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Recession Briefing 11.02: Wallets Thinner, Waistlines Thicker

What you need to know today to survive and thrive in the recession.

Wallets may have gotten thinner during this recession, but waistlines have expanded. Many consumers are turning to cheaper fare to better balance their budgets. That often means fast food and canned and frozen processed foods that are higher in fat and calories. (Wall Street Journal) But you can eat healthfully on the cheap. (Recessionwire)

The American public is starting to get more than mildly annoyed at those who tell them the economy is bouncing back, writes Terry Savage. For every economist or politician who tells you the recession is over, there are a dozen people who think we’re in the midst of a depression. (Chicago Sun-Times) Some experts don’t think we’re out of the woods, either.  (Recessionwire)

“Unfortunately,” says John Ryding, chief economist at RDQ Economics, “you have as many views of the economy going forward as you have letters of the alphabet to describe recovery.” (New York Times)

With Detroit’s police force cut more than 25%, private security appears to be one of the city’s few growth industries. (Time)

A 13-year-old paperboy in the U.K. has been offered an $11 severance package — equal to one week’s pay. (BBC)

Edward Lazear thinks that measuring how many jobs were “created or saved” is meaningless. “What matters is net job gain or loss, and that means the unemployment rate.” (Wall Street Journal)

Nearly four of five economists surveyed say the stock market rally since March is heralding a sustainable recovery. If they’re right, the nation won’t slip back into recession. (USA Today)

Thinking of buying a home? Act before year’s end and you just might be able to make the most of the glut of foreclosed properties currently up for sale. (Forbes)

The consensus forecast is that job losses will continue through the end of this year, with many economists not expecting unemployment to peak until next summer. (CNN/Money)

Goldman Sachs spent years buying hundreds of thousands of subprime mortgages. Now that the bottom has fallen out of that market, Goldman finds itself in a different role: as the big banker that takes homes away. (McClatchy)

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Tags: economy, health, jobs, layoffs, real estate, Wall Street