The U.S. economy is like a flywheel: It takes a lot to get it going. Once it starts moving, it can pick up speed pretty quickly.

To see why, look no further than Friday’s jobs report, which offered convincing evidence that the U.S. recovery is finally gaining momentum.

After months of subpar growth in their payrolls, American companies added 243,000 new jobs in January, considerably more than the 150,000 that forecasters expected. That drove the unemployment rate down from 8.5 percent in December to 8.3 percent, extending a rapid decline from 9.1 percent last August.

Since last fall, a series of economic reports have pointed to gradual improvement. But the January employment report tore the cover off the ball.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — U.S. stocks recovered most of their lost ground Monday afternoon but struggled to pull out of the red as concerns over Greece continued to weigh on the market.

Stocks started the day down about 1% after the weekend came and went without Greek leaders reaching an agreement on a debt-relief deal. But as the trading session wore on, the major indexes trimmed most of those losses.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) finished 7 points lower, or 0.1%. Earlier, the blue chip index had declined 131 points. The S&P 500 (SPX) lost 3 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq (COMP) slumped 5 points, or 0.2%.

Full Story at Stock Markets – Jan. 30, 2012 – CNNMoney

Stocks trim losses, but end in red on Greek woes

It’s getting a little crowded in the breakfast nook.

Fast food chain Taco Bell announced Thursday that it’s entering the breakfast fray. It joins larger rivals such as McDonald’s, Wendy’s and Subway in a market saturated with breakfast options including specialty coffees to lure in addicts who’ll buy a breakfast sandwich along with that daily cup of joe.

Irvine, Calif.-based Taco Bell, which is known for its low price points and late night hours, is introducing a breakfast menu at nearly 800 restaurants across 10 Western states, including California and Arizona.

The recent improvement in the job market comes as welcome news for President Obama as he struggles to answer GOP attacks on the campaign trail that he’s mismanaged the economic recovery. There are a lot of reasons, though, that it may be too early for the White House to start cheering about jobs.

There’s no shortage of issues vying for voter attention as the 2012 presidential campaign kicks into gear. But with unemployment stuck above 8.5 percent for the 34th month in a row, the job market likely will top the list until the November election.

The White House hammered on the issue again week, as the president rolled out yet another round of job-creation proposals at a meeting with business leaders in the White House. This one is aimed at “insourcing” jobs that have been lost to overseas companies.

When it comes to foreigners looking to plant roots in the United States, Florida is the hot spot, especially among Cubans, Haitians and Colombians.

The Sunshine State is the most popular among foreign home buyers with 31 percent of all home purchases made there coming from foreign residents, according to a study by Credit Sesame, an online credit and loan management firm, that used National Association of Realtors’ data.

Foreign buyers represented $82 billion of the U.S. real estate market in 2010, while in 2009 they represented only $66 billion.

ATLANTA (CNN) — Gas prices in the United States increased by more than a dime over the past three weeks, the first increase seen since mid-October, according to a survey published Sunday.

The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline was $3.35 as of Friday, the Lundberg Survey found. That’s an increase of 12 cents from the last survey of 2011, conducted December 16.

“The price hike comes from higher crude oil prices, which pulled up wholesale gasoline prices, but retailers have yet to pass through to motorists all the hikes they received,” publisher Trilby Lundberg said.

If you’re the type of person who likes to wait until the last minute to file your taxes, congratulations: You have two more days to procrastinate.

The Internal Revenue Service announced Wednesday that 2011 federal tax returns will not be due until Tuesday, April 17 this year.

That’s because April 15, traditionally tax day, falls on a Sunday this year. In addition, Monday, April 16, is Emancipation Day, a holiday in the District of Columbia.

This is the second year in a row that Uncle Sam has given taxpayers extra time to file.

NEW YORK — For the first time, the top export of the United States, the world’s biggest gas guzzler, is — wait for it — fuel.

Measured in dollars, the nation is on pace this year to ship more gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel than any other single export, according to U.S. Census data going back to 1990. It will also be the first year in more than 60 that America has been a net exporter of these fuels.

Just how big of a shift is this? A decade ago, fuel wasn’t even among the top 25 exports. And for the last five years, America’s top export was aircraft.

When Emily Russell’s two young sons wake up on Christmas morning, they’ll find that Santa left them a note instead of the videogames they requested.

“Hey, I couldn’t get by your house last night,” Russell, a single mother from Kernersville, N.C., plans to write to her sons and sign Santa’s name. “Your mom is going to take you to the store when she can.”

Devin Datus, 39, and his wife, Michelle, 36, are raising four kids, ages 9 to 18, in Utah on his military salary. His wife is a full-time student and stay-at-home mom.

TODAY.com’s Life Inc. blog asked the couple about their financial situation as part of a series of stories looking at what it’s like to live on the nation’s median income of about $50,000 a year. Here is their response:

What’s it like to live on around $50,000 a year?

Boeing Co’s biggest labor union on Wednesday ratified a four-year contract extension, ensuring the upcoming version of the planemaker’s best-selling 737 narrowbody will be built in Washington state and likely ending Boeing’s high-profile dispute with the National Labor Relations Board.

The International Association of Machinists (IAM) said 74 percent of the vote was in favor of the deal. About 31,000 members were eligible to vote.

“Today our members cast their vote for jobs, for their futures, for the future of this community and for the future of Washington state,” said Tom Wroblewski, president of IAM District 751, in a press conference announcing the results.

The deal gives Boeing some assurance that strikes will not disrupt its operations as it ramps up production of many of its models. For the union members in Washington, ratification also means local jobs for which it has campaigned. A tentative deal was reached last week, nine months before the expiration of the current contract.

Nearly 2 million Americans currently receiving unemployment benefits stand to lose coverage this January if Congress does not extend the emergency federal unemployment insurance program. 24/7 Wall St. has reviewed a study by the National Employment Law Project to identify the ten states where the most people could lose benefits.

The supercommittee was responsible for extending the unemployment benefits. The group was supposed to reach a federal debt-reduction agreement that would have included an extension of the federal unemployment insurance for people who have run out of state-level benefits. Since the supercommittee failed to reach an agreement, the federal programs will expire on December 31 unless Congressional lawmakers renew it.