Testy Tuesday: Gentle Ben vs. Reality [View article]
"we were heading into another disaster UNTIL WWII kicked off our manufacturing and sent 20M unemployed people overseas, where they sent their paychecks home"
Now this is interesting. The US government paid millions of people to either manufacture widgets that blew up other widgets or were blown by foreign widgets. All these widgets consumed so much raw material that the workers who had the money couldn't spend it because of rationing. Millions of other Americans were paid by the US government to blow up other countries' widgets and widget makers. The government went deeply in debt by not only manufacturing nothing consumable, but by also blowing up consumables. Yet this led us out of the depression?
The Obama administration will reopen shallow-water drilling after expediting new safety rules that could come today. Some offshore permits were canceled last week and others have been on hold since early May, and industry trade groups fear job losses of more than 40,000. [View news story]
Fed Governor Elizabeth Duke says new rules aimed at protecting consumers from taking risky loans are necessary but will cut into bank profitability. The changes reduce the ability to build profitability models around penalty pricing such as overdraft fees or raising rates on existing credit card balances." [View news story]
Not too much debt, just shady loans. Not that I think it would work. Oh, and without these safegaurds, the bank's profits were just great, right? (Until bailout and free money).
The "pickup truck indicator" is way up, a sign of economic strength, says AutoNation CEO Mike Jackson. "Pickup trucks are bought by small business entrepreneurs who have their finger on the pulse of the U.S. economy... They don't buy until they see the prospects for business are brighter." [View news story]
My lab tech (who fits none of the above truck buyer decriptions above, including mine) bought a Toyota PU for around $16,000.
At least one technician says "We're not ready to give up on the bull market" - noting, for one thing, that the small-cap Russell 2000 bounced off its 200-day moving average without heading lower, unlike the S&P 500. [View news story]
Market moves on psychology, not on which way the curve is moving.
Cash heads for the exits from stock funds after steady inflows in March and April. In the week ending May 26, U.S.-focused funds saw outflows of $13.4B (and $3.9B from international funds), the biggest outflows since March 11, 2009. [View news story]
The "pickup truck indicator" is way up, a sign of economic strength, says AutoNation CEO Mike Jackson. "Pickup trucks are bought by small business entrepreneurs who have their finger on the pulse of the U.S. economy... They don't buy until they see the prospects for business are brighter." [View news story]
Or old farts who have retired and always wanted to tool around in a pickup truck. Gas not a problem, no real important place to go.
With a crowded flying summer ahead, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood proposes raising payments given to bumped passengers by 63% - to $650 if passengers arrive within two hours of schedule, and $1,300 if not. Those and other proposed "passenger rights" changes won't take effect until the fall. (ETF: FAA) [View news story]
Exactly. Sometimes I think the best form of government is a really smart benevolent despot. I'll take my thumb off of you if you take your thumb off the customer. Make money, but not in stupid or hurtful ways.
Yes, company profits will continue to go up on the backs of us who are still employed. At some point, the worker per widget ratio can't get any smaller.
May same-store sales (actual vs. Briefing.com estimate), update #4: M +1.4% vs. +0.7%. SMRT -4.5% vs. -5.3%. TGT +1.3% vs. +0.9%. TJX +4% vs. +2.5%. 0 misses, 4 beats for a total of 9 misses, 1 in-line and 15 beats.[View news story]
I believe they are looking for numbers that just scream at them, but then, they would just claim that any positive number has been manipulated.
Wednesday Worries: Will We Hold It? [View article]
El nino warms the Pacific, not the Atlantic. (I've lived through very wet San Francisco El ninos) El nino left us last year, the Atlantic is warmer than normal, which makes sense, world tempertures for the first four months were the highest recorded. Could be a temporary thing though, no one is good at forcasting the weather.
With a crowded flying summer ahead, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood proposes raising payments given to bumped passengers by 63% - to $650 if passengers arrive within two hours of schedule, and $1,300 if not. Those and other proposed "passenger rights" changes won't take effect until the fall. (ETF: FAA) [View news story]
Your points are taken. Yes, "micro-managing" by the government is not a good thing. An anti-government tide that sweeps away government "protections" would not be a good thing. I trust the government more than big business seeking big profits on a number of fronts.
