Monday, January 31, 2011
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Economic Recovery
In the fourth quarter, economic output reached a $13.38 trillion seasonally adjusted annual rate, measured in 2005 dollars, inching 0.14% above the final quarter of 2007, when the recession began.
In the summer of 2009, the recession's official end, output plunged 4.14% below pre-crisis levels to a $12.81 trillion seasonally adjusted annual rate.
It took 12 quarters to recoup the losses and, on a per-capita basis, the economy is still not as large as it was before the recession took hold. Such a prolonged recovery is unusual: It took eight quarters to bounce back from the deep recession of the early 1970s.
sourceReal GDP Now Above Pre-Recession Level
"U.S. economic output finally regained the level reached before the recession, as growth sped up on stronger consumer spending and exports (see chart above). Gross domestic product—a broad measure of all goods and services produced—grew at a 3.2% annual rate in the fourth quarter. That's up from the 2.6% pace notched the quarter before and confirms the view held by many economists and stock-market investors that the economy is gaining enough momentum to start bringing down unemployment in the months ahead.
The expansion in large part was fueled by a jump in consumer spending—a crucial change from earlier in the recovery, when growth relied heavily on businesses investing and building up inventories. Final sales—a measure that gives a feeling for underlying demand in the economy by subtracting the change in business inventories from GDP—notched its biggest increase since 1984, growing 7.1% in the fourth quarter. This reviving demand bodes well for 2011, because businesses could take it as a signal to stock their shelves and hire workers."
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Friday, January 28, 2011
4th Quarter GDP: 3.2%
For all of 2010, the economy expanded 2.9 percent, up from a 2.6 percent contraction in 2009, and the best performance since 2005 when growth registered 3.2 percent.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Federal Deficit
The federal budget deficit will reach a record of nearly $1.5 trillion in 2011 due to the weak economy, higher spending and fresh tax cuts, congressional budget analysts said, in a stark warning that will drive the growing battle over government spending and taxation...
The CBO report offered a sobering look at both the short-term and long-term fiscal outlook. It projected the unemployment rate would fall from 9.4% now to 9.2% by the end of this year and then to 8.2% by the end of 2012. It projected the unemployment rate wouldn't fall to typical pre-recession levels—about 5.5%—until 2016.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
No Self Service in New Jersey or Oregon
Ding! There goes the charming little reminder that your car is getting low on fuel, as most new cars come straight from the factory with an audible reminder that it's time to fill up. No big deal, right? Just takes a quick second to remember which side the filler is on, then you get out, unscrew the cap and insert the nozzle. Fill 'er up... couldn't be easier.
Unless you live in New Jersey or Oregon, notes The Wall Street Journal, where it's still illegal to pump your own gas. According to Bikram Gill, a businessman who bought up 26 gas stations in New Jersey, "Any idiot can do it." We know for a fact that there are idiots in all 50 states, and in 48 of them, those idiots are free to handle the somewhat volatile fuel themselves.
In 1951, though, the Supreme Court of New Jersey decided it was too dangerous to allow just anyone to pump gas, suggesting that the process of refueling is best left to the professionals.
Predictably, there have been attempts to change the law. In 1988, a judge issued a ruling that it was unconstitutional to disallow Americans the right to pump their own gas, but it was later overturned by a court of appeals. And again in 2006, governor John Corzine attempted to put self-service stations along the Turnpike, but the voting public said 'No Thanks.'And so it remains illegal to pump your own gas in Jersey. Of course, the next time it's raining or snowing or sleeting and you need to fill up, something tells us you'll understand...
source
Unless you live in New Jersey or Oregon, notes The Wall Street Journal, where it's still illegal to pump your own gas. According to Bikram Gill, a businessman who bought up 26 gas stations in New Jersey, "Any idiot can do it." We know for a fact that there are idiots in all 50 states, and in 48 of them, those idiots are free to handle the somewhat volatile fuel themselves.
In 1951, though, the Supreme Court of New Jersey decided it was too dangerous to allow just anyone to pump gas, suggesting that the process of refueling is best left to the professionals.
Predictably, there have been attempts to change the law. In 1988, a judge issued a ruling that it was unconstitutional to disallow Americans the right to pump their own gas, but it was later overturned by a court of appeals. And again in 2006, governor John Corzine attempted to put self-service stations along the Turnpike, but the voting public said 'No Thanks.'And so it remains illegal to pump your own gas in Jersey. Of course, the next time it's raining or snowing or sleeting and you need to fill up, something tells us you'll understand...
source
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Saturday, January 1, 2011
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