trends. we have couraging news. >> more women are taking control of their financial destinies. >> you're watching "first business," financial news, analysis, and today's financial ideas. >> good morning. we've got some more signs that the economy is on the mend with gasoline demand, the national average for a gallon which gas is $2.65, down from the highs. >> u.p.s. turning in blowout numbers, a sign that the economy is rolling along. >> rolling along is not the word we can use for toyota. the recall troubles hit the january sales. we'll have details coming up. >> some toyota dealers plan to stay open 24/7 to deal with the repairs.

>> the government is hiring now. 1.2 million people are needed for the 2010 census. with unemployment at 10%, the job competition is showing signs of becoming competitive. >> when times are good, the government using college students or people looking for part time work for the census. this year, it falls at a time when unemployment is dramatically high, and people from former high-level positions are looking for work. >> given the economic situation, that means people knocking out your door are probably going to be better educated and older. >> applicants who take the census test normally score between 70% and 75%. now, a score of 100% is quickly becoming the new norm.

training for the census job begins in april, with positions paying between $14.50 and $20 an hour. >> you need a job, i'm sure people are going to have at least 25 hours worth of work. >> census workers count people who fail to mail back their forms. in 2000, 60% of the nation failed to return the forms. >> we're trying to really reassure particularly those who are documented immigrants who may be skeptical about answering those questions that it is entirely confidential. it is illegal to share that information with any other government agency, with a landlord, with anybody. >> lawmakers are especially concerned about getting an accurate head count, because population numbers translate to money. $400 billion for schools and

public transportation will be difficultied up among states depending on the final count. census figures also determine representation in washington. >> everybody who looks at this, we're concerned about losing a congressional seat. the conditions is based on population, which basically at the end of the day gives states a certain allotments of congressional seats. >> one district, laredo, lost $55 million in federal funding in the last census because of undercounting. this time around, in texas, they could pick up four congressional seats if inch is counted. >> have government officials started counting yet? >> in alaska, because the ground is frozen right now, and easy for census workers to get around, and also because fewer people are out fishing and

hunting. >> let's check the financial markets you. richard, the bounce that we're seeing in the stock market, is it believable? >> the jury's out. at this point, the equity's on tuesday closing just a few points off the high in the s&p, but the market is still shy. a close blow the 50 day moving average is still a bit bear tour me. at this point, i think it's a little bit of a rally. we need confirmation. the first couple days of the month, you may see 401k money hitting the markets. the institutions put the money into the market. we have a lot of data coming up friday. the jury's out. at this point, we're still looking at sell rallies until we move above the 50 day average on the s&p. >> buyers are coming back to the gold market. is there anything to thaty think

it's set up by slightly overbought dollar. we've had a nice rally off the lows of the dollar, but five or six consecutive days up. now the dollar may pull back to the 50 day moving average or on of the other technical support levels. that would push gold higher. we have a double bottom in gold where skeptical traders are stepping back into the market. technical buying, and the weaker dollar coming monday and tuesday were setting up that particular trade. we have a lot of data coming out. >> we'll be watching it. thank you. >> thank you. >> while toyota struggles to contain a fallout from its massive recall, it unveiled new sales physician showing a 16% drop in u.s. car and truck sales from a year ago. since december, sales down 47%

as toyota exponded it's recall of its most popular models. the assembly baselines are scheduled to start back up december 8. more than 3 million vehicles are under recall worldwide. toyota dealers are gearing up for repairs that will likely take several months. the car maker says dealers should get replacement parts by the end of this week. next week, toyota's top u.s. official will testify at congressional hearings. a house investigative panel is planning a hearing on february 25. toyota faces mounting lawsuits accusing the company of ignoring signs of trouble and not acting fast enough to fix the problem. >> on the economic calendar for wednesday, we've got the a.d.p. employment reports. quarterly reports from as i say co systems, pfizer and time

warner. >> women and money, why more women are finding themselves in charge of the household finances. first, the latest trends in job searching. things are starting to look up. that's next. dddddddddddddd

that people are starting to make head way when looking for jobs even though the market remains

difficult. we will talk about the latest survey. welcome to the show. six in 10 workers have been laid off in the past 12 months have found new jobs, that is encouraging. >> it is. it says something about the resiliency of people out there looking for jobs, and that jobs are out there. 51% of those reported found full time jobs, and 7% found part time jobs. >> people are willing to adjust pay, move to new cities, and take jobs in different industries. what's going on with the pay issue? >> in our survey, 61% of respondents took pay that was comparable or higher. the comparable or higher, the question i got is higher seems difficult in this economy. i think that means maybe 1% or 2% higher. it's really about employers who

reward people for their skills to make sure those people come onboard. >> techniques people are using to find jobs, 22% found them through personal referrals. 11% newspapers, 8% recruiting and staffing firms, 5% career fairs, 4% social media. what do you think job seekers should take away from that information. >> the real point of that information is that there are a variety of ways to find jobs, and that referrals and networking are the most important. you have to go out and have conversations with people to find the jobs. you should go on line and go to staffing firms. you don't just do it one way. there are a number of ways to do it. >> a large number of people are still not giving up their job certains, especially in this time where so many people are on long-term unemployment.

