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Michelle Wright: Higher gas prices are making many Americans rethink the way they commute to their jobs.
Ed McCarthy: The shock at the gas pump has been building gradually, how much can motorists take? According to Virginia Miller with the American Public Transit Association, not a lot more because ridership on buses is growing in places like L.A..
Virginia Miller: The rail ridership has risen almost 11.4% just in the first quarter 2006, and the bus ridership has increased by 7%.
Ed McCarthy: In Chicago, John Challenger heading an outplacement firm, preaches the value of telecommuting.
John Challenger: Companies could for very low cost put computers or take advantage of home computers that allow people to start working from home. That's gonna be good for everybody.
Ed McCarthy: Employees reported increased interest in telecommuting following Katrina. Ed McCarthy, CNN.
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Michelle Wright: Consumer confidence remains high, in fact it’s reached its highest level in almost 4 years, according to the Conference Board. Board director Lynn Franco says the strong job market is helping to offset the rising gas prices.
Lynn Franco: The fact that the labor market, you know, has been growing at such a strong pace over the last few months, had really kind of put the brakes on an negative impact that we may have seen, you know, from rising prices at the pump.
Michelle Wright: The index rose to 109.6. This reading is the highest level since May of 2002. Sales of previously owned homes are up again slightly, according to the National Association of Realtor's chief economist David Lereah.
David Lereah: We had five consecutive drops in home sales, and now we’ve had back-to-back gains. Er, so certainly, the housing markets are plateauing right now, even in the face of rising mortgage rates.
Michelle Wright: Existing home sales edged up 0.3% last month. The march increase followed a bigger 5.1% jump in February.
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Michelle Wright: And eBay has a new online store that doesn't look anything like the eBay we’re used to.
Carrie Lee: There is no bidding, "eBay Express", as it’s called, sells merchandise for a fixed price only. And the store carries everything from cookware to electronics to books, and unlike the usual eBay setup, if you buy items from multiple sellers, you can put them all in the same shopping cart.
Michelle Wright: CNN's Carrie Lee.
Michelle Wright: With CNN Radio Marketplace, I'm Michelle Wright.
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WORDS AND EXPRESSIONS
telecommute: to work at home by the use of an electronic linkup with a central office.
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