Consumer Economic Update: Will Housing Break the Bank?
Thursday, January 24
11:00 AM EST (16:00 GMT)
1 CPE Credit: Economics*

The U.S. economy is skating on thin ice and at risk in 2008 of breaking through. The banks have a host of bad debt problems — total write-offs due to falling housing prices and bad sub-prime mortgage debt may reach half a trillion dollars. How will these factors impact the consumer business sector in 2008? We'll discuss:

• The impact of the credit crunch on consumers.
• The outlook for consumer spending.
• The environment for retail and consumer business profitability.

Hear from the chief economist of Deloitte Research about how economic challenges will affect consumer businesses in 2008 and beyond.