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Driven by a significant decrease in satisfaction with fees and rates, overall credit card customer satisfaction declines to a three-year low, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2009 Credit Card Satisfaction Study(SM).

Unemployment rates were higher in July than a year earlier in all 372 metropolitan areas, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported. Nineteen areas recorded jobless rates of at least 15.0 percent, while 11 areas registered rates below 5.0 percent. The national unemployment rate in July was 9.7 percent, not seasonally adjusted, up from 6.0 percent a year earlier. Among the 369 metropolitan areas for which nonfarm payroll data were available, 353 areas reported over-the-year decreases in nonfarm payroll employment, 14 reported increases, and 2 had no change.

Despite recent events in the economy, a majority of workers are satisfied with their current employer-sponsored retirement benefits. In particular, many place a high value on plans that offer security and flexibility, according to a survey by Watson Wyatt, a leading global consulting firm.

There is a slight sense of optimism this month regarding the economy, but that optimism has yet to extend to the current employment situation. Currently, just under half of Americans (46%) believe the economy will improve in the coming year while one-third (32%) say it will stay the same and 22% believe it will get worse. In May, just under two in five (38%) believed the economy would improve in the coming year while over one-quarter (27%) said they thought it would get worse.

The euro area (EA16) seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 9.5% in July 2009, compared with 9.4% in June. It was 7.5% in July 2008. The EU27 unemployment rate was 9.0% in July 2009, compared with 8.9% in June. It was 7.0% in July 2008. For the euro area this is the highest rate since May 1999 and for the EU27 since May 2005.

Consumers are slightly less satisfied in the second quarter of 2009, according to National Customer Satisfaction Index (NCSI-UK) results. Customer satisfaction dips by 0.1%, now 72.9 on a 100 point scale. The small drop is largely due to declining customer satisfaction in the automobile industry, which - despite economic conditions- still accounts for a considerable portion of overall consumer spending.

The weekly average rate borrowers were quoted on Zillow Mortgage Marketplace for 30-year fixed mortgages decreased last week to 5.17 percent, down from 5.19 percent the week prior, according to the Zillow Mortgage Rate Monitor, compiled by leading real estate Web site Zillow.com®. Rates for 15-year fixed mortgages fell to 4.57 percent from 4.59 percent, and 5-1 adjustable rate mortgages remained flat at 4.17 percent.

As the economic news starts to show just a little brightening, the actions of Wall Street and the large investment banks are something that Americans are watching. As some of the large Wall Street firms, such as Goldman Sachs, and J.P. Morgan, release earnings results that show record profits, seven in ten Americans (70%) believe that this is one sign things may be easing, but they still believe the country is a long way from being out of economic trouble. One-quarter of Americans (25%) see this as bad news as it potentially indicates a return to the ways that caused some of the economic problems in the first place while 5% believe it is good news and shows the recession and economic troubles are almost over.

Economic confidence among small business owners jumped to its highest level in 18 months in August as more owners expressed faith that the U.S. economy is on the rise and gave signs that they are more willing to invest in advertising and new inventory, according to the latest Discover® Small Business WatchSM. The index rose to 89.8, up 7.7 points from July and the highest level since 90.9 in February 2008.

Online advertised vacancies rose by 169,000 to 3,464,800 in August, according to The Conference Board Help-Wanted OnLine Data Series (HWOL)™.