BLS Data Release
Nonfarm payroll employment declined sharply in December, and the U-3 unemployment rate rose from 6.8 to 7.2 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Payroll employment fell by 524,000 over the month and by 1.9 million over the last 4 months of 2008. In December, job losses were large and widespread across most major industry sectors.
In December, the number of unemployed persons increased by 632,000 to 11.1 million and the unemployment rate rose to 7.2 percent. Since the start of the recession in December 2007, the number of unemployed persons has grown by 3.6 million,
and the unemployment rate has risen by 2.3 percentage points.
The U-6 data (Table A-12), which is the total unemployment figure: including all marginally attached workers, plus those employed part time for economic reasons, plus all marginally attached workers, rose to 13.5% from 12.6%
Bloomberg: U.S. Loses 524,000 Jobs; 2008 Losses Most Since 1945
Jan. 9 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. lost 524,000 jobs in December, making last year’s collapse in employment the worst since the end of World War II and underscoring the severity of the recession President-elect Barack Obama will inherit.
“We’re seeing pretty ugly numbers as the recession is worsening,” Michael Gregory, a senior economist at BMO Capital Markets in Toronto, said before the report. “It’s going to be devastating in terms of consumer confidence and spending. The next couple of months will be dismal.”
Friday, January 09, 2009
Thursday, January 08, 2009
News of interest
Returned home late from work tonight and still have much to do (3mi jog, eat and then to the grocery store), so not much time to post. With that said, here are a few economic news links of interest - enjoy and have a great evening!
Obama calls for 'dramatic action' to save economy
President-elect Barack Obama on Thursday urged Congress to act quickly to pass sweeping economic stimulus measures, including a tax cut and an infusion of as much as $800 billion, or face the likelihood that "this recession could linger for years
Madoff Investigators Claim to Find 100 Checks in Desk
Investigators searching the office desk of Bernard Madoff after his arrest found about 100 signed checks, totaling about $173 million, ready to be sent to family, friends, and employees, prosecutors said.
Fed Buys $10.2 Billion of Mortgage Bonds to Cut Rates
The Federal Reserve bought $10.2 billion of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae mortgage- backed securities under a program aimed at lowering home-loan rates begun this week.
Corporate America faces big pension shortfalls
Collapsing stock prices have created shortfalls in pension plans in dozens of large U.S. companies, which may require them to pump in tens of billions of dollars of cash, hurting earnings.
With corporate America facing pension plan shortfalls totaling several hundred billions of dollars, more companies will in 2009 need to shore up their plans to ensure they can handle commitments to retirees, several analysts said.
Obama's Tax Plan Hits Democratic Wall
Democratic senators emerging from a private meeting of the Senate Finance Committee criticized business and individual tax cuts in Obama's stimulus plan
Moody's cuts Bank of America rating, raises Merrill
Moody's Investors Service on Thursday downgraded its rating on Bank of America, saying the bank and its recently acquired Merrill Lynch arm will face weak earnings in a struggling economy.
Merrill’s investment banking chief quits
Greg Fleming, the head of investment banking at Merrill Lynch, is leaving scarcely a week after it was acquired by Bank of America.
His departure comes three days after Robert McCann, head of Merrill’s “thundering herd” of 16,000 financial advisers, also resigned from the US investment bank
Obama calls for 'dramatic action' to save economy
President-elect Barack Obama on Thursday urged Congress to act quickly to pass sweeping economic stimulus measures, including a tax cut and an infusion of as much as $800 billion, or face the likelihood that "this recession could linger for years
Madoff Investigators Claim to Find 100 Checks in Desk
Investigators searching the office desk of Bernard Madoff after his arrest found about 100 signed checks, totaling about $173 million, ready to be sent to family, friends, and employees, prosecutors said.
Fed Buys $10.2 Billion of Mortgage Bonds to Cut Rates
The Federal Reserve bought $10.2 billion of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae mortgage- backed securities under a program aimed at lowering home-loan rates begun this week.
Corporate America faces big pension shortfalls
Collapsing stock prices have created shortfalls in pension plans in dozens of large U.S. companies, which may require them to pump in tens of billions of dollars of cash, hurting earnings.
