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Latest Articles: Business
Retailers Report Surprisingly Solid Sales Gains For January Despite Series Of Snowstorms
Post Date: 2011-02-03 14:33:37 by Brian S
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NEW YORK (AP) - Retailers reported surprisingly solid January revenue gains Thursday that swept away fears that snowstorms in much of the country had chilled sales. The reports, which are being compared with a respectable January 2010, offer encouraging signs that consumer spending is maintaining the momentum of the strong holiday season. Many retail chains, including Costco Wholesale Corp, Victoria's Secret parent Limited Brands and Macy's Inc., posted gains that beat Wall Street expectations. Luxury merchants Nordstrom Inc. and Saks Inc. also were bright spots as the affluent, encouraged by the rallying stock market, continue to lead the spending recovery. "The early ...
Jobless Claims Drop, Raising Hopes For Hiring
Post Date: 2011-02-03 12:38:31 by Brian S
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Meanwhile, productivity advanced in 2010, while labor costs fell WASHINGTON — New U.S. claims for unemployment benefits dropped more than expected last week, a government report showed on Thursday, pointing to continued improvement in the labor market. Further advances in the job market are expected to be gradual, however, as American workplaces have become more efficient. Productivity rose at the fastest pace in eight years in 2010 while labor costs fell for a second straight year, something that hasn't happened in nearly five decades. For the fourth quarter, productivity rose at an annual rate of 2.6 percent, slightly better than the 2.4 percent gain in the third quarter ...
US Auto Industry Sees Double-Digit Sales Gains In January, Signaling Solid Start To 2011
Post Date: 2011-02-01 20:06:51 by Brian S
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Americans gave automakers a confidence boost in January. They bought more cars and trucks and showed a still-fragile auto industry that they were ready to replace their clunkers in 2011. Sales of cars and light trucks in the United States rose 17 percent from a year earlier to 819,895. That's still below the 1 million sold in January 2008, before most people felt the impact of the recession, but better than the last two years, when January sales fell below 700,000. Nearly all big car companies reported double-digit gains for the month, a sign that the slow recovery in U.S. auto sales that began in 2010 remains on track. While the recovery could falter if turmoil in the Middle East ...
Dow Over 12,000 For First Time Since Before 2008 Financial Crisis, Extending Remarkable Run
Post Date: 2011-02-01 19:56:49 by Brian S
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Two years ago, the stock market was roadkill along the financial highway. Now one of the greatest bull markets in history is rolling along — maybe enough to finally get the attention of average investors. The Dow Jones industrial average closed above 12,000 for the first time in two and a half years Tuesday, putting the Great Recession even farther in the rearview mirror and erasing most of the damage it inflicted on tens of millions of retirement accounts. A broader measure of the stock market, the Standard & Poor's 500 index, closed above 1,300 for the first time since Aug. 28, 2008. And at least one widely watched measure suggests stocks are still cheap by historical ...
CBS Refuses to Air NFL Players Ad (NFL Lockout)
Post Date: 2011-02-01 18:11:31 by Ferret Mike
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Are you kidding, CBS? The network has rejected the “Let Us Play” ad (left) from the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) that was to air Feb. 5 on the CBS College Sports Network during the NFLPA college all-stars game. CBS executives said they “didn’t want to get involved” in the labor negotiations between the players and the NFL owners, according to AdAge.com. Not get involved? Come on. CBS is big-dollars involved already. CBS, Fox, NBC and ESPN, as well as DIRECTV, have agreed to pay the NFL in 2011 even if owners carry through on their threat to lock out players, disrupting or even canceling the season. The NFLPA has filed suit against the ...
Warning Signs
Post Date: 2011-02-01 17:36:35 by Capitalist Eric
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Do you see all of the warning signs that are flashing all around you? These days it seems like there is more bad economic news in a single week than there used to be in an entire month. 2011 is already shaping up to be a very dark year for the world economy. The price of food is shooting through the roof and we have already seen violent food riots in countries like Egypt, Algeria and Tunisia. World financial markets are becoming increasingly unstable as the sovereign debt crisis continues to get worse. Meanwhile, the number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits is up, foreclosures are up and poverty continues to spread like a plague throughout the United States. What we are ...
