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Latest Articles: Business
US May Soon Become World's Top Oil Producer
Post Date: 2012-10-23 17:05:59 by Brian S
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NEW YORK (AP) -- U.S. oil output is surging so fast that the United States could soon overtake Saudi Arabia as the world's biggest producer. Driven by high prices and new drilling methods, U.S. production of crude and other liquid hydrocarbons is on track to rise 7 percent this year to an average of 10.9 million barrels per day. This will be the fourth straight year of crude increases and the biggest single-year gain since 1951. The boom has surprised even the experts. "Five years ago, if I or anyone had predicted today's production growth, people would have thought we were crazy," says Jim Burkhard, head of oil markets research at IHS CERA, an energy consulting firm. ...
Fedex To Add 20,000 Seasonal Workers, Sees Shipping Up 13 Pct
Post Date: 2012-10-22 11:51:26 by Brian S
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(Reuters) - FedEx Corp said on Monday it plans to hire 20,000 seasonal workers, the same as last year, to handle holiday shipping volume that it expects will be up more than 13 percent. An ongoing increase in e-commerce and last-minute orders amid a slow-growing economy will mean more deliveries for companies like FedEx that can handle fast shipments. FedEx, which is closely watched as an indicator of consumer demand and economic health, anticipates handling more than 280 million shipments during the holiday season between Thanksgiving and Christmas. The company said the impact of an increase in holiday shipments was included in its fiscal 2013 earnings outlook. For the second time this ...
Gas Prices Could Soon Drop 50 Cents A Gallon
Post Date: 2012-10-21 13:21:36 by Brian S
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USA TODAY - Autumn gasoline prices are about to drop faster than fall foliage. With inventories rising and demand waning, gasoline prices could plunge 50 cents a gallon from October's $3.86 peak average over the next few weeks, providing a lift for the economy and possibly becoming a factor in next month's presidential election. Gasoline, now averaging $3.69 a gallon, is expected to fall to $3.35 or lower by late November. In some regions, prices have already sunk below $3. "Most of the country is heading appreciably lower the next few weeks,'' says Tom Kloza of the Oil Price Information Service, who notes wholesale prices in some key markets have dropped from as high ...
A Ponzi Scheme Called America
Post Date: 2012-10-21 11:41:26 by Hondo68
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As we all know, the eurozone credit crisis has taken away any chance of economic growth in the global economy.Spain—the current epicenter of the credit crisis in the eurozone—has seen its credit rating downgraded to a credit rating of BBB- from BBB+ by the Standard and Poor’s (S&P) credit rating agency. A credit rating of BBB- is the lowest investment grade credit rating issued by S&P and just one notch above “junk” status. (Source: Standard & Poor’s, October 10, 2012.)In 2007, eurozone member Spain saw its national debt equate to 36% of its gross domestic product (GDP) that year. Now, with the government’s plan to borrow more than 207 billion ...
In U.S., Unadjusted Unemployment At 7.3% In Mid-October; Unemployment, Underemployment Lowest Since Gallup Began Tracking
Post Date: 2012-10-19 14:59:26 by Brian S
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WASHINGTON, D.C. -- U.S. unemployment, as measured by Gallup without seasonal adjustment, is 7.3% in mid-October, down considerably from 7.9% at the end of September and at a new low since Gallup began collecting employment data in January 2010. Gallup's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate is 7.7%, also down from September. October's adjusted mid-month measure is also more than a percentage point lower than October 2011. These results are based on Gallup Daily tracking surveys conducted by landline and cell phone with more than 30,000 U.S. adults from Sept. 16-Oct. 15. Gallup's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate incorporates the .04 upward adjustment used by the U.S. ...
GM to hire 3,000 workers from Hewlett-Packard
Post Date: 2012-10-18 13:36:58 by Brian S
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DETROIT (AP) -- General Motors will hire 3,000 workers from Hewlett-Packard as the carmaker moves more computer functions in-house. The move is part of a larger GM strategy to have more control over the technology it uses in cars and to run its business. The H-P employees already work on GM projects. GM says that making them full-time employees will hold costs steady and speed up the transformation of the company's computer-related work. GM is hiring more software developers, opening technology centers and taking on work from outside firms like H-P. GM says the move includes several multi-year services and software contracts with H-P. GM Chief Information Officer Randy Mott worked ...
