The bid to buy Starwood just got a little more interesting and US consumer spending rose moderately in February; Ameera David weighs in. Then, Bianca Facchinei takes a look at California’s bid to raise the minimum wage. Afterwards, RT’s Marina Portnaya reports the latest on Puerto Rico’s debt crisis. After the break, Edward Harrison sits down with Steve Hanke – professor of applied economics at Johns Hopkins University – to discuss Cuba. And in The Big Deal, Ameera and Edward talk about Japan. Take a look! Check us out on Facebook -- and feel free to ask us questions: http://www.facebook.com/BoomBustRT https://www.facebook.com/harrison.writedowns https://www.facebook.com/biancafacch ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ub72t71hq1s

European Union governments have formally approved a 1.8 billion euro loan for Ukraine, in an effort to save it from bankruptcy. Ukraine is welcoming all the money it can get right now. After all, it’s cash-strapped, and suffering from an economic crisis. This year, government debt to GDP is expected to peak at 94 percent, according to the International Monetary fund.. Boom Bust guest host Ameera David weighs in. Then, Boom Bust Host Erin Ade is joined by Paul Craig Roberts, chairman of the Institute for Political Economy. Roberts talks about the complexion of the US economy given the continued positive non-farm payrolls data juxtaposed to weak GDP data. He also tells us whether he thinks the decline in the US dollar will take pressure off of the US economy and what takeaways we should have from the weak US export data. Then Ameera and Erin talk about a subject we’re quite familiar with here in the U.S. -- the rising cost of living. But it’s not just folks in the U.S. experiencing this. Britons are struggling with the cost of living as well, particularly rent increases. Erin breaks down for Ameera where the problem is and what solutions ordinary Britons are coming up with to deal with it. After the break, Erin sits down with Marin Katusa, the Hedge Fund Manager and Director at Copper Mountain Mining Corporation, to discuss the shale sector and the technology that's changing the oil industry. Marin tells us that the Saudis are trying to break the competition by resisting output cuts as shale oil floods the North American market. He also talks about the prospects in natural gas and why liquefied natural gas may not fare as well as a future market in North America as some believe. And in The Big Deal, Ameera and Edward Harrison continue the discussion on oil, with a particular emphasis on the Canadian economy. ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RedUxz2yfdc