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Is deflation all that bad? It’s considered bad in part because consumers postpone purchases today to get a better deal tomorrow, weakening demand. Is this true for food, gas, haircuts and electricity? NOT! And how about consumer electronics? The laptop/ipod/hard…
Read MoreWe saw auto sales shoot up 6.7% to 13.4 million units (at an annual rate), the best level since August ‘09, and we also saw the ISM inch higher to 61.4 from 60.8 with the “internals” of the report just…
Read MoreManufacturing data in the U.S. continues to improve. The Chicago Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) jumped from 68.8 in Jan to 71.2 in Feb — best since July ‘88. Production, orders, inventories, backlogs all rose — the exception; employment. The New…
Read MoreThe US economy is improving; GDP is finally back where it was before the collapse of Lehman Bros! But by many measures the economy has a long way to go. For example, there are 130 million employed persons in the…
Read MoreOur economy can’t catch a break. Last spring the European debt crisis derailed any chance of a recovery; now it’s oil. Prices have surged due to fear of violence disrupting oil supplies and the fear that political instability in the…
Read MoreYesterday Ireland held elections; Fianna Fail (FF) lost to Fine Gael & Labour (FGL). When the Irish economy tanked in ‘08 FF had the government guarantee all bad bank debt; a dreadful decision resulting in a $93 billion bailout and…
Read MoreQ4 GDP revised downward to 2.8% from 3.2% in line with the Fed Reserve Bank of Chicago’s monthly National Activity Index. It’s kind of like a montly GDP report! It’s been saying that the economy is growing, but too slowly.…
Read MoreThe public union smackdown in Madison, WI has me wondering what benefits public unions bring to taxpayers. As I see it their incentives are to increase the cost of government and reduce accountability of public employees. Public union defenders may…
Read MoreU.S. consumer confidence (Conference Board survey) jumped to 70.4 in Feb from 64.8 in Jan; the 5th increase in a row and best level since Feb ‘08. But, we are 20 months into a recovery, and 70.4 is the second…
Read MoreThere was sobering article on the front page of the WSJ (weekend edition) titled Retiring Boomers Find 401(k) Plans Fall Short. The key statistic was that the median household headed by a person between the ages of 60 and 62…
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