Manufacturing in U.S. Grows at Fastest Pace Since '04 as Recovery Quickens
Post Date: 2011-02-01 11:33:33 by Brian S
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Feb. 1 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. manufacturing unexpectedly accelerated in January at the fastest pace since May 2004, reinforcing signs of strength in the expansion at the beginning of the year. The Institute for Supply Management’s factory index increased to 60.8 from 58.5 in December, the Tempe, Arizona- based group said today. Readings greater than 50 signal growth, and economists projected a decline to 58, according to the median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey. Orders surged to a seven-year high, and a measure of factory employment jumped to the highest level since 1973. Stocks rose and Treasuries fell as the figures, combined with manufacturing growth in Europe and China, ...
A Teaser, Part Deux [Why Our Economy is Imploding]
Post Date: 2011-01-31 14:42:07 by Capitalist Eric
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To properly look at GDP in terms of actual economic progress one must back out all the borrowing that takes place during the same period. That is, the proper way to look at GDP is to subtract back out that which is paid for not with today’s output, but with promises to pledge tomorrow’s. The reason for this is clear – you may in fact only spend a dollar once. When looked at this way one gets a very different view of “growth” in the economy, and the depth of the hole we have dug for ourselves becomes clear. There has been NO actual positive GDP growth during the entire period from 1953 onward – until the 4th quarter of 2009, and since 1980 the true GDP ...
General Motors Withdraws $14 Billion Federal Loan Application
Post Date: 2011-01-31 11:45:26 by Brian S
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General Motors (GM) said Thursday it was withdrawing its application for $14.4 billion in loans from the Department of Energy. With the company making big strides in turning around its business, GM said it no longer wants the money, which the automaker had sought to help it manufacture more fuel-efficient vehicles. "This decision is based on our confidence in GM's overall progress and strong, global business performance," said Chris Liddell, GM vice chairman and chief financial officer, in a statement. "Withdrawing our DOE loan application is consistent with our goal to carry minimal debt on our balance sheet." GM submitted the application to DOE in October 2009 to ...
US Auto Sales May Reach Second-Fastest Rate in 17 Months
Post Date: 2011-01-31 11:43:15 by Brian S
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U.S. automobile sales in January may have reached the second-fastest pace in 17 months, aided by rising business spending and consumer confidence. January vehicle deliveries, to be released tomorrow, may have run at a 12.4 million annual rate, the average of six analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg. The seasonally adjusted rate in December was 12.6 million, the fastest since the government’s “cash for clunkers” program in August 2009. Spending on equipment and software rose at a 5.8 percent annual rate in the fourth quarter, showing businesses were investing in a recovering economy. Humphrey & Associates Inc., a family-owned electrical contractor in the Dallas ...
Chrysler Cuts 4Q Net Loss Significantly, Sees 2011 Profit As It Makes Comeback From Bankruptcy
Post Date: 2011-01-31 11:41:28 by Brian S
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DETROIT (AP) - An optimistic Chrysler narrowed its net loss significantly in the fourth quarter and forecast a net profit for 2011 as it continued a comeback from bankruptcy protection. Chrysler, which has not turned a quarterly profit since leaving bankruptcy, said Monday that it lost $199 million from October through December, far better than the $2.7 billion it lost during the same period of 2009. There were some troubling signs in the fourth quarter, though. Chrysler had been cutting its losses during the first nine months of the year, but the fourth-quarter loss was more than double the $84 million it lost in the third quarter because of cost increases. Revenue for the quarter also ...
Consumer Spending Rises Sharply In December, Posts Best Annual Gain Since 2007
Post Date: 2011-01-31 11:39:22 by Brian S
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WASHINGTON - Americans spent at the fastest pace in three years in 2010, boosted by a strong finish in December. Consumer spending rose 0.7 per cent in December, the sixth straight monthly increase, the Commerce Department reported Monday. Households saw their incomes rise 0.4 per cent, the same as November. For all of 2010, consumers boosted spending 3.5 per cent. That was the best performance since a 5.2 per cent rise in 2007, before the recession began. The government reported Friday that consumer spending rose at a 4.4 per cent rate in the final three months of 2010 — the most since 2006 and helping retailers to the best holiday shopping season in that time. Economists expect a ...
U.S. Businesses Expand at Fastest Pace Since July of 1988 in Chicago Index
Post Date: 2011-01-31 11:15:46 by Brian S
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Jan. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Businesses in the U.S. expanded in January at the fastest pace since July 1988, indicating the world’s largest economy has momentum at the start of the year. The Institute for Supply Management-Chicago Inc. said today its business barometer rose this month to 68.8 from 66.8 in December. Figures greater than 50 signal expansion, and economists projected the gauge would slip to 64.5, based on the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey. Orders, production and employment increased as manufacturers such as Caterpillar Inc. benefited from a pickup in consumer purchases and stronger export markets in emerging economies such as China. Consumer purchases in the final ...
