With gas hovering around $4 a gallon and diesel even higher, business has slowed for Jeff Pilon, general manager at Rick's RV Center on West Jefferson Street. But times are not nearly as tough as one might think.

Stocks skidded lower Thursday after a steeper-than-expected decline in sales of existing homes wiped away some of the market's optimism about upbeat earnings reports. The major indexes each lost more than 1 percent, including the Dow Jones industrial average, which fell more than 125 points.

A Von Maur is coming to the Bridge Street Town Centre, a $1 billion lifestyle mall planned for the city's west side.

Sales of existing homes fell more sharply than expected in June as the housing industry continued to be bruised by the worst slump in more than two decades.

The number of newly laid off people filing claims for unemployment benefits bolted past 400,000 last week as companies trimmed their work forces to cope with a slowing economy and fallout from a collapsed housing market.

The four-day work week might just be an idea whose time has come.