70 Words
A proposal to increase capital ratios for the biggest financial firms to 6% for bank subsidiaries and 5% for bank holding companies while good, presents a huge loophole. A $150 billion bank would need $7.5 billion in capital. But if…
Read MoreThe Friday File: In the US there are 105 boys born for every 100 girls. Older mothers give birth to more girls. By age 40, women give birth to 104 boys for every 100 girls and with each successive birth…
Read MoreFannie Mae and Freddie Mac report that the rate at which single family mortgages that are three months in arrears or in foreclosure declined to 2.77% and 2.79% respectively in June, down from all-time highs of 5.59% and 4.20% respectively…
Read MoreWith the July consumer sentiment number rising to 85.1, it’s now at its highest level since 7/07, and way up from its all time low of 55.3 set in 11/08. Add to that a sharp rise in non-defense durable goods…
Read MoreSenator Warren’s proposal to make student loans available at just 0.75% actually exacerbates the problem. Cheap loans will increase the number of college applicants, allowing universities to raise prices, like builders did during the bubble because credit was easy. The…
Read MoreThe 14th comprehensive benchmark revision to all GDP accounts from 1929 forward will be released later this week. The revisions will probably show faster recent GDP growth bringing it line with improved employment numbers in 2012, higher labor productivity growth,…
Read MoreThe Friday File: While flying seems risky compared to automobile travel, seems is the operative word. For the decade ending in 2008 passenger fatalities per 100 million miles were 0.72 for automobiles, 0.05 for buses and trains and 0.01 for…
Read MoreWhile the Chinese government must rebalance its economy away from export and investment-led growth towards household consumption-led growth, the problem is that the combination of low wages, low interest rates on savings and an undervalued currency all conspire to keep…
Read MoreWhile the House and Senate work on competing bills to fix our broken housing finance system, where 91.2% of new mortgages are government backed, reform is years away. A Congress that can’t pass a budget, an immigration bill, or an…
Read MoreThe dollar has been dramatically strengthening against most currencies of late and this will hurt US exports by making them more expensive in local currency and boosting imports, worsening our trade deficit. It’s happening because as our economy strengthens, interest…
Read More