With a crowded flying summer ahead, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood proposes raising payments given to bumped passengers by 63% - to $650 if passengers arrive within two hours of schedule, and $1,300 if not. Those and other proposed "passenger rights" changes won't take effect until the fall. (ETF: FAA) [View news story]
Trust me, you pay if you need to switch flights. We can fight the airlines to a point (I fly out of Dayton, enough of us have to limit the gouging at CVG). How can you fight the airlines when you are stuck on the tarmack with an overflowing commode for four hours? And no nanny state for coal miners?
With a crowded flying summer ahead, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood proposes raising payments given to bumped passengers by 63% - to $650 if passengers arrive within two hours of schedule, and $1,300 if not. Those and other proposed "passenger rights" changes won't take effect until the fall. (ETF: FAA) [View news story]
Yes, to hell with the mom flying with her kids. Let them sit 7 hours for the next flight without compensation, even though they paid for a seat that was given willy nilly to someone else. It's OK for the airlines to break an agreement. If passengers don't show up to a flight they are reimbursed, right?
Testy Tuesday: Gentle Ben vs. Reality [View article]
Now this is interesting. The US government paid millions of people to either manufacture widgets that blew up other widgets or were blown by foreign widgets. All these widgets consumed so much raw material that the workers who had the money couldn't spend it because of rationing. Millions of other Americans were paid by the US government to blow up other countries' widgets and widget makers. The government went deeply in debt by not only manufacturing nothing consumable, but by also blowing up consumables. Yet this led us out of the depression?
The Obama administration will reopen shallow-water drilling after expediting new safety rules that could come today. Some offshore permits were canceled last week and others have been on hold since early May, and industry trade groups fear job losses of more than 40,000. [View news story]
Fed Governor Elizabeth Duke says new rules aimed at protecting consumers from taking risky loans are necessary but will cut into bank profitability. The changes reduce the ability to build profitability models around penalty pricing such as overdraft fees or raising rates on existing credit card balances." [View news story]
The "pickup truck indicator" is way up, a sign of economic strength, says AutoNation CEO Mike Jackson. "Pickup trucks are bought by small business entrepreneurs who have their finger on the pulse of the U.S. economy... They don't buy until they see the prospects for business are brighter." [View news story]
At least one technician says "We're not ready to give up on the bull market" - noting, for one thing, that the small-cap Russell 2000 bounced off its 200-day moving average without heading lower, unlike the S&P 500. [View news story]
Cash heads for the exits from stock funds after steady inflows in March and April. In the week ending May 26, U.S.-focused funds saw outflows of $13.4B (and $3.9B from international funds), the biggest outflows since March 11, 2009. [View news story]
The "pickup truck indicator" is way up, a sign of economic strength, says AutoNation CEO Mike Jackson. "Pickup trucks are bought by small business entrepreneurs who have their finger on the pulse of the U.S. economy... They don't buy until they see the prospects for business are brighter." [View news story]
With a crowded flying summer ahead, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood proposes raising payments given to bumped passengers by 63% - to $650 if passengers arrive within two hours of schedule, and $1,300 if not. Those and other proposed "passenger rights" changes won't take effect until the fall. (ETF: FAA) [View news story]
Wednesday Worries: Will We Hold It? [View article]
Initial Jobless Claims: -10K to 453K vs. 455K consensus. Continuing claims +31K to 4,666,000. [View news story]
May same-store sales (actual vs. Briefing.com estimate), update #4:
M +1.4% vs. +0.7%.
SMRT -4.5% vs. -5.3%.
TGT +1.3% vs. +0.9%.
TJX +4% vs. +2.5%.
0 misses, 4 beats for a total of 9 misses, 1 in-line and 15 beats. [View news story]
Wednesday Worries: Will We Hold It? [View article]
With a crowded flying summer ahead, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood proposes raising payments given to bumped passengers by 63% - to $650 if passengers arrive within two hours of schedule, and $1,300 if not. Those and other proposed "passenger rights" changes won't take effect until the fall. (ETF: FAA) [View news story]
With a crowded flying summer ahead, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood proposes raising payments given to bumped passengers by 63% - to $650 if passengers arrive within two hours of schedule, and $1,300 if not. Those and other proposed "passenger rights" changes won't take effect until the fall. (ETF: FAA) [View news story]
And no nanny state for coal miners?
With a crowded flying summer ahead, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood proposes raising payments given to bumped passengers by 63% - to $650 if passengers arrive within two hours of schedule, and $1,300 if not. Those and other proposed "passenger rights" changes won't take effect until the fall. (ETF: FAA) [View news story]