Category: Recession 2008 - 2010
The analysis published under this category are as follows.Friday, December 05, 2008
Countries to Fight Over Shrinking Economic Pie During 2009 / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
Trade and Currency Tensions in 2009 - Most people know that, in recent years, there have been tensions between the US and China over two big issues. One is that China runs big trade surpluses with the US, which the Democrats have been wanting to do sanctions on. The other is they keep their currency, the Yuan/RMB, weak compared to the USD, and that is also something the Democrats have wanted to sanction.Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, December 04, 2008
Economic Downturn an Historic Challenge for the New President / Politics / Recession 2008 - 2010
At long last it is official. Even the government's own statisticians now admit that we are in a recession. They have even concluded that it began in late 2007. How wonderfully candid of them!Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, December 04, 2008
U.S. Economy Downward Revision to 3rd Quarter GDP / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
The National Bureau of Economic Research finally admitted the worst kept secret on Monday. The US economy fell into a recession in December 2007. Drilling down into the 3 rd quarter data can lead us to some interesting details.Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, December 03, 2008
What's so Paradoxical about Thrift? / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
The term "paradox of thrift" is being bandied about these days. This refers to the notion that if one person saves, this is good for economic activity but if we all decide to save, this is bad for economic activity. Firstly, what do we mean by "saving"? For the sake of argument, let's define saving as spending on physical goods and services less than one's income. If one spends less than his income, what happens to the "saved" part? Does it get buried in the back yard in the form of coin and currency? Perhaps. But there are other alternatives.Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
Economic Restructuring, Recessions and Politics / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
Recessions impose economic discipline and punish everyone, including those that have taken advantage of the system. Companies seeking to survive look for ways to restructure their operations, with many going out of business or using Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings to help them break their bad habits. Politicians, ever mindful of their reelection, tend to use the public coffers to help mitigate the impact on key constituencies. This is where we are today.Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
Expect the Worst Recession Since WWII / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
This week we look at a short but excellent summary of the state of the current economic crisis. I always enjoy reading David Rosenberg, the North American economist of Merrill Lynch. He has a no-nonsense style that is refreshing from most mainstream economists. The reality is that things continue to deteriorate. Today's stock market action shows that we are not of the bear market woods just yet. Rosenberg gives us a few reasons why.Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Inflation is No Cure for a Recession / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
There are some in our government who claim that we face a possible depression if we do not engage in a massive amount of deficit spending and money printing to resurrect the economy. The prescription is intended to cure the credit crisis by forcing banks to step up their lending practices. In their inability to accept or understand the cause of our current crisis in the first place, however, we face increasing odds of a depression as our fearless leaders fight this recession with yet more of the disease itself: inflation .Read full article... Read full article...
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Stocks Soar as Obama Assembles Recession War Council / Stock-Markets / Recession 2008 - 2010
Welcome to the Weekly Report. This week we look at new appointments, timings and why Obama is willing to start work early.
An hour before the stock markets closed on Friday we started to get some "breaking news" scrolling across the screens of the financial TV channels, pointing to new appointments in the Obama administration-in-waiting.
Friday, November 21, 2008
World Economic Demand is Collapsing / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
World economic demand is now collapsing along with the yearlong credit collapse. Recent news is full of stories about how world economic demand fell off a cliff in October, 08. Every sector is being hit, from new cars to recycled cardboard. In each case, October is pointed to where economic demand fell off a cliff…Read full article... Read full article...
Friday, November 21, 2008
Economic Consequences of De-leveraging for Investors / Stock-Markets / Recession 2008 - 2010
The explosion of credit taken on by consumers and some businesses is the major cause of the current economic problems faced by the U.S. Over the last 20 years consumer debt has risen to $2.6 trillion. In the past when the economy faltered, the consumer has been able to generate a robust recovery. Is this time different?Read full article... Read full article...