With corporate America facing pension plan shortfalls totaling several hundred billions of dollars, more companies will in 2009 need to shore up their plans to ensure they can handle commitments to retirees, several analysts said.
Obama's Tax Plan Hits Democratic Wall
Democratic senators emerging from a private meeting of the Senate Finance Committee criticized business and individual tax cuts in Obama's stimulus plan
Moody's cuts Bank of America rating, raises Merrill
Moody's Investors Service on Thursday downgraded its rating on Bank of America, saying the bank and its recently acquired Merrill Lynch arm will face weak earnings in a struggling economy.
Merrill’s investment banking chief quits
Greg Fleming, the head of investment banking at Merrill Lynch, is leaving scarcely a week after it was acquired by Bank of America.
His departure comes three days after Robert McCann, head of Merrill’s “thundering herd” of 16,000 financial advisers, also resigned from the US investment bank
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Peter Schiff 1/6/08 on Kudlow
Discussion regarding Obama's statement to reporters today of 'Trillion-Dollar Deficits for Years to Come'
"President-elect Barack Obama predicted Tuesday that the nation could see "trillion-dollar deficits for years to come," but said the country needs to continue spending taxpayer dollars to get the economy back on track."
Obama, speaking to reporters at his Washington transition office, said he didn't want to get into specific budget numbers because his proposal is still being worked out with lawmakers and has yet to be submitted for debate. But he expects a trillion-dollar deficit before the next fiscal-year budget is even proposed.
"President-elect Barack Obama predicted Tuesday that the nation could see "trillion-dollar deficits for years to come," but said the country needs to continue spending taxpayer dollars to get the economy back on track."
Obama, speaking to reporters at his Washington transition office, said he didn't want to get into specific budget numbers because his proposal is still being worked out with lawmakers and has yet to be submitted for debate. But he expects a trillion-dollar deficit before the next fiscal-year budget is even proposed.
Chinese yuan set to replace dollar
Beijing has launched the experiment of using the yuan as a reserve currency in relations with 8 countries. Chinese exporters are asking to charge in yuan instead of dollars, because the U.S. currency is losing value. But China needs to revise its model of development, too much inspired by eighteenth century mercantilism.
While the comments of economic observers have focused on what is happening to U.S. public debt and to financial markets overseas, the news media rarely mention what is happening in Asia, almost as if there were not a strong correlation between the two phenomena. But it is logical that a substantial accumulation of foreign exchange reserves in China, Japan and throughout Asia corresponds to an unprecedented supply of dollars, the global reserve currency.
But Asia now understands that the increase of money supply decreases the intrinsic value of a currency. That is why China is seeking a possible and rational attempt to decouple Asian currencies from the dollar, as recent news stories report [1].
Continued: Chinese yuan set to replace dollar
Hat tip Jerry for link!
While the comments of economic observers have focused on what is happening to U.S. public debt and to financial markets overseas, the news media rarely mention what is happening in Asia, almost as if there were not a strong correlation between the two phenomena. But it is logical that a substantial accumulation of foreign exchange reserves in China, Japan and throughout Asia corresponds to an unprecedented supply of dollars, the global reserve currency.
But Asia now understands that the increase of money supply decreases the intrinsic value of a currency. That is why China is seeking a possible and rational attempt to decouple Asian currencies from the dollar, as recent news stories report [1].
Continued: Chinese yuan set to replace dollar
Hat tip Jerry for link!
Ron Paul's latest
Ron Paul, January 5, 2009
House Financial Services Committee
Discusses Madoff, the Irrelevant SEC + Congress + Moral Hazard + US Gov't Ponzi Schemes
House Financial Services Committee
Discusses Madoff, the Irrelevant SEC + Congress + Moral Hazard + US Gov't Ponzi Schemes
Sunday, January 04, 2009
Obama and The North American Union
As many of you know, I've been warning about the quiet planning of a North American Union for quite some time: Link - AMERO and the North American Union
Well, based on the recent Lou Dobbs report below, looks like Pres elect Obama plans to pick up where the Clinton and Bush administrations left off.
More "change we can believe in" is headed our way...
Well, based on the recent Lou Dobbs report below, looks like Pres elect Obama plans to pick up where the Clinton and Bush administrations left off.
