Economic News: A Cloud That Lacks A Silver Lining
Late news out of the economy track system is that the buildings are collapsing all around. After Goldman Sachs (GS) panicked and said that oil would rise to $141, crude immediately spiked to $128…
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Newest first · Page 410As UK Inflation Rises, A Ripple In US?
The CPI showed that prices for food rose .9% in April, the most in 18 years. Overall, total inflation was more muted and the market was relieved. In the UK, the picture was not…
CPI Looks Great, Just Avoid Gas Stations and Grocery Stores
April CPI was released from the Labor Department with a nominal rate of +0.2% and a core rate of +0.1%. According to Bloomberg estimates, those expectations were +0.3% on nominal CPI and and +0.2%…
US Food Price Inflation Gets Out Of Hand
The cost of food in the US was up .9% last month, the highest increase in 18 years. The news reinforces the concern that the rising price of agricultural commodities is taking a toll…
Tax Rebates Can’t Rescue The Economy
For someone who buys 600 gallons of gas at a price per gallon which is $1 higher than it was last year, a $600 federal tax rebate is not much comfort. Merrill Lynch sees…
Is Financial Recovery A Mirage?
There is a new feeling suffusing the financial markets that the worst of the credit crisis is over. The Fed has done most of its work. US citizens are about to get their tax…
Soros Agonistes
George Soros has taken the unpopular side of many economic bets over the years. He has not only lived to tell the tales. He has made himself and his investors untold billions of dollars…
In Toyota (TM): The World Economy In A Bucket
Toyota (TM) said its earnings fell 28% in the fourth quarter. It blamed the Yen and a slow car market in the US. Although no one was surprised, the figures were worse than most…
Will Productivity Gains Boost Layoffs?
This morning was strange on the economic number cycle as far as firstquarter worker productivity is concerned. The Labor Departmentreleased a figure of non-farm business worker productivity measured asper-hour output being up by +2.2%. …
Credit Crunch Starts To Hurt Small Business
One of the largest credit card providers to small business, Advanta Corp, took some big write-downs last quarter. According to CFO Magazine "Recent studies and reports from lenders show that small businesses are either…
Could A 2008-2009 Recession Wipe Out Seven Million Jobs?
Based on the figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, US unemployment was 5% in April. Those figures showed that 146.3 million Americans were employed in the civilian work-force and 7.6 million Americans were…
April Unemployment Classified as “Less Bad”
The Labor Department just released the April 2008 unemployment numbers. While these are negative, they aren’t as bad as estimates. The unemployment rate came in at 5.0% versus estimates we had marked as as…
GDP: None Dare Call It Conspiracy
The reading for Q1-2008 GDP is out, and it’s no real surprise that GDP managed to show a small gain of +0.6% on the advance and preliminary number. Bloomberg had noted a +0.5% Q1…
No Fed Rate Cut
In what may be the last great act of his presidency, George Bush is sending many Americans tax rebates. The checks began going out this week. Some households may get as much as $1,200.…
Wolfensohn: Credit Write-Offs Could Hit $1Trillion
Former World Bank chief James Wolfensohn thinks the credit crisis will take $1 trillion in losses out of the market. That is a number much higher than most estimates. It also means that the…