 2002.

Deborah Amos has this morning's business news.

Steve Inskeep has today's Last Word in business.

Where do you look among federal agencies for smart thinking about renewable energy and alternative fuels? The U.S. Postal Service. Every 1-cent increase in the price of gasoline costs it an extra $8 million. That brings a keen motivation to innovate.

When the owner of a consulting company in Montana heard an NPR story about Bahjat, an Iraqi refugee struggling to find work in Florida, he offered Bahjat a job. Bahjat decided he had nothing to lose, so he accepted. But first, he had to figure out where Montana was.

The federal minimum wage goes up 70 cents an hour on Thursday, to $6.55. Although only 2 percent of hourly earners are paid the federal minimum, it does indirectly affect many more workers.

As it gets ever easier to doctor images, will the photograph lose its credibility? A digitally manipulated photo of an Iranian missile launch recently made its way onto major news Web sites, raising concerns about whether images can be trusted. Guests discuss the long history of altered images.

Loyal Starbucks customers may be forced to walk an extra block or two to satisfy their frappuccino cravings; the chain has announced that it will be closing 600 stores around the country. Coffee drinkers aren't taking the news lying down — at SaveOurStarbucks.com, dedicated customers are fighting to keep their neighborhood stores open.

The New York Times says ad revenues fell 12 percent last quarter and is working its way through several rounds of buyouts. Meanwhile, the Chicago Tribune, Washington Post and The Los Angeles Times are cutting back. What does this mean for journalism?

The Oscars telecast has experienced poor ratings in recent years. Summer films gave critic Andrew Wallenstein an idea about how to get more people to watch the ceremony: nominate films people actually go to see.

Maurice Possley, one of the Chicago Tribune reporters whose work led to Illinois' death penalty moratorium, is resigning. He says the paper is dismantling itself in ways that hurt its ability to do good, meaningful journalism.

Last week, we asked you to send questions about how economic problems are affecting your finances. James Early, senior analyst at the Motley Fool, breaks down the nuances of loans, retirement savings and bailouts.

Books inspired by PG-13 movies are taking over library shelves. Can See Iron Man Run really be good for young readers? Alex Cohen talks with Slate.com writer Erica Perl about the pros and cons of "fast-food lit."

Recession, inflation or slowdown? Defining the state of our economy isn't easy. We examine the indicators economists use to measure the financial future.

Wachovia announced multibillion-dollar losses related to the mortgage crisis Tuesday. But instead of upsetting investors, the news helped lift financial stocks and the rest of the market.

President Bush reversed his stance on a congressional plan to help Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac weather the mortgage crisis and to provide struggling homeowners with more affordable loans. White House press secretary Dana Perino said the president had decided it was not the time for a veto fight.