Friday, November 21, 2008
Global Economy is Being Sucked into a Black Hole / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
"The Winter of 2008-2009 will prove to be the winter of global economic discontent that marks the rejection of the flawed ideology that unregulated global financial markets promote financial innovation, market efficiency, unhampered growth and endless prosperity while mitigating risk by spreading it system wide." Economists Paul Davidson and Henry C.K. Liu "Open Letter to World Leaders attending the November 15 White House Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy"Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Spreading Global Recession Signals Caution for Investors / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
Tony Sagami writes: In 1944, our country had recently emerged from the Great Depression and was in the middle of World War II when 730 delegates from 44 Allied nations met in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire.
Those global leaders had come together to develop a monetary system to govern the financial relationships between the world's largest economies.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
G20 Meaningless Statement and the Manageable Recession / Politics / Recession 2008 - 2010
The G-20 met last Saturday. Afterward, the group issued a meaningless statement and decided to meet again in March 2009, or perhaps later. Clearly, the urgency of October is gone . First, the perception of imminent collapse is past. Politicians are superb seismographs for detecting impending disaster, and these politicians did not act as if they were running out of time. Second, the United States will have a new president in March, and nothing can be done until he defines his policy.Read full article... Read full article...
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Extreme Stock Market Volatility as Corporate America Heads Towards Bankruptcy / Stock-Markets / Recession 2008 - 2010
The Oxford Dictionary defines “volatility” as “liable to change rapidly and unpredictably, especially for the worse”. It's not as if investors do not know this by now, as global stock markets were again subjected to extreme fluctuations during the past week.
The red line in the chart below shows the daily percentage change in the S&P 500 Index, illustrating the severe movements stock markets have seen in recent times.
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Friday, November 14, 2008
Goldilocks Economy Turns into the Humpty Dumpty Economy / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
Before the current economic crisis became apparent to all, the most popular fable used to describe America's uncanny economic resiliency was the story of Goldilocks. It was argued that our economy was skipping down a sunny path of moderate growth, low inflation and rising asset prices. However, a much better parable for our economy over the last decade would have been the story of Humpty Dumpty: a bloated, fragile shell perched on the top of a dangerously high stone wall.Read full article... Read full article...
Friday, November 14, 2008
Consumer Spending Cutbacks Further Erode Retail Payrolls / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
The attached chart shows the deepening implications of falling retail sales on retail sector payrolls, highlighting the deteriorating role of the US consumer, especially as Democrats dampen hopes of any additional stimulus package before year-end.US Retail sales fell 2.8% in October vs expectations of a 2.1% decline, following a revised drop of 1.3%.Read full article... Read full article...
Friday, November 14, 2008
U.S. Retail Sales Hit Record Low as Economy Heads for Sharp Contraction / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
Advance retail sales for the month of October declined -2.8% m/m and are down -3.3% y/y/. The core ex-autos estimate fell -2.2% m/m and is up 1.7% y/y. On a monthly basis ex-gas was down -1.5%, ex-autos and building materials have fallen -2.4%, ex-autos and gas -0.5% and ex-good service -3.1%. On a three month annualized basis sales in the retail and food service sector have fallen -10.9% with the ex-auto estimate down -7.4%.Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Russian Alarm Bells Ringing As Ruble and Oil Prices Fall / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
Alarm bells are sounding as Russia, Kuwait Suspends Trading .
Russian stocks plunged and Kuwait suspended trading as a slump in oil to below $55 a barrel roiled emerging markets and increased concern that Moscow will be forced to devalue the ruble.
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Thursday, November 13, 2008
UK on the Brink of Economic Meltdown / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
Kenneth Clarke, the former Chancellor warns Britain is on the brink of 'meltdown'
Mr Clarke, 68, said the British economy is headed for a "catastrophic crisis" that will be "far worse than anything that has occurred in my lifetime".
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Bank of England Forecasts Deep Recession / Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
The Bank of England's Quarterly Inflation Report was released this morning and its outlook for the UK economy was every bit as dismal as feared. The Bank's central projections for GDP growth and inflation are "substantially weaker" than in the August Report, although today's Report also acknowledges that the prospects for both are "unusually uncertain." The central projection is for a pronounced contraction in domestic demand that causes output to fall markedly through the first half of 2009, with the contraction in real GDP reaching around 2.0% on the year by Q2.Read full article... Read full article...