Dubai Index Falls Most Since May, Leads Mideast Drop, on Egypt
Post Date: 2011-01-30 13:02:08 by Brian S
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Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Middle East shares dropped, sending Dubai’s index down the most in eight months, amid ongoing protests demanding the ouster of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Israeli stocks and bonds declined. Emaar Properties PJSC, which says it’s the largest foreign- direct investor in Egypt’s real-estate industry, lost 8.3 percent. Air Arabia PJSC fell the most since March. The DFM General Index plunged 4.3 percent, the most since May 25, to 1,543.02 at the 2 p.m. close in Dubai. The Bloomberg GCC 200 Index lost 0.3 percent. Egypt’s market was closed today after sliding 16 percent last week. It will remain shut tomorrow, Al Arabiya said. ...
Gold Jumps Most in 12 Weeks on Haven Demand Amid Egypt Tensions
Post Date: 2011-01-28 14:30:56 by Brian S
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Jan. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Gold futures jumped the most in 12 weeks on demand for a haven amid escalating tensions in Egypt. Tens of thousands of marchers chanted “liberty” and “change” as rallies began today at points across Cairo in the biggest challenge to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s 30-year rule. Before today, gold dropped 7.1 percent this month. Earlier, the price touched a four-month low. “The big turnaround in gold has to do with the escalating crisis in Egypt,” said Matthew Zeman, a metal trader at LaSalle Futures Group in Chicago. “People are saying it’s better to be safe than sorry,” and investors also are unwinding bets on ...
Oil Rises Most Since 2009 on Concern Egyptian Unrest to Spread
Post Date: 2011-01-28 14:29:26 by Brian S
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Jan. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Oil surged the most since September 2009 as unrest in Egypt raised concern that protests would spread to major oil-producing parts of the Middle East. Crude gained as much as 4.8 percent after a day of clashes between police and protesters demanding an end to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s 30-year regime. The unrest in Egypt followed an uprising that led to the Jan. 14 overthrow of Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. “Tunisia isn’t a big oil producer, and Egypt isn’t a big oil producer, but it’s moving closer to the oil fields,” said Phil Flynn, vice president of research at PFGBest in Chicago. “This thing seems to be ...
Economy Grows at 3.2% Pace, Pushed Up by Sales Spike [CNBC Shills Pure Crap- No Growth, Just Big INFLATION]
Post Date: 2011-01-28 11:10:51 by Capitalist Eric
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The U.S. economy gathered speed in the fourth quarter with a big gain in consumer spending and strong exports pushing demand ahead at the fastest clip in more than 26 years. The economy grew at a solid 3.2 percent annual rate in the final three months of 2010, but it would have risen at a 7.1 percent rate if businesses had not put the brakes on rising inventories, the Commerce Department said Friday. It was the largest rise in final demand since the second quarter of 1984. "The conclusion is the economy appears to be self-sustaining," said Fred Dickson, chief market strategist at The Davidson Cos in Lake Oswego, Oregon. Economists had expected GDP to rise at a 3.5 percent ...
The Choice: Immediate Systemic Collapse or Printing More Dollars
Post Date: 2011-01-27 16:37:34 by Capitalist Eric
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In his latest interview with The Gold Report, Shadowstats founder and leading contrarian economist John Williams says hard assets, namely gold, will be insurance against the coming economic Armageddon. Williams and Gold Report’s Karen Roche discuss a host of topics from government statistics to the coming economic meltdown. On Government Statistics The way I describe the economy is that it started turning down in 2007, plunged throughout 2008 into 2009. Basically, it has been bottom bouncing ever since. I’d caution anyone that we’re seeing extraordinary distortions in economic reporting, due primarily to the system never having been designed to handle a downturn of this ...
U.S. Durable Goods Orders Fall 2.5% Amid Steep Drop In Aircraft Orders
Post Date: 2011-01-27 11:57:22 by Brian S
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(RTTNews) - With orders for transportation equipment in the U.S. showing another steep drop in the month of December, the Commerce Department released a report on Thursday showing an unexpected decrease in durable goods orders for the month. The report showed that durable goods orders fell by 2.5 percent in December following a revised 0.1 percent decrease in November. The decrease came as a surprise to economists, who had expected orders to increase by about 1.5 percent. The unexpected drop in durable goods orders was largely due to a continued decrease in orders for transportation equipment, which fell by 12.8 percent in December after falling by 13.1 percent in the previous month. A ...
