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The Second Quarter 2008 SIOR Commercial Real Estate Index, compiled by the Society of Industrial and Office Realtors (SIOR) in association with the National Association of Realtors (NAR), indicated that commercial real estate markets have not yet begun their rebound to market equilibrium. The national Index, which measures 10 variables pertinent to the performance of U.S. industrial and office markets, dropped for a sixth straight quarter to an overall total of 76.4 points. This point drop placed it 23.6 points below the 100 point criteria that represents a balanced office and industrial marketplace and 43 points below its record high in spring 2006.

New mobile ad spending projections seem to appear every day. One of the latest is from Strategy Analytics, which predicts that advertisers worldwide will spend $2.4 billion on mobile in 2009, up from $1 billion this year.

The "Working in America: Drivers Cope with Soaring Gas Prices" survey shows that Americans are finding ways to cut back on spending – but not commuting – in tough economic times.

The impact of inflation on consumers surges in the second quarter of 2008 to the highest level since measurements began in 2005. The Index now stands at 139, up from 123 in the first quarter, compared to the second quarter of 2007, when the Index measured 106.

The Producer Price Index for Finished Goods advanced 1.2 percent in July, seasonally adjusted, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported.

Despite continuing news about the troubled economy, Americans' perceptions of their own financial situations have grown slightly more positive this summer. The COUNTRY Financial Security Index SM rose to 69.9 in August, up 0.6 from June and 2.1 since April. More Americans, particularly younger age groups, rated their overall financial security positively in August than in June.

Nearly three out of four (74 percent) American voters agree that, "home care is part of the solution to the problem of rapidly increasing Medicare spending for America's seniors." Voters age 55-plus are even more likely to agree (81 percent).

The U.S. leveraged finance markets experienced modest recovery in the second quarter 2008 following a disastrous first quarter. According to Fitch Ratings' second quarter 'U.S. Leveraged Finance Quarterly Review,' both the leveraged loan and high yield bond markets saw an increase in new issuance and markedly higher total returns.

Steven Mosher, president of the Population Research Institute, told FOX Business News that concerns that America is becoming overpopulated are groundless. Recent census bureau projections, quoted in the New York Times, predict that by 2042 the United States population will have risen by 100 million. America's continuing population growth is a net positive, according to Mosher.

Canadian seniors pay twice as much as American seniors for identical generic drugs, according to a new study released by independent research organization the Fraser Institute.