Millions of Americans are buying tickets for Wednesday's $425 million Powerball lottery, and you'd think that would mean a big economic boost for the 43 states participating. That's not a sure bet.
US-Powerball-Odds
Last March, when the people of America were drooling at the thought of winning a record $656 million Mega Millions jackpot, we poured an icy bucket of mathematical reality over your head: You weren't going to win. And you didn't. Three winning tickets were sold, but you weren't involved. It was never going to happen. As we wrote then, you stood a better chance at hitting two consecutive holes in one on a par-3 golf hole than winning that jackpot. Now, with a record $500 million Powerball jackpot up for grabs on Wednesday, we figured it was a great time to, once again, dash your dreams.
MONEY-stocks-markets
U.S. stocks closed lower Tuesday, as investors grew increasingly concerned about whether Congress can adequately and swiftly address the so-called fiscal cliff.
MONEY-green-mountain-coffee-roasters
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters issued a better than expected outlook for the company's upcoming fiscal year, sending shares up 23% after the closing bell on Tuesday.
MONEY-Debt-Ceiling
Congress must raise the debt ceiling before the end of February, and possibly sooner. If it doesn't, the United States risks defaulting on its payments to creditors.
MONEY-Consumer-Confidence
Optimism about the job market has consumers feeling more upbeat about the U.S. economy than they have been in four and a half years, according to one key measure of consumer confidence.
MONEY-Cyber-Monday-Mobile
This week's Cyber Monday online shopping bonanza set new records, but the growing number of consumers who shopped on their phones and tablets often encountered brick-and-mortar-like delays on sluggish sites.
MONEY-Home-Prices
In another sign of a housing market rebound, home prices posted the biggest percentage gain in more than two years in the third quarter, according to the closely followed S&P/Case-Shiller index.
MONEY-microsoft-windows-8-sales
Microsoft has sold 40 million licenses of Windows 8 after one month on the market, matching the early pace of Windows 7, the company announced Tuesday.
MONEY-Ericsson-Samsung-Suit
Ericsson has filed a lawsuit against Samsung for patent infringement, claiming the South Korean mobile phone maker is no longer entitled to use its telecommunications technology after a licensing agreement expired.
MONEY-Farming
The American farmer might not be as poor as you think.
MONEY-treasury-china-currency
The Treasury Department said Tuesday that China's currency remains undervalued, but stopped short of branding the country a currency manipulator.
MONEY-Asia-Factory-Deaths
As Bangladesh mourns the death of more than 100 workers killed in a factory fire over the weekend, attention is turning to the labels found among the charred debris and what role they could have played in preventing the worst industrial disaster in the country's history.
