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MasterCard Advisors’ SpendingPulse, a macro-economic report tracking national retail and service sales, provided summary results for performance of specific U.S. retail industries in March, 2010. Most retail sectors continued to demonstrate solid year-over-year gains in March as easy year-over-year comparisons helped produce positive growth rates, albeit sales levels in several sectors are still off from the highs of 24 months ago. From a geographic point of view spending was positive across most regions of the country, the Pacific Coast being the exception.

While health organizations worldwide, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention here in the US, recommend people stay home and avoid contact with others if sick, a recent global poll conducted by Monster found more than three-quarters of respondents (76%) polled go in to the office or work from home when they are ill, rather than resting at home to recuperate. Of the 33,684 people who responded to the poll from 15 countries worldwide, a striking 28% report to work when they are sick because they are afraid they may lose their job in the current economy.

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for Japan increased 0.9 percent, while The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index® (CEI) decreased 0.4 percent in February.

The pickup in activity seen in the G7 countries in the last quarter of 2009 is expected to ease back in the first half of this year, according to the OECD’s latest Interim Economic Assessment.

Capital One Small Business Banking released the results of a recent survey of small businesses across the nation gauging their current financial condition and business projections for the next six months. The results showed that while nearly half (47 percent) of the small businesses surveyed said that the economic conditions for their companies have stayed the same, one in four (26 percent) of the business owners reported improving conditions and nearly one third (28 percent) said that their firm’s financial position is better than it was at the same time last year.

The 30-year fixed mortgage rate on Zillow Mortgage Marketplace is currently 5.08 percent, up fifteen basis points from 4.93 percent compared to this same time last week. The 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose last week, spiking Sunday at 5.14 percent before falling to 5.05 percent Monday.

A new study released by Bankrate, Inc. shows that, with economic uncertainty still lingering, many Americans plan to use their tax refunds in a fiscally conservative fashion, with 84 percent intending to pay down debt, save or invest, or use it for everyday necessities.

A new Harris Poll provides some unpleasant numbers about the housing crisis and the collapse of the house price bubble. Fully 24% of people with mortgages believe they owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth. One in nine homeowners (11%) with mortgages report having “a great deal of difficulty” in paying off their mortgage. Another 18% are having “some difficulty.” This comes at a time when two-thirds of all adults (65%) are concerned that their families’ incomes “will not be enough to cover all their costs and expenses this year.”

The Conference Board Employment Trends Index™ (ETI) rose in March for the seventh consecutive month. The index now stands at 94.4, up from February's revised figure of 93.7. The index is up 5.5 percent from a year ago. Over the past three months, all of the index's eight components have been improving.

comScore, Inc., a leader in measuring the digital world, released data from the comScore MobiLens service, reporting key trends in the U.S. mobile phone industry during the three month period between November 2009 and February 2010. The report ranked the leading mobile original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and smartphone platforms in the U.S. according to their share of usage by current mobile subscribers age 13 and older, and reviewed the most popular activities and content accessed via the subscriber’s primary mobile phone. The February report found Motorola to be the top handset manufacturer overall with 22.3 percent market share, while RIM led among smartphone platforms with 42.1 percent market share.