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While capping the size of sugary beverages sold at NYC theaters, restaurants and sports facilities is noble, it’s so easily bypassed, “I’ll have three 16-oz sodas and three straws” it’s worthless. Since peaking in ’98, consumption of carbonated sugary drinks…
The Friday File: The Economist, using only the price of a Big Mac, created “the Big Mac Index” to measure the costs of living in each country. Knowing this, Argentina’s Prime Minister pushed McDonalds to keep the price of Big…
If current economic conditions persist, Obama will win with 50.2% of the vote according to a widely followed economic forecasting model. The key will be job growth numbers from now through August. Midyear growth was strong in ’72, ’84, 96…
The Spanish banking system is crumbling. While 10-year Treasuries yield 1.62%, Spain’s 10—year bonds yield 6.61%, near the all-time of 6.78% set 11/25/11. If yields stay this high, Spain will need a bail-out. Problem is, as the world’s 13th largest…
On 6/30/12 the weak economic recovery we’re experiencing will be three years old. Yet, absent microscopic interest rates and huge budget deficits there would be no recovery. Simply put, we’re hooked on cheap money and big spending and aren’t yet…
The Friday File: Earlier this month Canada minted its last penny. The move will save taxpayers $11 million/year and financial institutions about $20 million/year in transportation and storage costs. In parliamentary hearings, no one opposed the idea. Canada follows Australia,…
If Greece leaves the Euro, the collateral damage to the rest of the Eurozone will result in a drop in US exports to Europe, damage to European banks resulting in reduced lending, and possibly bank runs in Spain and Italy.…
The cost of down is up from $12/lb in ’09 to almost $30/lb today, while duck down has risen from $10/lb to $19/lb over the same period. Diet and urbanization are primarily why. As the Chinese become wealthier city-dwellers, fewer…
The $2 billion blunder by J.P. Morgan, while not pretty, is no clarion call for added regulation. Rather, it shows that with enough capital mistakes of this magnitude can be easily absorbed. That is, while regulations can be skirted, and…
What’s going between Greece and the rest of the Eurozone is a game of chicken. The Greeks think that if they quit the Euro, the pain for the rest of the Eurozone will be so severe everyone will, again, bail…