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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.

Fitch Ratings-New York-18 August 2008: U.S. CMBS delinquencies increased two basis points in July to end the month at 0.43%, according to the latest Fitch Ratings Loan Delinquency Index.

The credit crisis continued to exact a toll on U.S. corporate credit quality in the second quarter of 2008, according to Fitch Ratings. The par value of U.S. corporate bond downgrades totaled $115.4 billion, bringing the total value of bonds affected by downgrades over the past year to $423 billion, more than the prior two years combined.

Young US consumers surveyed spent more time on the Internet than with any other type of media in May 2008, according to a study conducted by DoubleClick Performics and ROI Research.

The New York Employee Confidence Index decreased 3.4 points to 40.4 in July, according to the latest Spherion(R) Employment Report.

In the second quarter of 2008, employers initiated 1,534 mass layoff events that resulted in the separation of 299,886 workers from their jobs for at least 31 days, according to preliminary figures released by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics.