This is the VOA Special English Economics Report, from voaspecialenglish.com | http Today we look back at some of the top stories of twenty-eleven. In Europe, the debt crisis that started in two thousand ten in Greece and Ireland spread to other countries. Portugal needed a financial rescue, and Italy needed a new prime minister. Silvio Berlusconi lost his job over Italy's debt problems. Former European Union official Mario Monti replaced him in November.Pressures on Europe's financial system called into question the future of the euro. European finance officials called for greater cooperation and new rules. World Bank President Robert Zoellick said Europe would have to find its own answers to its debt problems. "Europe has to rescue Europe, OK? And it's very important. If there's any message when I'm asked, "Well, what can the US do and what can China do?" The best thing they can do is clean up their act at home, be a source of growth at home."Mr. Zoellick also said it was important for other big economies to deal with their own budget imbalances. "The downgrade of America from triple A didn't affect the finances today, but it may be one of those events people look back on ten years from now and say, 'Did they get the warning?'" In August, a credit rating agency cut the United States' credit rating from the highest level, triple A, to double A-plus. Also in August, Steve Jobs stepped down as chief at Apple because of his failing health. He died of cancer in October at ...

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report, from voaspecialenglish.com | http In early April, President Obama announced his plans to seek re-election in November of next year. In an e-mail to supporters, Mr. Obama said "the race may not reach full speed for a year or more." But he said the work of building the campaign "must start today."Some of that work will depend on how many jobs are created in the months ahead. Mr. Obama welcomed a report that the United States economy added two hundred sixteen thousand jobs in March. The unemployment rate dropped one-tenth of one percent for the second straight month. The unemployment rate edged down to 8.8 percent, the lowest in two years. And some economists say this spring may be the start of better news to come. Consumer spending has been increasing.Stephen Hess is a political scientist who studies the presidency at the Brookings Institution in Washington. He says, "The next election will, more than anything else, depend on employment in the United States."Labor Secretary Hilda Solis pointed out that the economy has added jobs for twelve months in a row. She says the economy has added a million and a half private sector jobs. But, she added, "we need to continue to not lose sight of where we need to go to increase opportunities for people to get employed in new jobs." President Obama has filled a top job in his party as he prepares to seek a second term. He chose Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida to head ...

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, from voaspecialenglish.com | http Valentine's Day, February fourteenth, is one of the biggest days of the year for lovers of chocolate. Americans were expected to spend more than one billion dollars on chocolates and other candies for their sweethearts this year. But the chocolate industry worries that prices for its sweets could rise in the years ahead. Susan Smith is a spokeswoman for the National Confectioners Association, a trade group for the candy, chocolate and gum industries. She says, "They're very aware that an everyday candy product needs to be an affordable treat." Americans buy more than eighteen billion dollars worth of chocolate each year. But keeping chocolate at prices that people can afford may be a challenge in the future. Demand is growing, especially in Asia. More people in Asia are developing a taste for chocolate, and have more money to buy it. The chocolate industry worries that supply will not keep up with demand. Cocoa is the main ingredient in chocolate. Millions of poor farmers in West Africa grow about seventy percent of the world's cocoa. Each farmer has just a few hectares of land. "And they don't have a lot of additional capital. They may not have the management skills that are required to actually do a better job." So says Lyndel Meinhardt. He supervises cocoa research at the United States Department of Agriculture. Mr. Meinhardt says these farmers often do not have the money to buy ...

Royal Tattoo SPIKE TV Commercial: This is perfect for the small business owner. We can reach our target market with TV commercials. It is by far the most cost effective way to increase sale or any product business or services. Bay Area local advertising and media company, Bay Area Block Report, is offering ad placement on major TV networks locally, regionally and nationally starting as low as per ad. Our clients can have their own 30-second commercial ad on major TV networks like ESPN, TNT, Lifetime, Oxygen, G4, TLC, SPIKE, BET, MTV, VH1, TV ONE, Comedy Central, Speed, Bravo, CMT, and more. They also can choose the network they want and the cities where they want their ad to be shown. Bay Area Block Report works directly with the major radio, cable TV and satellite network providers so this is how they are able to provide local, regional and national TV and radio advertising placement at such low prices "We offer our clients a highly effective and affordable method to promote themselves and their new music through our commercial production. Increase your digital downloads, draw more traffic to your website, and increase attendance at your events; with our TV and radio campaigns, you can reach thousands of listeners and viewers each day. With Bay Area Block Report, you can get the word out on all the latest local events and new artists. Call or email to get your promotions on TV and over the airwaves today," says Tim Lewis, Director of Advertising and Promotion for the ...

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report , from voaspecialenglish.com | http On January eighteenth, Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, blacked out its English language website for twenty-four hours. The move was part of an organized protest against a proposed United States law to fight illegal copying of intellectual property on the Internet.Jay Walsh is head of communications for the Wikimedia Foundation which operates Wikipedia. He says the legislation "is detrimental to the free and open Web. It's detrimental to Wikipedia. And we want to make sure that we send a message."The blogging site Boing Boing and social news website Reddit also went black. Erik Martin, the general manager of Reddit, said: "This is a really big deal and this is something we're going to fight, and this is something we think threatens the entire tech sector."Both Wikipedia and Reddit urged users to contact their congressional representative. Internet search leader Google also protested, although it continued to provide service.The protest was against two bills -- the Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA, and the Protect Intellectual Property Act, or PIPA. PIPA is the Senate version; SOPA is the version in the House of Representatives. Supporters say the law is needed to fight foreign websites that sell pirated copies of American movies and music. Steven Tepp is a lawyer with the US Chamber of Commerce. He says piracy of books, music, movies and other forms of intellectual property hurt the ...

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report from voaspecialenglish.com | http In early January, President Obama appointed Richard Cordray as director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. This new government agency says it has already made home loans and credit card agreements easier for Americans to understand. But the Obama administration said the bureau cannot supervise financial products like home loans without a director. The president used a measure known as a recess appointment to fill the position. He nominated Mr. Cordray last July. But the opposition Republican Party blocked a vote in the full Senate.Mr. Obama announced the appointment during a visit to Ohio. It was his first political campaign trip of the year. He told the crowd that the severe economic crisis three years ago did not happen because of too many financial rules. Mr. Obama said: "Does anyone think the reason why we got into such a financial mess, the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, the worst economic crisis in a generation, that the reason was because of too much oversight of the financial industry? Of course not. We shouldn't be weakening oversight, we shouldn't be weakening accountability, we should be strengthening it!"Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell criticized the president's appointment. Many Republicans oppose the new agency, saying its goals are not clear. They also want a group of people to lead the agency instead of a single director. The Consumer ...