Wednesday, April 7, 2010 as of 11:14 AM ET
In economics, stimulus refers to attempts to use monetary or fiscal policy (or stabilization policy in general) to stimulate the economy.
Read More at Wikipedia ›Defaults on auto loans in Brazil reached a record high in April as consumers struggled to pay down loans from previous years, the central bank reported Friday.
The central bank said that loans past due for more than 90 days on auto-financing contracts rose to 5.9% in April from 5.7% in March.Bank officials said the increase in the delinquency rate was part of a trend that began with eased credit conditions and tax incentives from past government economic stimulus efforts."The high default rate on auto-purchase loans reflects the credit harvest of 2010," noted Central Bank Economics Department Coordinator Tulio Maciel.In response to the repercussions of a global financial crisis in 2008 and 2009, Brazil's government cut the country's IPI industrial products tax by between 50% and 100% on selected models of vehicles, encouraging a rush of consumers to make new auto purchase loans. The central bank at the time had also cut the country's benchmark Selic interest rate to an all-time low of 8...Congratulations to the United States -- we now have the highest corporate tax rate in the world.Japan was the highest until this month, when it lowered its corporate...
The Bank of England left its monetary policy on hold on Thursday, judging that no addition to its current stimulus was yet necessary as the economy looks to be stumb...
FOX Business: The Power to ProsperAfter fading into the background for several weeks, tension over the European debt crisis flared up again on Wednesday on the back ...
FOX Business: The Power to ProsperU.S. stock-index futures sold off on Wednesday as traders grew more nervous about the debt situation in the eurozone and less confi...
FOX Business: The Power to ProsperThe markets fell sharply after minutes from the Federal Reserve's last meeting showed that while the central bank is considering ad...
Sometimes the world economy seems like a giant spider web: Touch one part and the vibrations are felt throughout the structure. So it is that slowing demand for stee...
China's economic momentum slowed in March as factory activity shrank for a fifth straight month, leaving investors fretting about the risks to global growth and anti...
A former economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City is returning after a brief stint in the private sector to become the bank's chief economic adviser.Rece...
The Internal Revenue Service has more than $1 billion in unclaimed refunds it wants to give to the rightful owners.The cash is waiting for taxpayers who didn't file ...
Gold futures ended lower Friday as investors are seen as still unwinding their long positions, or bets prices would go up, as their hopes of more U.S. economic stimu...
Argentina President Cristina Kirchner pledged Thursday to continue the economic and social policies that analysts say helped her to win a landslide re-election last ...
Argentina President Cristina Kirchner pledged Thursday to continue the economic and social policies that analysts say helped her to win a landslide re-election last ...
FBN's Lou Dobbs sounds off on the government's inability to restore economic prosperity .
Rep. Hansen Clarke argues the Student Loan Forgiveness Act will give relief to students not able to make payments and create jobs.
"The Lily" author Daniel Cloud argues that in order for China to return to economic prosperity it would need to start inventing things.
Royal Bank of Scotland PLC (RBS) Friday reduced its outlook for gold prices this year, the latest in a line of banks to pare back their price expectations on the yel...
German Chancellor Angela Merkel opposes an economic stimulus program to boost the European economy, instead favoring reforms and increasing the European Investment B...
Gold futures rallied Thursday, buoyed by a lower dollar and dovish comments by two U.S. Federal Reserve officials, who kept alive investors hopes for another round o...
FBN’s David Asman breaks down the former president’s efforts to boost economic prosperity .
