Friday, July 29, 2011

Recession risks up amid slow growth, debt standoff

WASHINGTON (AP) — The economy is at risk of slipping into another recession.

It nearly stalled in the first six months of the year, the government reported Friday. Economic growth was feeble in the second quarter and practically non-existent in the first.

Full story:
http://news.yahoo.com/recession-risks-amid-slow-growth-debt-standoff-203841443.html

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Layoffs Deepen Gloom

by Connor Dougherty
Thursday, July 21, 2011

The Wall Street Journal

Companies are laying off employees at a level not seen in nearly a year, hobbling the job market and intensifying fears about the pace of the economic recovery.

Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO - News), Lockheed Martin Corp. and troubled bookstore chain Borders Group Inc. are among those that have recently announced hefty cuts, while recent government numbers underscore how companies have shifted toward cutting jobs.

http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgeting/article/113169/layoffs-deepen-gloom-wsj?mod=bb-budgeting

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Housing starts rise 14.6% to five-month high

July 19, 2011, 11:07 a.m. EDT

June’s building permits also higher, up 2.5% to 624,000 annual rate

By Greg Robb, MarketWatch

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — U.S. home builders sharply increased construction in June, according to estimates released Tuesday by the Commerce Department.

Housing starts rose 14.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 629,000, the highest level since January, the data showed.

Full story:
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/housing-starts-rise-146-to-five-month-high-2011-07-19?siteid=yhoof

Thursday, July 14, 2011

US budget deficit on track to top $1 trillion

Budget deficit set to top $1 trillion for 3rd straight year, raising pressure for debt deal

Christopher S. Rugaber, AP Economics Writer, On Wednesday July 13, 2011, 3:19 pm EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The federal budget deficit is on pace to break the $1 trillion mark for the third straight year, ratcheting up the pressure on the White House and Congress to reach a deal to rein in spending.

The deficit totaled $971 billion for the first nine months of the budget year, the Treasury Department said Wednesday. Three years ago, that would have been a record high for the full year.


Full story:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Budget-deficit-on-track-to-apf-957477153.html?x=0

China first-half fiscal surplus at $193 billion

BEIJING | Thu Jul 14, 2011 4:01am EDT

(Reuters) - China posted a fiscal surplus of 1.25 trillion yuan ($193.3 billion) in the first half of the year as steady economic growth and rising prices lifted government revenues, the Ministry of Finance said on Thursday.


Full story:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/07/14/us-china-economy-revenues-idUSTRE76D0YF20110714

Monday, July 11, 2011

A Home Is a Lousy Investment

Today's young people would be foolish to imitate their parents and view ownership as the cornerstone of personal finance.

By ROBERT BRIDGES

At the risk of heaping more misery on the struggling residential property market, an analysis of home-price and ownership data for the last 30 years in California—the Golden State with notoriously golden property prices—indicates that the average single family house has never been a particularly stellar investment.

Full article:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304259304576375323652341888.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

Small business hiring outlook weak

By Catherine Clifford July 11, 2011: 3:26 PM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- When it comes to hiring, the engines of job growth -- small businesses -- are sitting idle.

Almost two-thirds of small business owners said they will keep the same number of employees for the next year, according to the Small Business Outlook Survey released by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Monday.

Full story:
http://money.cnn.com/2011/07/11/smallbusiness/small_business_outlook/index.htm

Saturday, July 9, 2011

How bad is it? Pawn shops, payday lenders are hot

Bernard Condon, AP Business Writer, On Friday July 8, 2011, 5:28 pm EDT

NEW YORK (AP) -- As the jobless rate inches up and the economic recovery sputters, investors looking for a few good stocks may want to follow the money -- or rather the TV, the beloved Fender guitar, the baubles from grandma, the wedding ring.

Profits at pawn shop operator Ezcorp Inc. have jumped by an average 46 percent annually for five years. The stock has doubled from a year ago, to about $38. And the Wall Street pros who analyze the company think it will go higher yet. All seven of them are telling investors to buy the Austin, Texas, company.

Full story:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/How-bad-is-it-Pawn-shops-apf-2995486552.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=4&asset=&ccode=

Friday, July 8, 2011

Job Growth Falters Badly, Clouding Hope for Recovery

For the second month in a row, employers added barely any jobs in June, showing that the economic recovery has hit a serious speed bump.

With all levels of government laying off workers, the Labor Department reported that employers eked out just 18,000 new nonfarm payroll jobs in June. The already low number created in May was also revised downward to a dismally small 25,000 new jobs, less than half of what was originally reported last month.

Full story:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/09/business/economy/job-growth-falters-badly-clouding-hope-for-recovery.html?partner=yahoofinance

June jobs report: Hiring slows, unemployment rises

By Annalyn Censky @CNNMoney July 8, 2011: 4:19 PM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- The job market hit a major roadblock last month, as hiring slowed to a crawl and the unemployment rate unexpectedly rose.

The economy gained just 18,000 jobs in June, the government reported Friday, sharply missing most expectations and coming in even weaker than the paltry 25,000 jobs added in May.

Full story:
http://money.cnn.com/2011/07/08/news/economy/june_jobs_report_unemployment/index.htm

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Concern About the US Economy

Rising prices, reduced purchasing power, and unemployment

By Heide B. Malhotra
Epoch Times Staff

It’s midyear 2011, and experts have begun to worry that the United States might not be able to overcome stagflation, which in the long run could lead to deflation.

“With inflation rising and GDP forecasts continuing to be revised downward, fears of stagflation have crept back into the economy, with the economy hovering in a dangerous position between two possible outcomes: recovery or crash,” said Anthony B. Sanders, professor at George Mason University, in a commentary on the Mercatus Center website.

Full story:
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/business/concern-about-the-us-economy-58710.html

What's next for economy: Slow growth, weak hiring

By Chris Isidore @CNNMoney July 5, 2011: 8:50 PM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Almost no one is satisfied with the current state of the U.S. economy. But economists say the outlook is pretty bleak too.

Sluggish economic growth will continue into 2012, if not beyond, with only modest hiring and high unemployment, according to a CNNMoney survey of 27 economists.

Full story:
http://money.cnn.com/2011/07/05/news/economy/jobs_GDP_forecasts/

Monday, July 4, 2011

Debt deal: Brace for spending cuts

CNNMoney
Charles Riley, On Monday July 4, 2011, 8:30 am EDT

That's how the deal to raise the debt ceiling is shaping up. Details are thin, as negotiations have been carried out behind closed doors and involve only a few of Washington's heaviest hitters.

This much is known: Lawmakers must raise the nation's $14.3 trillion legal borrowing limit soon. The Treasury Department says that on Aug. 2 it will run out of money to pay the nation's bills in full and on time.

That's only a few weeks away. So what's it gonna take?

Full story:
http://money.cnn.com/2011/07/04/news/economy/debt_ceiling_debate/index.htm

Saturday, July 2, 2011

On Independence Day 2011, we're more dependent than ever [on foreigners]

By Kevin G. Hall | McClatchy Newspapers

WASHINGTON — This year, as the nation celebrates Independence Day, the sputtering U.S. economy offers a stark reminder that today we're more dependent upon foreigners than ever before.

We need them to finance our debt; China and Japan together hold more than $2 trillion of U.S. Treasury bonds. We need them to supply much of the oil that's critical to our economy. We need them to make the shoes we wear and the gadgets that dominate our lives. We even need them to buy more of the products we make, as growing exports are vital to our economic rebound.

Full story:
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/07/01/116929/on-independence-day-2011-were.html