Read a little. Learn a lot. • Tightly-written news, views and stuff • Follow us on Twitter • Be a Facebook Fan • Tumble us!

28 Dec 2010 11:09

tags

Biz: Ready to be depressed? Read this assessment of housing numbers

  • The double-dip is almost here. There is no good news in October’s report. Home prices across the country continue to fall.
  • Standard & Poor Index Committee Chairman David Blitzer • Expressing fear that recently-released housing numbers are a harbinger of a double-dip. The numbers, which showed a 1.3 percent decline in home prices in 20 key cities, were apparently much more dire than many analysts were expecting. “It was a bit of a surprise,” said IHS Global Research’s Pat Newport. “I wasn’t expecting it to lag so badly in all 20 cities.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

28 Dec 2010 10:57

tags

Biz: Consumers bought more this Christmas, but not feeling confident

  • good Consumers bought more stuff in the week before Christmas than they did a year earlier – a solid 4.8-percent jump. It’s a great holiday season overall for retail.
  • bad However, consumer confidence managed to fall in December, suggesting that we still in fact have a long way to go before we’re back to normal, guys. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

22 Dec 2010 10:17

tags

Biz: Revised numbers: GDP improves handily, but not fast enough

  • 2.6% third-quarter boost; good, but not good enough source
  • » What is “good enough,” anyway?: We’ll leave this assessment to someone who knows a little more about banking. “Growth really needs to be closer to 4% for a couple of years to bring down the unemployment rate,” said Mark Vitner, senior economist at Wells Fargo. So, in other words, we’re getting there, but this isn’t cooking with gas. This is the pilot light on the oven staying out for an extended period. The economy needs a spark.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

01 Dec 2010 11:05

tags

Biz: Like contradictory jobs data? Here’s some good, then some bad

  • 93k the growth in private-sector employment last month (nice!)
  • 03/07 the last time job growth was that high in a single month (pre-recession)
  • ten consecutive months of private-sector job growth source
  • » Not all rosy: The above tally, by payroll processor ADP, is definitely positive, but separate data by outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas says that employers were looking to cut jobs, too – at a rate of 48,711 last month, the highest level in six months. Gotta love contradictory data, but the firms tend to focus on different part of the employment life process.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

30 Nov 2010 10:55

tags

Biz: After recent gains, home prices see depressing, frustrating decline

  • 2% decline in home prices in the third quarter; double-dip? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Nov 2010 13:10

tags

Biz, World: Angry Irish people take to streets to protest tough austerity plan

  • We’ve seen this song and dance before. First in Greece, then Belgium, then France, then in Britain, but it’s still not any more frustrating to watch – especially in Ireland’s case. The Irish had a solid decade of economic growth, only to see the economy go into freefall and be forced to take upon tons of bailout money in the span of about two years. So that’s why these people are protesting in Dublin today. They’re angry because of the insane cuts they’ll be forced to swallow – the worst of any European nation so far. (Photo by Marcus Swan) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

23 Nov 2010 09:12

tags

Biz: U.S. economy growing, but not fast enough to spur job growth

  • 2.5% the amount the U.S. economy grew in the third quarter (that’s pretty good, actually)
  • 1.7% the amount the economy grew in the prior quarter (we improved; that’s even better!)
  • 3.5% the rate of growth that’s economists say we need to cut the unemployment rate (that’s bad) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

19 Nov 2010 21:45

tags

Biz: Federal Reserve taking it from all sides with stimulus plan

  • On its current economic trajectory, the United States runs the risk of seeing millions of workers unemployed or underemployed for many years. As a society, we should find that outcome unacceptable.
  • Federal Reserve Chief Ben Bernanke • Explaining why the much-maligned stimulus plan (which involves shoving $600 billion into the economy whether it likes it or not) is necessary to save the economy. Republicans and Tea Partiers claim that the plan could raise prices of essentials such as food. Internationally, there’s worries about the stimulus driving down the value of the dollar (thereby making exports to the U.S. more desirable). Republicans in Congress are talking about stripping the Fed of its mandate to promote full employment as a result of this action. We’d like to see Republicans, rather than reacting to things they don’t like, offering up ideas. Is it really that hard, guys? You’ve had two-plus years. Where are your economy-fixing ideas? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Nov 2010 09:49

tags

Biz: To start off your day right, here’s some crappy economic news

  • +0.2% the increase in the Consumer Price Index in October – an increase, but a much more mediocre one than economists expected
  • -11.7% the drop in new housing starts in October; the Treasury’s $600 billion shot in the arm doesn’t look so bad now, does it? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Nov 2010 10:19

tags

Biz: Wal-Mart makes big profit jump, but U.S. stores struggle

  • $3.44 billion in Wal-Mart profits in the 3rd quarter alone
  • +9.3% Wal-Mart’s overall gain in third-quarter profit
  • -1.3% the decine at U.S. stores open one year or more
  • +7.9% the increase in profits at international stores source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
<< newer 
top tags
older >>