Economic Data

Economic data in the US is not trending down. It is stabilizing and perhaps trending marginally higher. We have seen a slew of data showing that the US data are outperforming expectations. The data for the housing market in the United…

I was reading through an article at Reuters on the problem that public pension plans are having with shortfalls that can only be made up via increased tax revenue, increased investment returns, or decreased benefits. The Reuters article…

At this point, I think the main weekly will end up being a comprehensive technology and tech stock overview. There have been a lot of stories in the computer and mobile space that deserve comprehensive treatment to pull a bunch of different…

By Marc Chandler The dollar initially fell against the yen in the immediate knee-jerk reaction to S&P two-notch cut of Spain's sovereign rating.  It dipped briefly below JPY78.  However, it has rebounded smartly and is holding above…

Jack Welch recently caused a ruckus by suggesting that the government was “cooking the books” with its economic data. Specifically, he tweeted the following last Friday after the employment situation report: "Unbelievable jobs…

The IMF is out with its predictions for global growth in 2012 and 2013 and across the board the numbers are being reduced. In particular, the IMF sees growth slowing globally to 3.6% next year, which is a reduction from its July estimate of…

Some are expecting the latest surge in US home construction to lift economic growth. Even though it is indeed a positive development, construction however will have only a limited contribution to the GDP.

Two months ago, we got four scenarios for the fiscal cliff via Credit Suisse and Sober Look. All of these scenarios called for at least a 0.9% drag on the economy, meaning that we should fully expect at least a 0.9% drop in annualized GDP…

This is a quick piece here on the labor participation rate, following up on the piece I wrote last week about the jobs numbers not being consistent with recession. Mike Shedlock at Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis and Bill McBride at…

By Marc Chandler The US dollar and Japanese yen are starting the week on a firm note, despite their respective markets closed for holidays. The gains are concentrated against the major European currencies, with the dollar-itself little…