The jobs report was bad enough. But it’s hardly the only indication of continuing trouble for the U.S. economy. Released at the end of June, U.S. Bancorp’s annual survey of nearly 3,000 small businesses confirmed what many people already know: the recession that began in 2008 never ended for vast swaths of the U.S.
Read moreWhat Would the Founding Fathers Say About the National Debt? Don’t Default
One of America’s favorite pastimes is to play the “what would the Founding Fathers say” game. Just pick an issue du jour, and ask the question. Given that today’s world (Google, Twitter, television) is probably way beyond even the imagination of the 18th-century designers of the Constitution, the game usually says more about today’s partisan fights than about the Founders.
Read moreHow a Weak Dollar is Boosting Domestic Travel
This week, I’ve been treated to a visceral experience of the upside of a downside. Driving with my family through the Tetons and Yellowstone National Park, I have sat behind endless lines of RVs and assorted SUVs depositing masses of people who are swarming the parks, descending on Old Faithful concession stands, and snapping endless digital photos to be sent over Androids, iPhones and even Blackberries.
Read moreThe Wishful Environmentalism of Cars 2
Cars 2 opened to lukewarm reviews and a smash box office, taking in $66 million domestically and another $42 million internationally during its opening weekend. The film’s ability to transcend unusually tepid reviews is clearly a testament to the power of the Pixar brand (another gift of Steve Jobs), which has generated a remarkable series of animated hits stemming from the Toy Story franchise that began in 1995 and continuing through gems like Wall-E and The Incredibles, as well as the first Cars. But this film also carries a loud and unmistakable message about alternative energy, automobiles and their shared future.
Read moreBernanke and the Fed: Reading Between the Lines
Today we were treated to the second installment of the Federal Reserve’s new policy of openness with Chairman Ben Bernanke’s press conference. That followed on the heels of the statement by the Fed Open Market Committee about interest rates and the economy.
Read moreBanks Are Hurting? It’s All Relative
The latest out of Wall Street-land is a warning by analysts at Citibank that profits at Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley (and to a lesser degree at other banks as well) will show a sharp contraction for the second quarter of 2011. Leaving aside the inside baseball nature of one Wall Street firm issuing a negative report on other firms, the decline in profitability stands in contrast to the widespread perception that banks and investment houses are booming while the rest of the economy is suffering. Or does it?
Read moreHard or Soft Landing for China? How About No Landing
The past few weeks in financial-land have been dominated by two combustible fears: 1.) that this time Greece really will default on its debts and plunge the Eurozone into chaos; and 2.) that this time China really will hit the brakes and bring much of global economic activity down with it. One of these fears alone would be enough to roil markets. Together they have been a potent and toxic mix.
Read moreThe Frighteningly Fast Fall of Blackberry (And Why Even Apple Should Care)
On Thursday, the maker of the once-ubiquitous Blackberry devices, Research in Motion, reported its quarterly results. They were not pretty.
Read moreBig Blue Turns 100: IBM’s Anniversary is One to Celebrate
Today, IBM officially marks its 100th anniversary. But the company today bears remarkably little resemblance either to the sleepy Computer Tabulating Recording Corporation that was formed on June 16, 1911, or to the more iconic International Business Machines (renamed to one-up then rival National Cash Register in the 1920s) that was one of the dominant companies during the brief but spectacular American century.
Read moreThe White House and Jeff Immelt on Jobs: Compelling, Infuriating or Simply Irrelevant?
At the start of the week, Jeff Immelt, the CEO of GE and the head of President Obama’s task force on job creation, released an interim report on plans to boost employment in the U.S. The reactions have been relatively predictable. Immelt himself has come in for criticism — fair or not — as a corporate titan who has overseen job creation abroad and job destruction at home, and there has been no shortage of voices pointing to GE’s global profits that have not been subject to American taxation.
Read moreWhy Do We Cheer for NBA Stars But Not for Bankers?
There was something dramatic and striking about the Dallas Mavericks’ victory over the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals on Sunday. No, it wasn’t the caliber of play – which was high – nor the sight of the vaunted Miami “Dream Team” falling just short of their pre-ordained championship season. Rather, it was the stark contrast of the multimillionaire players of a multi-billion dollar league arousing not the animosity but the passion of millions of fans who are almost certainly not faring as well.
Read moreThe World’s Dirtiest — and Best — Economic Crystal Ball? Iron Ore. Yes, Iron Ore.
Headlines were replete this week with talk of an imminent slowdown of the global economy. Combined with the pallid recovery of the United States and continued waves of debt crises in Europe, a lull in activity from Brazil to India to China would be trouble indeed.
Read moreHow Can Americans Get China To Do What They Want? For Starters, Shut Up
As global markets go through another week of selling and anxiousness, a new record was set yesterday: the Chinese yuan – that much maligned, politically charged national currency – hit a record high against the U.S. dollar.
Read moreWhat Can You Do To Help Greece? Go There
It now appears that Greece will once again be bailed out of its financial morass. A year ago at this time, the world was roiled by the prospect of Greece defaulting on its considerable debts, and only the reluctant decision of the leading members of the European Union – Germany most prominently among them – led to more than $100 billion in loans extended to the Greek government.
Read moreThe Shame of the Ratings Agencies: How Moody’s Blows It Again
If the economic news wasn’t bad enough after the release of yet another anemic jobs report, the highly influential global ratings agency Moody’s just announced that it was contemplating a downgrade of the U.S.’s credit rating.
Read moreMarkets Plunge Because of Greece, China, and the U.S. (Or so they say.)
Another day, another market plunge. Yesterday was notably sharp, with all major indices declining more than 2% and getting worse as the day wore on. The story du jour – and it is an axiom of market declines that there must be a story that goes with it – was that the sell-off was triggered be a toxic combination of weak U.S. economic data, more concerns about Greece and whether it would default on its debts and bring down the Eurozone
Read moreOn Launching Moneyland in the Luce Tradition
More than two years after the near-meltdown of the global financial system, “the economy” remains the story of our day.Yes, with the United States involved in wars in Afghanistan and Libya, and continued enmeshment in Iraq, traditional foreign affairs matter greatly. And yes, with the presidential elections season starting its slow-burn, politics have a central seat at the tabl
Read moreThink Commodity Prices Are High Now? Just Wait
The just-released monthly inflation report showed that prices for most goods eased a bit. The exception of course is oil, and even though oil prices globally have declined in recent weeks, most Americans are paying ever more for gasoline even as inflation overall remains statistically tame.
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In Bernanke We Trust?
Yesterday, Ben Bernanke departed from the silent, opaque tradition of the Federal Reserve and held a press conference. The event attracted considerable attention, for its novelty as much as for its substance. But those hoping that Bernanke would do his best imitation of Willy Wonka and reveal hidden facets of humor, complexity and charisma were, to say the least, disappointed.
Read moreStock Plunge, Day Two: How the Dow is Dealing with Japan
For the second day in the row, the US stock market plunged, and then bounced back. Hurt, yes, but shares were not beaten, even as investors had to worry about the double whammy of concerns of nuclear contamination in Japan and a housing report that showed new home construction plunged more than it had in 27 months. On Wednesday, the Dow Jones industrial average dropped nearly 300, before ending the day down 240 points. It wasn’t as big a bounce back on Tuesday, but we still didn’t end the day at the lows, which was a good sign.
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