Economy

The long-term trend in capacity utilization in the US shows a secular decline. After each major recession over the past 50 years, capacity utilization peaked at a lower level than after the previous recession. So far in the post-Great…

Spain and Italy reported today that the share of bad loans have continued to rise. There is nothing to suggest that this is the peak. In fact, further deterioration is likely.

In spite of the divergence in the chart, the "loans create deposits" axiom still stands - deposits are still created through bank credit. Two key developments explain much of this divergence without violating these principles.

Mortgage backed securities (MBS) have sold off sharply over the past month as fixed income markets face the new reality of rising rates. But unlike most other fixed income securities, MBS duration tends to increase with yield.

Europe has been postponing the recapitalisation of its banking sector. This column argues that it has been doing so for far too long. Without such a recapitalisation, the danger is that economic stagnation will continue for a long period,…

While consumer spending is up on the previous year, the growth in spending has moderated to the lowest level in three years.

Editor's note: The following press release was issued by the FDIC last week regarding bank accounting gains in the quarter through 31 March.

Economic growth is good. But what we want to see is job and wage growth to complement the asset-price growth. Without this catch up on the job and income front, the economy is on an unsustainable course.

One of the striking aspects of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations hearing on Apple's aggressive tax-avoidance strategies is the way the Senators bent over backwards to declare Apple love even as they poked and prodded at…

Moody's has changed its outlook on the U.S. banking system to stable from negative, reflecting continued improvement in the operating environment and reduced downside risks to the banks from a faltering economy, says Moody's Investors…