State's Jobless Rate Dropped By 1 Point Over Past 12 Months
Post Date: 2012-10-18 12:11:19 by Brian S
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Michigan’s unemployment rate dropped in September for the first time in six months. The decline was a very slight one-tenth of a percentage point to 9.3%. It was good news, even if job growth remains slow. The state’s unemployment rate is a full percentage point below where it was at this time last year – due to hiring in business and temp services, the finance sector, and manufacturing. Bruce Weaver is an analyst at the state bureau of labor information. He says those gains were only partially offset by job losses in a couple of sectors. “The two areas of the economy that have lost a decent number of jobs over that period would be retail sector and ...
New-Home Construction Permits Last Month Revved To The Highest In Four Years
Post Date: 2012-10-18 11:33:16 by Brian S
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New-home construction in the U.S. surged in September to the highest level in four years, a sign the industry is on the road to recovery. Starts jumped 15 percent to an 872,000 annual rate last month, the most since July 2008 and exceeding all forecasts in a Bloomberg survey of economists, Commerce Department figures showed today in Washington. The median estimate of 81 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for 770,000. An increase in building permits may mean the gains will be sustained. A pickup in sales stoked by record-low mortgage rates and population growth combined with dwindling supply indicates construction can continue strengthening, contributing more to economic growth. At ...
Consumer Comfort in U.S. Climbs to Highest Level in Six Months
Post Date: 2012-10-18 11:02:05 by Brian S
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Consumer confidence in the U.S. reached a six-month high last week as more Americans said it was a good time to shop. The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index rose to minus 34.8 in the week ended Oct. 14, the highest level since April, from minus 38.5 the previous week. The monthly expectations gauge improved to minus 7 in October, the best reading since May. Signs the housing recovery is gaining momentum, rising stock prices and a falling jobless rate may be making consumers feel better about their financial situation. The boost in optimism may help sustain recent gains in household spending, which makes up about 70 percent of the economy. “Consumer sentiment is possibly emerging from ...
Index of U.S. Leading Indicators Rose 0.6%, Most In Seven Months In September
Post Date: 2012-10-18 11:01:00 by Brian S
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The index of U.S. leading economic indicators rose in September by the most in seven months, boosted in part by a jump in permits for home construction that’s helping underpin the expansion. The Conference Board’s gauge of the outlook for the next three to six months increased 0.6 percent after a revised 0.4 percent drop in August that was bigger than initially reported, the New York-based group said today. Economists projected the gauge would climb 0.2 percent, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey. A recovery in the housing market and a surge in stock prices may also be fueling optimism among consumers, whose spending accounts for about 70 percent of the ...
Housing Starts in U.S. Surged in September to Four-Year High
Post Date: 2012-10-17 12:15:48 by Brian S
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Housing starts in the U.S. surged 15 percent in September to the highest level in four years, adding to signs the industry at the heart of the financial crisis is on the road to recovery. Starts jumped to a 872,000 annual rate last month, the most since July 2008 and exceeding all forecasts in a Bloomberg survey of economists, Commerce Department figures showed today in Washington. The median estimate of 81 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for 770,000. An increase in building permits may mean the gains will be sustained. A pickup in sales stoked by record-low mortgage rates and population growth combined with dwindling supply indicates construction can continue strengthening, ...
U.S. Stocks Gain as Industrial Output, Earnings Top Forecasts (editors note: Romney Victory Speculation)
Post Date: 2012-10-16 10:46:52 by Brian S
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Oct. 16 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks advanced, sending the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index higher for a second day, as industrial production rose more than forecast and corporate earnings topped estimates.
Johnson & Johnson rallied 1.5 percent after raising its 2012 profit forecasts. Sprint Nextel Corp. gained 0.9 percent after people with direct knowledge of the situation said the company isn’t planning to take over Clearwire Corp. Citigroup Inc. added 0.2 percent after Chief Executive Officer Vikram Pandit stepped down.
The S&P 500 climbed 0.6 percent to 1,448.38 at 9:49 a.m. in New York. Stocks rallied yesterday as U.S. retail sales and Citigroup Inc.’s earnings beat estimates. The Dow ...
