Feb 8, 2012
We generally focus on the last crisis and expect the next crisis to be a simple repeat of that.
This explains why so many are waiting for the euro to cause a financial collapse like we saw in 2008. However, the past rarely repeats but it rhymes, like Mark Twain noted....
Feb 1, 2012
Home owners were mostly disappointed by the latest data on home prices.
The S P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index fell 3.7 percent over the 12 months ending in November 2011. A positive note is that this is a significant improvement from 2009 when prices were falling at a...
Jan 25, 2012
In a recent research report, Well Fargo said that the housing market recovery may not take hold on a national level until 2021. Prices may not decline much more, which is good news, but inflation-beating price gains could be a decade away.
The problem is simply that there...
Jan 18, 2012
When President Barack Obama was inaugurated just three years ago, the average retail price of gasoline was only $1.79 a gallon. AAA reports that the average price has increased to $3.39 a gallon in January 2012, a gain of nearly 90 percent.
Further increases are likely...
Jan 11, 2012
Many commentators have noticed that the unemployment report includes an estimate of the number of people in the work force. Historically, this has averaged about 65.8 percent of the population over the age of 16 and now stands at 64 percent.
If the work force...
Jan 4, 2012
Sears and Kmart are victims of changing consumer habits and the trend in their sales will be difficult to reverse.
The latest data from the Census Bureau confirm that department stores are no longer retail hot spots. Sales at department stores declined from a year ago...
Dec 28, 2011
Sears Holdings announced that it would be closing at least 100 Sears and Kmart stores after a disappointing holiday season. Investors acted as if the poor sales were a surprise and sold on the news. The stock plummeted more than 25 percent.
In a rational market, the fact...
Dec 21, 2011
Governments seem to believe that strong currencies can hurt them in the global economy. Central banks routinely intervene in the currency markets to weaken their own currency. If all goes as planned, the decline in currency makes exports cheaper and allows the nation s...