Global Economy

Budget Battles

  • Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) arrives at Democratic Party caucus meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 19, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas/ File Photo

    Factbox: What happens in a U.S. government shutdown?

    By Richard Cowan and Susan Cornwell and Amanda Becker and Richard Cowan and Susan Cornwell and Amanda Becker, Reuters

    In shutdowns, nonessential government employees are furloughed, or placed on temporary unpaid leave. Workers deemed essential, including those dealing with public safety and national security, keep...

  • FILE PHOTO: Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., September 12, 2017. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts

    No Talk of Ousting Speaker Ryan, Key Conservative Says

    By Reuters

    Many Republicans are unhappy with the deal President Donald Trump reached last week with Democratic leaders to raise the government's debt ceiling and allow it to continue financing federal spending...

  • Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro waves during a pro-government rally with workers of state-run oil company PDVSA, in Barcelona

    The Crisis in Venezuela Could Send Oil Prices Soaring

    By Nick Cunningham, Oilprice.com

    Venezuela’s deteriorating crisis is “going to be the biggest geopolitical story to watch in the oil markets," according to Helima Croft of RBC Capital Markets. The economic, political and security...

  • FILE PHOTO: Arellano, deputy of the Venezuelan coalition of opposition parties (MUD), clashes with national guards during a rally against Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro's government in Caracas

    The Risk That Could Drive Oil Prices Higher in a Hurry

    By Nick Cunningham, Oilprice.com

    The latest rally in oil prices ran up against a wall yet again, and the same fears about oversupply have not receded in the slightest. The expectation from most oil analysts is that there is very...

  • Emmanuel Macron, head of the political movement 'En Marche!', or 'Onwards!', and candidate for the 2017 presidential election, delivers a speech as he attends a meeting for Women's day in Paris, France

    France Just Made a Big Move Toward a Green Energy Future

    By Bate Felix and Simon Carraud, Reuters

    France aims to end the sale of gasoline and diesel vehicles by 2040 and become carbon neutral 10 years later, Ecology Minister Nicolas Hulot said on Thursday at a presentation of measures to keep up...

  • North Korea Rips into U.S. for Internet Failures

    By Jack Kim, Reuters

    North Korea called U.S. President Barack Obama a "monkey" as it blamed Washington Saturday for Internet outages that it has experienced amid a confrontation with the United States over the hacking of...

  • New Stars in the Sony ‘Interview’ Saga: Indie Theaters

    By Eric Kelsey, Reuters

    High-brow art house theaters and low-key college town cinemas became the unlikely stars of a Hollywood comeback by convincing the powerful Sony Pictures studio on Tuesday to let them screen "The...

  • The GOP Flap Over Cuba Previews the 2016 Primaries

    By Maureen Mackey, The Fiscal Times

    Voters got a preview of the 2016 primaries last weekend when two of the GOP potential hopefuls, Senators Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Rand Paul (R-KY), sparred over the president’s action on Cuba...

  • Pumpjacks taken out of production temporarily stand idle at a Hess site while new wells are fracked near Williston, North Dakota November 12, 2014. REUTERS/Andrew Cullen

    Falling Oil Prices Could Hurt U.S. Arms Sales Abroad

    By Eric Pianin

    The sharp decline in world oil prices is fast becoming a double-edged sword for the Defense Department and U.S. defense manufacturers: For the Pentagon, the more than 40 percent drop in the price of...

  • The Internet Is Down in North Korea…

    By Everett Rosenfeld, CNBC

    North Korea is having major Internet problems, just days after President Barack Obama promised a proportional response to the devastating hacks against Sony . The country, which the FBI accused last...