Consumer Confidence at 12-month Low
Thursday January 31, 2008
Conference Board
Americans' confidence in the economy remains at 12-month lows, according to the Consumer Confidence Index released today by the Conference Board. The Index ... Read More
Fed Funds Rate Lowered to 3% - What Does It Mean?
Wednesday January 30, 2008
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke pondering his next move Photo:Chip Somodevilla /Getty Images
Just a week after taking aggressive action, the FOMC again lowered the ... Read More
Q4 GDP Plummets to .6%
Wednesday January 30, 2008
Bill Pugliano /Getty Images
The BEA reported that the advance U.S. GDP growth for Q4 2007 plummeted to .6% from an 4.9% in Q3, and ... Read More
Durable Goods Orders Report Signals Hope for Economy
Tuesday January 29, 2008
Matt Cardy/Getty Images
December's Durable Goods Orders Report offers a ray of sorely-needed hope for the U.S. economy. The Census Bureau reported that business ... Read More
Fed Funds Rate Lowered to 3.5% -- What Does It Mean?
Monday January 28, 2008
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke pondering his next move Photo:Chip Somodevilla /Getty Images
In an emergency meeting last Tuesday, the FOMC lowered the Fed Funds ... Read More
How Would a Recession Affect Me?
Wednesday January 23, 2008
A reader asks:
Although I am currently unaffected by the economic situation, I know that a
recession can create a domino effect, therefore, what should I be wary of in the
future? ... Read More
December CPI Report: Inflation Still a Concern
Monday January 21, 2008
Fed Chair Bernanke thinking hard about inflation Photo:Chip Somodevilla /Getty Images
Last week, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) ... Read More
Gloomy Beige Book Report Signals Q4 '07 Slump
Thursday January 17, 2008
Federal Reserve
The Federal Reserve reported U.S. economic growth at a slower pace for November/December as released in its Beige Book summary. Specifically, 7 of ... Read More
Could the Stock Market Decline Cause a Recession?
Wednesday January 16, 2008
Since October 9, 2007, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at a high of 14,164, the Dow has dropped over 11% to close at its recent low of 12,589 ... Read More
Housing Market 2008 Outlook - It's a Bust
Tuesday January 15, 2008
David McNew /Getty Images
In October, I reported that a 10% decline in housing market prices constituted a bust. (See How Bad is the Current ... Read More
Could Stagflation Reoccur?
Sunday January 13, 2008
A reader asks:
Can you write a bit about Stagflation? It seems inevitable.
Stagflation is when the economy experiences slow GDP growth (stagnation) with high inflation. The term was coined ... Read More
November Consumer Credit 11% Greater than Last Year
Wednesday January 9, 2008
The Federal Reserve's most recent G-19 Consumer Credit report states that revolving credit (like credit card debt) for November increased at an annual rate of 11.5%. This is a jump ... Read More
December Employment Drops to New Low
Monday January 7, 2008
Tim Boyle /Getty Images
In December, only 18,000 jobs were added to the overall economy, according to the Employment Report, released by the Bureau of ... Read More
2008 Oil Price Outlook
Thursday January 3, 2008
Oil prices (WTI crude) hit an all-time record of $99.62 this week, but will it continue? The Energy Information Agency (EIA) says no. The agency's most recent forecast for the ... Read More
What Will Interest Rates Do in 2008?
Wednesday January 2, 2008
A reader asks:
I want to know about mortgage rates. I assume in a recession they go
down and in an inflation they go up. Clearly our deficits point to a big ... Read More
Subprime Mortgage Crisis Looking Even MORE Like Savings and Loan Crisis
Tuesday January 1, 2008
Last Friday, I wrote that the Fed Bailout (which was caused by the Subprime Mortgage Crisis) was similar to the Savings and Loan Crisis of 1987, except that it was ... Read More