National & International News

We follow stories about America and the world, with help from NPR.

Better Than Nothing? GDP Revised From Slight Drop To Slight Gain

By • Feb 28, 2013

It's not much of a change, but at least it's in the right direction.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported Thursday morning that it now thinks the economy grew at a 0.1 percent annual rate in fourth-quarter 2012. A month ago, BEA thought GDP shrank at a 0.1 percent annual rate in those last three months of the year.

Obviously, in an economy that now produces nearly $16 trillion worth of goods and services annually, a 0.2 percentage point revision is basically a blip.

Countdown To The Sequester: 3 More 'Should-Read' Stories

By • Feb 28, 2013

Friday's deadline looms, and as we heard earlier today on Morning Edition: "Oh, it's gonna happen."

The "it" is sequestration — $85 billion worth of across-the-board federal spending cuts that are due to start kicking in at the end of Friday unless Republican and Democratic leaders somehow bridge their differences.

Top Stories: Pope's Last Day; More Aid For Syrian Rebels; Sequester Looms

By • Feb 28, 2013

Good morning.

Our early headlines:

-- U.S. To Give Syrian Opposition $60 Million More In Non-Lethal Aid, Kerry Says.

-- On Benedict's Last Day, A Pledge Of Obedience To His Successor.

Pennsylvania's Year In Review

By Kathy Matheson/Associated Press • Dec 31, 2012

Happy Valley was not a happy place in 2012. And yet it was hard to stay away.

The child molestation scandal that engulfed Penn State dominated state news this year, from the stunning death of longtime football coach Joe Paterno to the gut-wrenching court testimony that sent his former assistant, Jerry Sandusky, to prison for sexually abusing boys.

Other big stories included Superstorm Sandy, which cut power to more than 1.5 million customers in eastern Pennsylvania in late October. It took nine days to restore service in some places.

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