More "change we can believe in" is headed our way...
Great Read!
1/3/09
NY Times Op-Ed: The End of the Financial World as We Know It
Continued with:
How to Repair a Broken Financial World
NY Times Op-Ed: The End of the Financial World as We Know It
Continued with:
How to Repair a Broken Financial World
As Recession Deepens, So Does Milk Surplus
Few sectors/industries have been spared from this massive economic downturn... I could list article after article that highlight rising nationwide unemployment figures and closing businesses, but my personal, seat-of-the-pants, local observation probably captures it best: My 18yr old UNLV-student son was recently laid off from his job at Best Buy; 16yr H.S. daughter who works for The Coffee Bean has, just in the last 6 months, been involved in helping to close two local stores and is currently working part time at a third. I have foreclosed, bank-owned homes on both sides of my rented, Toll-brothers home and tens more are scattered throughout this small, high-end neighborhood. My wife who works in the health care industry has also noticed a significant impact... As unemployment increases, health-care benefits are lost and most become reluctant to seek care - volume is down in doctor offices/hospitals around the Valley. I recently discussed with a friend one of his Plastic Surgeon friends whose business is down 70%... Guess it's kinda hard to justify those elective cosmetic enhancements when you can't get credit, your job is in jeopardy and you're upside down on your house.
Anyway, that local snapshot is merely a taste of some of the economic pains being felt here in Vegas - many of which were to be expected, but what recently struck me by suprise, was the following article explaining how the Global dairy industry is also hurting... So where does this end? Who is NOT feeling the impact of this downturn?
As Recession Deepens, So Does Milk Surplus
The long economic boom, fueled by easy credit that allowed people to spend money they did not have, led to a huge oversupply of cars, houses and shopping malls, as recent months have made clear. Now, add one more item to the list: an oversupply of cows.
And it turns out that shutting down the milk supply is not as easy as closing an automobile assembly line.
As a breakneck expansion in the global dairy industry turns to bust, Roger Van Groningen must deal with the consequences. In a warehouse that his company runs here, 8 to 20 trucks pull up every day to unload milk powder. Bags of the stuff — surplus that nobody will buy, at least not at a price the dairy industry regards as acceptable — are unloaded and stacked into towering rows that nearly fill the warehouse.
Mr. Van Groningen’s company does not own the surplus milk powder, but merely stores it for the new owners: the taxpayers of the United States. To date, the government has agreed to buy about $91 million worth of milk powder.
“The thing is, they are going to produce it because they have to milk the cows,” Mr. Van Groningen said. “It’s like a river. It keeps coming.” In addition, dairy farmers are all too aware that, unlike industrial machinery, cows cannot be turned off and stored until economic conditions improve; they must be fed and cared for, at continuing expense.
The bags of milk powder represent a startling reversal of fortune for the dairy industry, which flourished in recent years in part because of a growing appetite for milk, cheese, ice cream and pizza in places like Mexico, Egypt and Indonesia. Many of those countries were benefiting from a global economic boom led by free-spending consumers in the United States.
As American dairy farmers increased their shipments of powdered milk, cheese and other dairy ingredients to foreign markets, their incomes rose. And the demand surge helped drive up the price of milk for American families. The national average for whole milk peaked at $3.89 a gallon in July, up from an average of $3.20 a gallon in 2006.
But now, demand for dairy products is stalling amid a global economic slowdown and credit crisis, even as supplies have increased. The result is a glut of milk — and its assorted byproducts, like milk powder, butter and whey proteins — that has led to a precipitous drop in prices.
The price of powdered skim milk, used in infant formula, dairy products and processed foods, has fallen to roughly 80 cents a pound today from about $2.20 in mid-2007. Other dairy products have declined as well. Whole milk at grocers has not declined as rapidly as wholesale powdered milk, but it has dropped to $3.67 a gallon, down nearly 6 percent from the peak.
While consumers are undoubtedly pleased by the lower prices, dairy farmers are struggling.
“Everything was going great,” said Joaquin Contente, a farmer in Hanford, Calif. “The product was moving. Then this financial crisis came along and shoot, the whole thing came to a halt.”
