Economy

As the temperature plunged to minus-40 degrees last month, Nastasia Wassilie waited. The 61-year-old widow had run out of wood and fuel oil, and had no money to buy more. Nor was there much food in the house. But people here in rural Alaska try to take care of themselves. Her sister would come to help. Surely she would.

It's official: This recession is the worst the United States has experienced in more than 25 years, the government said Friday. And it appears likely to get worse before it gets better. At the White House, where the new administration is working on a broad strategy to combat the crisis, President Obama described the downturn as "a continuing disaster for America's working families."

Tens of thousands of Californians out of work for more than a year soon will be getting an extra 20 weeks of unemployment insurance checks, thanks to the federal economic stimulus program. The Legislature approved the extended benefits Thursday, and processing of them is expected to get underway as early as today after Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signs legislation authorizing the state to receive more than $3 billion from Washington.

The California Milk Advisory Board continues to ply its "Happy Cows" advertising campaign, but there are few happy dairy farmers right now. Frustrated with low milk prices, dairy farmers are selling cows for hamburger meat and threatening to dump milk into sewers. Many are burning through their life savings hoping to survive the slump, and others are exiting the business. Two farmers have killed themselves. The pain is being felt throughout the U.S.

California's jobless rate reached a fresh post-World War II high in July, climbing to 11.9%, a sobering reminder that though the nation's deep downturn may be nearing its end, the state's employment woes are far from over. Golden State employers cut their payrolls by 35,800 jobs in July, according to figures released Friday by the state Employment Development Department. That's a significant improvement over monthly losses that averaged 76,000 over the first half of the year. Still, July's numbers were worse than some analysts had expected, rising from 11.6% in June and led by declines in trade, construction and manufacturing.

As the recession drags on, national retailers are mass mailing requests for rent reductions to their landlords. Does a small-business tenant stand a chance of getting the same relief? It's not easy, industry experts say. "The landlord has no obligation to reduce the rent any more than he has the obligation to increase your rent because you are making too much money," said Rafael Padilla, a principal at Par Commercial Brokerage in Santa Monica.

More Californians are failing to make their mortgage payments than at any time in the last 20 years, but fewer of them are losing their homes, according to new figures. The drop in foreclosures follows moratoriums adopted by major banks and mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The increase in loan defaults, meanwhile, suggests that rising unemployment and the continuing recession are still claiming fresh victims.

Dena Lansford, 49, would like to have a cholesterol check, a mammogram and, soon, a colonoscopy. She hasn't seen a dentist in more than a year. She worries that she might suffer a similar fate as her mother, who had a stroke at 47. But after losing her job and health insurance last year, the Wildomar woman said, "I'm not doing any preventive care." As of February, an estimated 3.

Gideon Gono prints money, lots and lots of money that's worth next to nothing. Depending on whom you talk to, the architect of Zimbabwe's hyperinflation is a megalomaniac, a workaholic, a thief -- or the country's savior. Zimbabwe's central bank chief seems to have a finger in every government ministry. No project goes ahead without his approval. No underling approaches without fear and trembling.

The pace of job losses slowed considerably during the month of April, adding to hopes that the nation's steep economic downturn may be nearing a bottom. Employers cut 539,000 jobs last month, the fewest in six months and significantly fewer than the 699,000 jobs that had been lost the previous month, the U.S. Labor Department reported Friday. Still, the job market for Americans is difficult and getting worse. The nation's unemployment rate climbed to 8.