How Do You Spell "D-E-P-R-E-S-S-I-O-N" ?
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Technically, the recession is over. Technically. But the REAL economy, having never really recovered after the 2001 recession, only to then be thrown into its worst recession since the 1930s, can only fairly be characterized to be in a "moderated depression."
We stopped it from becoming "Great," but this is no mere garden variety cyclical downturn.
CNBC (Reuters)
Nearly 20% of US Workers Underemployed in Jan
Nearly 20 percent of the U.S. workforce lacked adequate employment in January and struggled to make ends meet with reduced resources and bleak job prospects, according to a Gallup poll released Tuesday.
CNBC.com
In findings that appear to paint a darker employment picture than official U.S. data, Gallup estimated that about 30 million Americans are underemployed, meaning either jobless or able to find only part-time work.
Underemployed people spent 36 percent less on household purchases than their fully employed neighbors in January, while six out of 10 were not hopeful about their chances of finding adequate work in the coming month, the poll said.
Gallup surveyed more than 20,000 U.S. adults from Jan. 2 to 31. The results have a 1 percentage point margin of error...
Meanwhile, Japan & Europe also continue facing Double Dips this year - and as soon as the current quarter. If verified, such a development could certainly easily spill back over into global trade, and thus many other economies, including ours here in the US, as evidenced in just these headlines out of Bloomberg this morning:
German Business Confidence Unexpectedly Drops as Snow Damps Retail Sales German business confidence unexpectedly fell for the first time in 11 months in February as the coldest winter in 14 years damped retail sales and construction.
Kan's Widening Rift With Shirakawa Hampers Japan Battle Against Deflation A spat between Japanese Finance Minister Naoto Kan and central bank Governor Masaaki Shirakawa over how to fight deflation may distract policy makers from nurturing the nation’s economic recovery, analysts said.
Decline in U.S. Home Prices Probably Slowed, Consumer Confidence Dropped Home prices in the U.S. probably declined at the slowest pace since May 2007 and a lack of job growth restrained consumer confidence, indicating the strength of the recovery will depend on labor market improvement, economists said before reports today.
U.K. Economy Faces `Grave Stage' as Deflation Threat Persists, Bootle Says The U.K. economy is entering a “very grave stage” and the Bank of England should expand its 200 billion-pound ($310 billion) bond-buying plan to fight the threat of a relapse, former Treasury adviser Roger Bootle said.
Harvard’s Rogoff Sees ‘Bunch’ of Sovereign Defaults (Update2) Ballooning public debt is likely to force several countries to default and the U.S. to slash spending, according to Harvard University Professor Kenneth Rogoff, who in 2008 predicted the failure of big U.S. banks.
Sears Sales Drop as Consumers Put Off Appliance Purchases Sears Holdings Corp., the largest U.S. department-store company, said comparable-store sales in the fourth quarter declined 2.5 percent as consumers limited purchases for the home.
Today
Snow
Hi 37 °F
On a positive note: A Winter Wonderland Shoutout to all my fellow Texans! Woot! ;-)
We stopped it from becoming "Great," but this is no mere garden variety cyclical downturn.
CNBC (Reuters)
Nearly 20% of US Workers Underemployed in Jan
Nearly 20 percent of the U.S. workforce lacked adequate employment in January and struggled to make ends meet with reduced resources and bleak job prospects, according to a Gallup poll released Tuesday.
CNBC.com
In findings that appear to paint a darker employment picture than official U.S. data, Gallup estimated that about 30 million Americans are underemployed, meaning either jobless or able to find only part-time work.
Underemployed people spent 36 percent less on household purchases than their fully employed neighbors in January, while six out of 10 were not hopeful about their chances of finding adequate work in the coming month, the poll said.
Gallup surveyed more than 20,000 U.S. adults from Jan. 2 to 31. The results have a 1 percentage point margin of error...
Meanwhile, Japan & Europe also continue facing Double Dips this year - and as soon as the current quarter. If verified, such a development could certainly easily spill back over into global trade, and thus many other economies, including ours here in the US, as evidenced in just these headlines out of Bloomberg this morning:
German Business Confidence Unexpectedly Drops as Snow Damps Retail Sales German business confidence unexpectedly fell for the first time in 11 months in February as the coldest winter in 14 years damped retail sales and construction.
Kan's Widening Rift With Shirakawa Hampers Japan Battle Against Deflation A spat between Japanese Finance Minister Naoto Kan and central bank Governor Masaaki Shirakawa over how to fight deflation may distract policy makers from nurturing the nation’s economic recovery, analysts said.
Decline in U.S. Home Prices Probably Slowed, Consumer Confidence Dropped Home prices in the U.S. probably declined at the slowest pace since May 2007 and a lack of job growth restrained consumer confidence, indicating the strength of the recovery will depend on labor market improvement, economists said before reports today.
U.K. Economy Faces `Grave Stage' as Deflation Threat Persists, Bootle Says The U.K. economy is entering a “very grave stage” and the Bank of England should expand its 200 billion-pound ($310 billion) bond-buying plan to fight the threat of a relapse, former Treasury adviser Roger Bootle said.
Harvard’s Rogoff Sees ‘Bunch’ of Sovereign Defaults (Update2) Ballooning public debt is likely to force several countries to default and the U.S. to slash spending, according to Harvard University Professor Kenneth Rogoff, who in 2008 predicted the failure of big U.S. banks.
Sears Sales Drop as Consumers Put Off Appliance Purchases Sears Holdings Corp., the largest U.S. department-store company, said comparable-store sales in the fourth quarter declined 2.5 percent as consumers limited purchases for the home.
Today
Snow
Hi 37 °F
On a positive note: A Winter Wonderland Shoutout to all my fellow Texans! Woot! ;-)