Main Street 9

Gas prices fell back, yet again, marking the sixth straight decline, according to a nationwide survey of credit card swipes at gasoline stations.
The average price of unleaded regular dropped 1.3 cents to $3.726 a gallon, from $3.739 a gallon, according to the survey released Tuesday by motorist group AAA. While prices have now dropped [...]

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Nearly a quarter of U.S. fuel production had been shut down due to the approach of Hurricane Ike, according to a government assessment released Friday.
By 10:00 A.M. ET, 13 of the 26 Texas refineries, representing a production capacity of 3.6 million barrels of fuel a day, had been shut down, the Energy Department said.
Texas accounts [...]

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Oil prices fell Thursday, testing a 5-month low, as the market remained focused on slumping demand and the stronger dollar but also watched the threat that Hurricane Ike poses to the Texas Gulf Coast.
Crude futures traded down 94 cents at $101.64 a barrel, having been as low as $100.18 earlier.
On Wednesday, U.S. light sweet crude [...]

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(Fortune Small Business) — With commodity, fuel and insurance costs hitting record highs, small-business owners are anxious about next week’s federal minimum wage hike, which will require employers in 26 states and the District of Columbia to raise their base to at least $6.55.
Next week’s increase of the current $5.85/hour minimum wage is the second [...]

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President Bush on Saturday tried to pin the blame on Congress for soaring energy prices and said lawmakers need to lift long-standing restrictions on drilling for oil in pristine lands and offshore tracts believed to hold huge reserves of fuel.
“It’s time for members of Congress to address the pain that high gas prices are causing [...]

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Oil companies once viewed drilling in the deep waters off Florida as cost prohibitive. Politicians feared even the slightest sign of support would be career suicide.
No more. Record crude oil prices are fueling support for oil and natural gas exploration off the nation’s shores. In Florida, movement was underway even before President Bush called on [...]

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 Americans are feeling a lot more economic pain than the government’s official statistics would lead you to believe, according to a growing number of experts.
They argue that figures for unemployment and inflation are being understated by the government.
Unemployment and inflation are typically added together to come up with a so-called “Misery Index.”
The “Misery Index” was [...]

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