Confidence Among U.S. Homebuilders Climbs for a Sixth Month
Post Date: 2012-10-16 10:38:17 by Brian S
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Confidence among U.S. homebuilders climbed for a sixth straight month in October, adding to signs the real-estate market is healing. The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo builder sentiment index increased to 41 this month, the highest since June 2006, from 40 in September, according to figures from the Washington-based group released today. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for an increase to 41. Readings below 50 mean more respondents said conditions were poor. Record-low borrowing costs are helping sustain sales for homebuilders such as Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. (HOV) Strict credit standards and slowing payroll growth remain obstacles for ...
Romney’S Plan To Dump Bernanke Sparking Anxiety On Wall Street
Post Date: 2012-10-15 13:58:20 by Brian S
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Mitt Romney’s promise to replace Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke if elected president is stirring anxiety among some financial analysts — who fear such a move could send the nation’s markets tumbling. Romney, throughout his White House campaign, has argued he knows what needs to be done to get the economy running at full steam. But the concern among market watchers is that if Romney dumps Bernanke, whose term expires at the beginning of 2014, he would remove the person who some believe is the weak economy's primary lifeline. "There's a view that the economy cannot sustain itself, that it's really the Fed that is fueling economic growth, and that a ...
Retail Sales Make Largest Gains In Two Years
Post Date: 2012-10-15 12:56:21 by Brian S
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Retail sales picked up again in September as consumers increased their spending on clothing, electronics and autos, bolstering hopes for a solid holiday season. Spending increased 1.1 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted $412.9 billion, the Commerce Department reported on Monday. Sales were revised higher to 1.2 percent in August, the best showing in both months since October 2010. "In spite of the uncertainty and unease surrounding our nation’s high unemployment and long-term fiscal challenges, consumers continue to spend and shop," said Matthew Shay, president and chief executive of the National Retail Federation. "Robust back-to-school spending combined ...
Consumers Paying Down Debt Helps Boost U.S. Expansion
Post Date: 2012-10-15 12:52:57 by Brian S
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Anita Bullock-Morley was $57,000 in debt on 27 credit cards and close to filing for bankruptcy in 2007. With help from an Atlanta counseling service, the 37-year- old says she paid about $1,400 a month and cleared her balances. Now she’s used cash to buy an $800 iPad and upgrade her iPhone. Three-plus years into a recovery from the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, Americans finally are getting their finances back into shape, Federal Reserve figures show. Household debt as a share of disposable income sank to 113 percent in the second quarter from a record high of 134 percent in 2007 before the recession hit. Debt payments on that basis are the smallest in almost 18 ...
Food Tent Displaying Obama Signs Erected Outside Ohio Poll (free Obamy Burgers for qualified voters)
Post Date: 2012-10-14 21:25:41 by Hondo68
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On Wednesday, a food tent peppered with Obama campaign signs was seen in Cleveland directly across from the Board of Elections where early voting is taking place. A citizen journalist has provided Breitbart News with photos of the tent: This is possibly a violation of Ohio statute 3599, which has a section that reads: 3599.01 Bribery. (A) No person shall before, during, or after any primary, convention, or election: (1) Give, lend, offer, or procure or promise to give, lend, offer, or procure any money, office, position, place or employment, influence, or any other valuable consideration to or for a delegate, elector, or other person; (2) Attempt by intimidation, coercion, or other ...
Surprise Jack Welch Missed Shows Better U.S. Growth: Economy
Post Date: 2012-10-12 13:28:30 by Brian S
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It isn’t only the federal government’s Bureau of Labor Statistics that is issuing surprisingly good news about the U.S. economy these days. If former General Electric Co. Chief Executive Officer Jack Welch’s charges of a political fix to manipulate economic data ahead of the presidential election are true, there must be a vast econometric conspiracy embracing auto dealers, real estate agents, the Federal Reserve and corporate America’s 96-year-old Conference Board. The economy is improving more than professional forecasters anticipated, particularly in data on employment and housing, according to the Bloomberg Economic Surprise Index, which compares 38 indicators with ...
Consumer Sentiment in U.S. Rises to Pre-Recession High
Post Date: 2012-10-12 10:43:35 by Brian S
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Confidence among U.S. consumers unexpectedly jumped in October to the highest level since before the recession began five years ago, raising the odds that retailers will see sales improve. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary October consumer sentiment index increased to 83.1, the highest level since September 2007, from 78.3 the prior month. The gauge was projected to fall to 78, according to the median forecast of 71 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. Rising stock and property values along with falling joblessness may keep giving Americans a psychological boost, brightening the household-spending outlook during the year-end holidays. Improving confidence may play a ...
