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Americans are quickly shedding the financial and retirement concerns that were prominent throughout 2009 and are slipping back into their old spending and saving habits – taking fewer actions to cut spending and saving little to none, according to a recent study.

According to Mintel’s latest report on green living, the environment remains a concern for the majority of Americans. More than one-third (35%) of survey respondents say they would pay more for ‘environmentally friendly’ products.

"Tea Party" advocates, who are becoming a force in U.S. politics, want the federal government out of their lives, except when it comes to creating jobs, according to the Bloomberg National Poll, a quarterly survey of Americans.

This spring, some hopeful signs are emerging among small business owners, who remain skittish about the overall economic climate. Nearly half (48%) plan to make capital investments in their businesses, up from 42% last fall and nearing spring 2008 levels (53%) when investment plans began a steady decline amid the worsening economy. In addition, more than one-quarter have plans to hire (28%), edging higher from fall 2009 (23%), according to the American Express OPEN® Small Business Monitor, a semi-annual survey of business owners now in its ninth year.

Fidelity Investments®, a leading provider of employer benefits, announced the results of its annual Retiree Health Care Costs Estimate that found a 65-year-old couple retiring this year will need a quarter of a million dollars ($250,000) to pay for medical expenses throughout retirement, not including nursing-home care.

Mortgage rates were modestly higher this week, with the average conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rising to 5.11 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.41 discount and origination points.

Forty-four percent of U.S. adults are "extremely worried" or "very worried" about paying for rising health-care costs. And the top reasons cited for those rising costs are profits generated by drug companies and health insurance companies.

The enthusiasm for the markets voiced at the end of the year waned slightly as professional money manager bullishness declined for most equity asset classes and sectors in the latest Investment Manager Outlook, a quarterly survey of U.S. investment managers conducted by Russell Investments. Most notably, manager bullishness dropped 21 percentage points for non-U.S. (developed market) equities.

Americans are negative on the economy and markets even as stocks and growth indicators are up, according to the Bloomberg National Poll, a quarterly survey of Americans.

Employers took 1,570 mass layoff actions in February that resulted in the separation of 155,718 workers, seasonally adjusted, as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single employer. The number of mass layoff events in February fell by 191 from the prior month, and the number of associated initial claims decreased by 26,543. Both events and initial claims have decreased in 5 out of the last 6 months. In February, 376 mass layoff events were reported in the manufacturing sector, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 43,100 initial claims. Both figures declined over the month to their lowest levels since August 2007.