U.S. Pending Home Sales Climb To Eight-Month High In December
Post Date: 2011-01-27 11:54:50 by Brian S
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(RTTNews) - Pending home sales in the U.S. rose for the fifth time in the past six months in December, according to a report released by the National Association of Realtors on Thursday, with the increase attributed to good affordability conditions and economic improvement. NAR said its pending home sales index rose by 2.0 percent in December following a downwardly revised 3.1 percent increase in November. With the monthly increase, the index rose to its highest level since April of 2010, which was the last month that the homebuyer tax credit was in effect. Despite the monthly increase, however, the pending home sales index remains 4.2 percent below the reading seen in December of 2009. ...
U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims Jump Due To Bad Weather
Post Date: 2011-01-27 11:53:57 by Brian S
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(RTTNews) - After showing a notable decrease in the previous week, first-time claims for unemployment benefits rebounded by much more than expected in the week ended January 22nd, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday. The Labor Department said initial jobless claims jumped by 51,000 to 454,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 403,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to edge up to 405,000 from the 404,000 originally reported for the previous week. While claims rose by much more than anticipated, the Labor Department noted that the data was impacted by bad weather in several states as well as the Martin Luther King Day holiday. Peter ...
US STOCKS-S&P Ends At 29-Month High; Techs, Commods Lead
Post Date: 2011-01-26 18:41:41 by Brian S
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NEW YORK, Jan 26 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 closed at a 29-month high on Wednesday led by gains in tech and commodity shares, as investors largely ignored the U.S. Federal Reserve's lukewarm economic assessment. The stock market had little reaction to the Fed, which said high unemployment still justifies a $600 billion bond-buying program that has helped equities rally in the last few months. For details, STORY: [ID:nN25283937] TEXT: [ID:nTLAQCE72L] Strong earnings continue to support further gains in stocks. The technology sector was led higher by network equipment maker Juniper Networks (JNPR.N), whose quarterly sales beat Wall Street's expectations. Shares rose 6.4 percent to ...
Paper Money Madness: Inflation-Fueled Economic Growth Does Not Indicate That An Economy Is Getting Stronger
Post Date: 2011-01-26 14:47:53 by Capitalist Eric
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If the U.S. economy "grows" by 4 percent in 2011, but by the end of the year we are paying $3.00 for a loaf of bread, $4.00 for a gallon of milk and $5.00 for a gallon of gasoline are the American people going to be better off economically or worse off? The answer is obvious, but most "experts" in the mainstream media continue to insist that as long as U.S. GDP is increasing and as long as the stock market is going up that our economy is improving. But that is just not the case. If the amount of money in circulation was relatively constant, those measurements would be helpful, but unfortunately the U.S. government and the Federal Reserve are dramatically pumping up the ...
Citigroup Bailout To Make US Taxpayers $12.3b Profit
Post Date: 2011-01-26 13:46:10 by Brian S
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US taxpayers are likely to make a $12.3bn (£7.75bn) total profit on their bailout of financial group Citigroup, according to government officials. The US treasury expects to net $312.2m on Monday when it sells the rest of its stake in Citigroup. The government holds 465.1m warrants in Citi that entitle it to purchase common shares in the banking group. The warrants, which it is auctioning, represent the remaining part of the US government's $45bn investment in Citi during the financial crisis. Taxpayers are expected to end up with a $12.3bn profit on the bailout, made under the troubled asset relief programme (Tarp). The treasury sold its 34% stake of common shares of Citi last ...
Toyota Recalls 1.7 Million Autos As Quality Woes Mount
Post Date: 2011-01-26 12:14:12 by Brian S
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(Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp said it would recall more than 1.7 million vehicles worldwide, bringing its total for recalls to nearly 16 million since late 2009 and dealing a blow to its efforts to restore its reputation for quality. The recalls are for various issues, the biggest of which is to fix potentially faulty fuel pumps and connecting pipes in 1.34 million vehicles, Toyota said. Although the situation is different from last year, when Toyota attracted intense scrutiny from U.S. safety regulators over unintended acceleration problems that were blamed for dozens of fatalities, the latest recall may make it harder for Toyota to convince investors it has put its quality problems ...
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