it's surprising to me that they're not giving up. >> the survey we did are people laid off in the last 12 months. those people have a resiliency to them. i think that translates to the rest of the economy. people do want to work. maybe they are discouraged, but if you talk to them, they want to work. >> if they don't find the job that's out there that's perfect for them, they are actually turning to starting their own businesses. three in 10 workers are thinking of starting their own businesses. is that a good number? >> it is. it tells you about america, the foundations of america have always been entrepreneur yell. it is realistic, and a real type of job to go out and start your own business. if you have an idea, he can execute on that idea. nothing is going to stop you from doing that. >> thank you very much. we appreciate it. >> straight ahead, how the recession has affected the way

women manage money. that's oming up next. to help my patients avoid dental problems

i recommend act fluoride mouthwash. act works with calcium to rebuild enamel. to avoid dental problems act daily. layoffs in the recession, women are close to numbering more than men in the work force and making more financial decisions. we will talk about a new survey about women and what they do handling baseline we had two key

findings. first, money is top of mind for most women, and more women are taking an active role in planning for their family's financial future. secondly, and what was somewhat surprising is that many more women are comfortable talking about money today than they were prior to the recession, and not just with their family, but also with friends and coworkers. >> women often drive purchasing decisions in the household. are there changes in what women are spending their budget on or not spending money on anymore because of the recession? >> absolutely in the wake of the recession, women have been adjusting their spending and their saving behavior. main women are sharing tips for ways to cut back expenses, but keep a full life and still feel like they're having fun with

their family. the tips that women have shared with me have ranged from going from a weekly manicure to a bi-weekly manicure, going to brown bagging lunch, bringing coffee from home, thinking carefully about what they're buying at the grocery stores, buying on sail, and put ago priority on savings. >> is there anything women are actually doing wrong when it comes to money? >> don't think there's anything that women in particular are doing wrong. i think what women are really doing well is not keeping their financial knowledge to themselves, and are ushering in a more open conversation about money, and sharing their financial values and trying to in still responsible money habits not only within their home, but offering advice, support, and guidance to friends, family, and colleagues.

>> what about the pay gap that separates men and women? do you think that's going to get narrower as more women remain in the work force? >> that is a great question. the difference in earnings certainly ace factor that women have to consider as they build their nest egg. women's financial lives are really different from men in a few other ways that are as important. women live longer, and require more long term care as they age and take more time out of the work force to care for their children and other family members, and taken together including with the earnings differential, this puts women at higher risk of outliving their savings and makes it important for women to save early, save more as they earn more and plan for those timeout periods.

we offer women tips for putting together a financial action plan that's right for where they are, that i think you're viewers would find very helpful in helping them to find their goals and prioritize their next step. >> let's talk more about that. as women age, how should they plan for their financial future and the financial futures of their families? >> absolutely as from women in their 20's and 30's, the focus should be on living within your means, making savings a priority for retirement, and putting together an investment plan. moving into your 40's and 50's, you want to up your retirement savings, contribute the maximum to your retirement plan, diversify investments, help protect the nest egg you're building by keeping your insurance, will aband estate

plan up to date. as you move into your 50's ant60's, you think what a day in your retirement would be like to continue to stay diversified, understand how medicaid and social security work, and look at your as set allocation and make sure it's appropriate for where you are today, and how your appetite for risk may have changed over time. >> thank you very much. linda tiscano, president of women and company. >> thank you for having me. >> trader dan deming tells us why he's dealing better about the market these days after this

in the know message. cç

equities joins us now for "chart talk." what was in the air making the market so happy? >> i'm not sure. yesterday, the day looked like the ground hog day of monday. it's a good second day for the market follow up to last week's selloff. there's a couple of things at play here. the vix continue to trend lower, trading down to an average around 2120. we break that 21 area, we can go

to 20 or just below that. we saw the s&p close below 500 now. we've got the froth out of the market in the last week and a half. we're seeing buyers coming in now. >> how important that is? there was a moment when it looked like the markets were going to start to get in that downward moment. what do the charts have to say? >> the charts right now, we're seeing on the up side, the s&p coming in around 1113. that's an area to look at for the high side. we had a nice bounce. that's going to be kind of the top side of the market moving toward the unemployment number now. friday, if that number comes in positive, which some people are expecting it to show growth, we could blast through that. we're eight holding pattern going into friday. we're seeing volatility under pressure, but seeing now over the last couple days a nice little bounce off those lows, and some uncertainty coming out

of the market. >> it sounds like an upbeat note to leave you on. thanks, dan. >> thanks angela. >> on the watch list, avatar continues to break blockbuster records, passing the $2 billion mark over the weekend for worldwide ticket sales, taking over titanic for the number one stop. it remains number two in the u.s. just behind titanic prices. adjusting for inflation, half at a remains far below other block busters. gone with the wind was the most popular movie if you adjust the ticket prices. it would have brought in $1.5 billion in the united states, followed by star wars and the sound of music.

that's all the time we have for today's show. thanks for watching everyone. we'll see you tomorrow.