Logic might suggest that dairy farmers would simply sell some of their cows to a hamburger plant to cut the milk supply and raise prices. Indeed, the dairy industry has a cooperative effort under way to cull the herd.
But farmers are reluctant to do that if they expect a demand recovery, since rebuilding a herd can take years. The culling program is relatively small, and at least so far, most farmers are holding onto their cows.
“People don’t want to panic,” said Brian W. Gould, an agricultural economist at the University of Wisconsin, adding that farmers were receiving $20 for 100 pounds of raw milk just a few months ago. The price is expected to drop to about $14 for 100 pounds of raw milk in coming months. “It is unclear as to whether this will be a short-term or long-term market correction. It all depends on how long it takes the U.S. economy to recover,” he said.
Other agricultural sectors are also struggling with a slowdown in demand from foreign buyers because of the global recession and an increase in the value of the dollar, which has made American exports more expensive abroad. The Agriculture Department is expecting steep declines in exports of corn, wheat, soybeans and pork.
But while the government has price-support programs for about two dozen agricultural products, so far milk powder is the only commodity that has sunk low enough to start the flow of government dollars. Some expect that taxpayers will soon be buying blocks of cheese, too, given the plunging price.
Government price supports provide a price floor for agricultural products as a way of keeping farmers afloat during hard times and ensuring an adequate food supply.
The Agriculture Department has committed to buying 111.6 million pounds of milk powder at 80 cents a pound, for roughly $91 million, which includes some handling fees. Before October, the last time the government bought milk powder was in June 2006, and it was eventually used in government nutrition programs, given away as animal feed or sold on the open market, said Steve Gill, director of commodity operations for the department.
He said the agency has not decided what to do with the cache of milk powder in California.
Some critics of farm subsidies argue that price support programs are antiquated and allow farmers to continue producing even when the economics make no sense, as taxpayers will always buy up the excess production.
“They don’t want to downsize or respond to the market signal. They want to keep producing,” said Kenneth Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group, a Washington research organization that has long been critical of the government’s farm policy. “Once you get in a jam like this, it becomes our collective problem.”
The government purchases come after what the department calls a “euphoric period of record prices and booming exports” for the American dairy industry. Since 2003, dairy exports have increased from $1 billion a year to about $4 billion this year, with exports of powdered milk increasing sixfold during that period. Milk powder is an attractive product to export because it does not require refrigeration, has a long shelf life and can be used to make numerous beverages and foods.
Much of the increase was caused by increased demand in developing countries, where a growing middle class replaced starch in their diets with protein sources like meat and dairy products. Some Asian countries had little history of eating dairy products but were introduced to milk and mild cheeses by government nutrition programs or by restaurant chains like McDonald’s and Pizza Hut.
In China, for instance, per-person dairy consumption nearly doubled in just five years, to 63 pounds in 2007 from 33 pounds in 2002 (though it remains far below the per-capita consumption in the United States of about 580 pounds), according to the U.S. Dairy Export Council. The growth translates into the need for nearly 40 billion pounds more milk each year, roughly equal to California’s annual milk production.
In addition to the increased demand, exports from the American dairy industry benefited from a relatively weak dollar and tight global supplies. For instance, droughts reduced milk production in New Zealand and Australia, two major dairy exporters, allowing American suppliers to fill the gaps.
American dairy shipments soared to places like Algeria, Bangladesh, Indonesia and the Philippines. The biggest market, however, was Mexico, where imports from America increased to $853 million in 2007 from $258 million in 2003, according to the Agriculture Department.
But now, global demand has stagnated amid high prices and economic uncertainty just as the dollar has strengthened and milk production in New Zealand and, to a lesser extent, Australia, has bounced back. The continuing scandal involving melamine contamination of dairy products in China is expected to further diminish demand.
“In some of these countries where dairy hasn’t been a big part of their diet, this is where we are seeing people pull back,” said Deborah Perkins, managing director of the food and agribusiness research group at Rabobank International.
Several dairy exporters say they remain bullish on their long-term prospects, given the barely tapped markets in the developing world. Until then, dairy farmers say, they are braced for a period of low milk prices even as feed and other costs remain relatively high.
