Businesses and Economic Stress

My analyses indicate that, unfortunately, businesses will continue to face very challenging conditions. Many already find themselves in rather perilous circumstances, as witnessed by the number and breadth (across industries) of companies experiencing double-digit revenue declines, not to mention innumerable other statistics. On a couple of occasions I have written about the conditions that businesses face during …

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Consumer-Led Recovery Story

This story, “On Borrowed Time : Consumer-Led Recovery” was in The Wall Street Journal on June 9.  I found the chart and its implications to be interesting.  One is led to wonder “how much gas is left in the tank” with regard to Household Debt as a Percentage of Disposable Income.  This is  especially an issue with “Income” and …

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Green Shoots

I find it interesting that the term “Green Shoots” seems to have been eradicated in any official government comments regarding the economy.  I am not sure why this is so, as the term itself seems rather innocuous. There must be a reason for its demise, however… SPX at 907.07 as this post is written

A Limited Time Offer

I get the feeling that many people believe that we will get many opportunities to resolve The Financial Crisis and the associated economic difficulties now present.  In other words, should the already enacted interventions, stimulus plans, bailouts, etc. not work, we as a nation won’t be limited in our number of potential efforts and will …

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Gold and Inflation

Much has been written in the financial press about the possibility of impending inflation, or even hyperinflation.  These possibilities are discussed as being likely due to the “loose” monetary policy that has been enacted to combat The Financial Crisis. If one were to believe that inflation has or will soon “breakout,” one would probably expect gold to perform strongly.  At around …

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Great Depression Stock Charts vs Our Current Period

I’m sure everyone has seen the various charts depicting the stock market during The Great Depression to that of our recent period. The comparisons that I have seen show a definite visual resemblance, and perhaps that is what is attracting such attention, as these charts have proven very popular. From my perspective, I think that any resemblance …

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New Jersey Analysis

I found this on David H. Smith’s “The Grayling” blog.  I found it to be very informative and interesting.  While it can be easy to dismiss this as one state’s woes, I think this type of analysis applied to all states would be an interesting exercise, as I’m sure the trends indicated have been happening …

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An Economic Brownfield Facet

I am posting a letter from Guy Haselmann, as I believe it is very well-written and illustrates how actions can promote an Economic Brownfield environment.   My comments will follow the letter: __ To the Editor, May 6, 2009 The Obama administration is creating the next future crisis. Their handling of the Chrysler situation is irresponsible, …

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In Ben We Trust?

I will comment frequently on Ben Bernanke, due to his position, but perhaps more importantly, because of his stated theories, beliefs, and ideologies.  It seems to me that the handling of The Financial Crisis certainly has the “fingerprints” of Ben Bernanke all over it.  In fact, I believe that perhaps no other person’s ideologies have ever played …

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