Foreclosure Filings Drop To Five-Year Low In September
Post Date: 2012-10-11 11:15:18 by Brian S
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WASHINGTON -- Foreclosure filings fell in September to their lowest level in more than five years as a housing market rebound showed another sign of taking hold. Substantial decreases in California and some other states hard-hit by the collapse of the housing bubble helped reduce filings to 180,427 last month, down 7% from August and 16% from a year earlier, according to foreclosure listing firm RealtyTrac. The last time filings were that low was in July 2007. Filings for the three-month period ending in September also were the lowest since the fourth quarter of 2007. RealtyTrac said there were 531,576 filings in the period, down 5% from the second quarter and 13% year-over-year, the ...
Consumer Confidence in U.S. Stayed Near Three-Month High Last Week
Post Date: 2012-10-11 11:05:31 by Brian S
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Consumer confidence in the U.S. stayed near a three-month high last week, with more Americans saying it was a good time to make purchases even as they grew more pessimistic about the economy. The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index fell to minus 38.5 in the week ended Oct. 7 from minus 36.9 in the prior period. The drop was within the gauge’s margin of error of 3 percentage points and ended a six-week upswing that was the longest since early 2006. The measure has been higher than minus 40, a level associated with recessions and their aftermath, for the last three weeks. “Consumer sentiment appears to have stabilized, albeit at historically low levels,” said Joseph Brusuelas, ...
Jobless Claims Fall To Lowest In Four And A Half Years
Post Date: 2012-10-11 11:02:08 by Brian S
2 Comments
(Reuters) - The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell sharply last week to the lowest level in more than four and a half years, according to government data on Thursday that suggested improvement in the labor market. The news could help President Barack Obama in his tight race for re-election on November 6 against Republican challenger Mitt Romney, who says Obama has mishandled the economy. But a second report released on Thursday hinted at weaker U.S. and global demand. The U.S. trade deficit widened in August to $44.2 billion, as U.S. goods exports fell for the fifth consecutive month and imports declined fractionally. Initial claims for state ...
READ: CEO letter to Westgate Resorts employees
Post Date: 2012-10-10 20:25:52 by Capitalist Eric
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Here is the entire e-mail that CEO David Siegel sent to Westgate employees: Subject: Message from David Siegel Date:Mon, 08 Oct 2012 13:58:05 -0400 (EDT) From: [David Siegel] To: [All employees] To All My Valued Employees, As most of you know our company, Westgate Resorts, has continued to succeed in spite of a very dismal economy. There is no question that the economy has changed for the worse and we have not seen any improvement over the past four years. In spite of all of the challenges we have faced, the good news is this: The economy doesn’t currently pose a threat to your job. What does threaten your job however, is another 4 years of the same presidential administration. ...
Fed Says Economy Grows ‘Modestly’ on Housing, Autos
Post Date: 2012-10-10 17:06:07 by Brian S
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The Federal Reserve said today that the U.S. economy was expanding “modestly” last month, supported by improvements in housing and auto sales, even as the labor market showed little change. “Consumer spending was generally reported to be flat to up slightly since the last report,” the Fed said in its Beige Book business survey, which is based on accounts from the 12 district Fed banks. Conditions in manufacturing were “somewhat improved,” according to the report, which provides anecdotal evidence on the health of the economy two weeks before the Federal Open Market Committee meets in Washington on Oct. 23-24. The Beige Book provides support for Fed Chairman ...
Ford Would Have Shut Without Auto Bailouts, Rattner Says
Post Date: 2012-10-09 10:36:19 by Brian S
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Ford Motor Co. (F), the only large U.S. automaker that didn’t receive a U.S. government bailout, would’ve failed along with General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC if President Barack Obama’s administration hadn’t rescued the industry, said Steven Rattner, who headed Obama’s auto task force. “Ford would have closed because it wouldn’t have been able to get parts, because the parts industry in this country was in arguably worse shape than the assemblers,” Rattner said today at the Center for American Progress in Washington. Rattner, now chairman of the Willett Advisors LLC investment firm, led the $63.4 billion bailout in 2009 of GM and Chrysler, which ...
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