To credit-card companies, it's not sufficient that customers pay their bills on time every month; they must also avoid a daunting array of borrowing habits that lenders deem risky. Like borrowing. Katie Groves, 42, learned this firsthand when the annual interest rate on her Chase Visa bill jumped to 29.99%—from the previous 12%. Although she had never missed a payment and owed only $500, she was told that her rate had increased because Chase had checked her credit report.Most consumers ...

If you had headaches that were so bad they made you nauseous, landed you in bed and sometimes lasted for days, you'd have a right to be depressed. Indeed, that has long been the reasoning behind the high depression rate among people with migraines — 46%, about four times higher than the rate in the overall population. The cause and effect — bad headaches lead to bad mood — seems obvious. Now, however, a study in the journal ...

Japan's unemployment rate fell to 5.3 percent in September, the government reported on Friday.

Japan's unemployment rate fell to 5.3 percent in September, the government reported on Friday, according to Kyodo news Service.

Australia became the OECD nation to raise interest rates on Tuesday when its central bank increased the official cash rate from 3 percent to 3.25 percent.

With all the unique challenges facing African-Americans, identifying just one problem as the most fundamental issue sounds like the beginning of a long, nuanced conversation. It's not so complicated, however, for President Barack Obama. In a recent conversation with reporters, Obama easily cited education as the most important issue for the black community. "If we close the achievement gap, then a big chunk of economic inequality in this society is diminished," Obama told a small group of journalists from black ...

Following a dramatic fall through the 20th century, the U.S. infant mortality rate — the proportion of babies who die before they reach their first birthday — has leveled off at just under seven deaths per 1,000 live births. That's a much higher rate than in other parts of the developed world. Across the European Union, for example, fewer than five in 1,000 babies die before they turn one. And in some stand-out countries like Japan, Singapore, Sweden and Norway, the proportion of babies who die ...

The Bank of England Thursday cut a key interest rate from 1 percent to 0.5 percent, a new record low. The reduction in the official bank rate was expected. The bank, which is Britain's central bank, has been reducing rates steadily since October, when the rate was 5 percent. The 315-year old bank's previous rate cut was in early February, when it cut the rate from 1.5 percent to 1 percent. In addition to the rate cut, the bank announced ...