Arthur Machado, who milks cows on the outskirts of Fresno, said he sold more than half his herd in 2006, the last time prices collapsed. Now, with prices plummeting again, he said he is trying to sell the remainder of his herd to another dairy farmer.
“The business isn’t what it was in the ’70s, when I started,” he said. “There are not enough peaks to offset the valleys anymore.”
Once the herd is sold, Mr. Machado said, he plans to focus on less volatile commodities, like almonds and grapes. But it is not so easy to get out of the dairy business. Just as with automobiles and homes, there is simply too much inventory on the dairy cow market.
“Right now, there are no buyers,” he said. “When it’s on the upswing, we’ll sell. Until then, we’ll struggle through.”
Closing:
I can only imagine the Gvt is stockpiling the powdered milk for the bread-lines and soup kitchens that will soon open in droves...
Regards
Randy
Anyway, that local snapshot is merely a taste of some of the economic pains being felt here in Vegas - many of which were to be expected, but what recently struck me by suprise, was the following article explaining how the Global dairy industry is also hurting... So where does this end? Who is NOT feeling the impact of this downturn?
As Recession Deepens, So Does Milk Surplus
The long economic boom, fueled by easy credit that allowed people to spend money they did not have, led to a huge oversupply of cars, houses and shopping malls, as recent months have made clear. Now, add one more item to the list: an oversupply of cows.
And it turns out that shutting down the milk supply is not as easy as closing an automobile assembly line.
As a breakneck expansion in the global dairy industry turns to bust, Roger Van Groningen must deal with the consequences. In a warehouse that his company runs here, 8 to 20 trucks pull up every day to unload milk powder. Bags of the stuff — surplus that nobody will buy, at least not at a price the dairy industry regards as acceptable — are unloaded and stacked into towering rows that nearly fill the warehouse.
Mr. Van Groningen’s company does not own the surplus milk powder, but merely stores it for the new owners: the taxpayers of the United States. To date, the government has agreed to buy about $91 million worth of milk powder.
“The thing is, they are going to produce it because they have to milk the cows,” Mr. Van Groningen said. “It’s like a river. It keeps coming.” In addition, dairy farmers are all too aware that, unlike industrial machinery, cows cannot be turned off and stored until economic conditions improve; they must be fed and cared for, at continuing expense.
The bags of milk powder represent a startling reversal of fortune for the dairy industry, which flourished in recent years in part because of a growing appetite for milk, cheese, ice cream and pizza in places like Mexico, Egypt and Indonesia. Many of those countries were benefiting from a global economic boom led by free-spending consumers in the United States.
As American dairy farmers increased their shipments of powdered milk, cheese and other dairy ingredients to foreign markets, their incomes rose. And the demand surge helped drive up the price of milk for American families. The national average for whole milk peaked at $3.89 a gallon in July, up from an average of $3.20 a gallon in 2006.
But now, demand for dairy products is stalling amid a global economic slowdown and credit crisis, even as supplies have increased. The result is a glut of milk — and its assorted byproducts, like milk powder, butter and whey proteins — that has led to a precipitous drop in prices.
The price of powdered skim milk, used in infant formula, dairy products and processed foods, has fallen to roughly 80 cents a pound today from about $2.20 in mid-2007. Other dairy products have declined as well. Whole milk at grocers has not declined as rapidly as wholesale powdered milk, but it has dropped to $3.67 a gallon, down nearly 6 percent from the peak.
While consumers are undoubtedly pleased by the lower prices, dairy farmers are struggling.
“Everything was going great,” said Joaquin Contente, a farmer in Hanford, Calif. “The product was moving. Then this financial crisis came along and shoot, the whole thing came to a halt.”
Logic might suggest that dairy farmers would simply sell some of their cows to a hamburger plant to cut the milk supply and raise prices. Indeed, the dairy industry has a cooperative effort under way to cull the herd.
But farmers are reluctant to do that if they expect a demand recovery, since rebuilding a herd can take years. The culling program is relatively small, and at least so far, most farmers are holding onto their cows.
