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Recession Briefing 11.9: Reuse, Recycle, Regift?

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

More Americans are planning on regifting, or passing on a gift they got from someone else, according to a poll. A total of 36% of U.S. adults said they would recycle a gift this year, compared with 31% last year and 24% in 2007. (Los Angeles Times)

Make-up sales have risen despite the recession as women aim to look their best without breaking the bank on clothes and shoes, new figures show. (Telegraph)

A $25 billion nationwide push to improve the energy efficiency of buildings will likely not be felt until well into next year, potentially undermining the job-creating aim of the stimulus. (Washington Post)

The recession may be over but companies that cater to consumers believe people are digging in for a long, frugal winter. The retail picture is improving, but haltingly. (Wall Street Journal)

Some economists argue that the business cycle no longer operates as it once did, failing to replenish the jobs it destroys, and leaving our economy vulnerable to a potentially long-term shortage of work. (New York Times)

Fewer Harvard M.B.A. graduates took jobs on Wall Street this year than in the past as a result of the sharp contraction in the financial services industry — but that may actually be a positive signal for the market. (New York Times/DealBook)

A U.S. program that pays generous benefits to jobless people displaced by global trade has been swamped with applications in recent months, leaving thousands of potential beneficiaries in limbo. (Wall Street Journal)

Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s investment bank — the three biggest banks to exit the Troubled Asset Relief Program — will hand out $29.7 billion in bonuses. That’s up 60 percent from last year. (Bloomberg)

Small businesses often lead the nation out of recession. Not this time. With sales weak, they’re still slashing jobs and faring worse than their larger rivals.  (USA Today)

“Without better job prospects, the consumers whose spending makes up the lion’s share of economic activity will remain tightfisted,” writes Colin Barr. “That will slow the healing of deep wounds in the housing and financial markets.” (CNN/Money)

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Tags: economy, holidays, jobs, recession, retail