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With the price of natural gas ($2.20/million BTUs) plumbing depths not seen in a decade, and the price of diesel fuel nearing an all-time high, Shell (and other large oil companies) are finally considering investing the necessary $10-$15 billion to…
Spanish bond yields are up again as the short term benefits of the ECBs massive, easy-money lending program (LTRO) dissipate, and the reality of a recession in Euroland sets in. Making things worse, some European banks used the cheap 1%…
Not only did employers create just 120K jobs in March but, average weekly hours worked fell from 34.6 to 34.5, average weekly wages fell from $807.56 to $806.96, temp employment fell by 7.5K, retail trade shed 33.8K workers and the…
The Friday File: In an inexplicable move, the CFTC denied a request by the North American Derivatives Exchange to offer futures contracts on which party will win control of the House, Senate and White House. The CFTC said these derivates…
While income tax and sales tax revenues declined 10% in the past recession, regressive lotto sales fell just 2%, making them recession resistant. New research shows that as jackpots grow, lotteries become less regressive as more upper income households are…
Despite what you think, monetary policy has not been expansionary, and that’s the problem. While the Fed’s assets grew from $0.8 trillion to $2.8 trillion between 10/08 and 7/11, it was matched, almost dollar for dollar, by a $1.6 trillion…
According to an article in Party Politics, President Obama gave $6,409, on average, to 100 Democratic superdelegates, while Hillary Clinton only gave $5,266 to 47 SDs. There are 840 SDs and they comprise 20% of the Democratic delegate total. In…
Despite good job growth, consumer spending is growing faster than personal income, driving the savings rate down to 3.7%, the lowest rate in years. Why? Unemployment insurance income is falling. In Jan and Feb 551K jobs were created while 550K…
The Friday File: A 55 year old bottle of Glenfiddich Janet Sheed Roberts Reserve, a single-malt scotch, sold (to a whisky investor) at auction for a record $94,000. Janet Sheed Roberts is the oldest person in Scotland at 110 and…
US student loan debt recently hit $1 trillion as students struggle to pay soaring tuition costs. Worse, student indebtedness is growing not only due to new loans but also due to graduates who are unable to make their payments and…