“People don’t want to panic,” said Brian W. Gould, an agricultural economist at the University of Wisconsin, adding that farmers were receiving $20 for 100 pounds of raw milk just a few months ago. The price is expected to drop to about $14 for 100 pounds of raw milk in coming months. “It is unclear as to whether this will be a short-term or long-term market correction. It all depends on how long it takes the U.S. economy to recover,” he said.
Other agricultural sectors are also struggling with a slowdown in demand from foreign buyers because of the global recession and an increase in the value of the dollar, which has made American exports more expensive abroad. The Agriculture Department is expecting steep declines in exports of corn, wheat, soybeans and pork.
But while the government has price-support programs for about two dozen agricultural products, so far milk powder is the only commodity that has sunk low enough to start the flow of government dollars. Some expect that taxpayers will soon be buying blocks of cheese, too, given the plunging price.
Government price supports provide a price floor for agricultural products as a way of keeping farmers afloat during hard times and ensuring an adequate food supply.
The Agriculture Department has committed to buying 111.6 million pounds of milk powder at 80 cents a pound, for roughly $91 million, which includes some handling fees. Before October, the last time the government bought milk powder was in June 2006, and it was eventually used in government nutrition programs, given away as animal feed or sold on the open market, said Steve Gill, director of commodity operations for the department.
He said the agency has not decided what to do with the cache of milk powder in California.
Some critics of farm subsidies argue that price support programs are antiquated and allow farmers to continue producing even when the economics make no sense, as taxpayers will always buy up the excess production.
“They don’t want to downsize or respond to the market signal. They want to keep producing,” said Kenneth Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group, a Washington research organization that has long been critical of the government’s farm policy. “Once you get in a jam like this, it becomes our collective problem.”
The government purchases come after what the department calls a “euphoric period of record prices and booming exports” for the American dairy industry. Since 2003, dairy exports have increased from $1 billion a year to about $4 billion this year, with exports of powdered milk increasing sixfold during that period. Milk powder is an attractive product to export because it does not require refrigeration, has a long shelf life and can be used to make numerous beverages and foods.
Much of the increase was caused by increased demand in developing countries, where a growing middle class replaced starch in their diets with protein sources like meat and dairy products. Some Asian countries had little history of eating dairy products but were introduced to milk and mild cheeses by government nutrition programs or by restaurant chains like McDonald’s and Pizza Hut.
In China, for instance, per-person dairy consumption nearly doubled in just five years, to 63 pounds in 2007 from 33 pounds in 2002 (though it remains far below the per-capita consumption in the United States of about 580 pounds), according to the U.S. Dairy Export Council. The growth translates into the need for nearly 40 billion pounds more milk each year, roughly equal to California’s annual milk production.
In addition to the increased demand, exports from the American dairy industry benefited from a relatively weak dollar and tight global supplies. For instance, droughts reduced milk production in New Zealand and Australia, two major dairy exporters, allowing American suppliers to fill the gaps.
American dairy shipments soared to places like Algeria, Bangladesh, Indonesia and the Philippines. The biggest market, however, was Mexico, where imports from America increased to $853 million in 2007 from $258 million in 2003, according to the Agriculture Department.
But now, global demand has stagnated amid high prices and economic uncertainty just as the dollar has strengthened and milk production in New Zealand and, to a lesser extent, Australia, has bounced back. The continuing scandal involving melamine contamination of dairy products in China is expected to further diminish demand.
“In some of these countries where dairy hasn’t been a big part of their diet, this is where we are seeing people pull back,” said Deborah Perkins, managing director of the food and agribusiness research group at Rabobank International.
Several dairy exporters say they remain bullish on their long-term prospects, given the barely tapped markets in the developing world. Until then, dairy farmers say, they are braced for a period of low milk prices even as feed and other costs remain relatively high.
Arthur Machado, who milks cows on the outskirts of Fresno, said he sold more than half his herd in 2006, the last time prices collapsed. Now, with prices plummeting again, he said he is trying to sell the remainder of his herd to another dairy farmer.
“The business isn’t what it was in the ’70s, when I started,” he said. “There are not enough peaks to offset the valleys anymore.”
Once the herd is sold, Mr. Machado said, he plans to focus on less volatile commodities, like almonds and grapes. But it is not so easy to get out of the dairy business. Just as with automobiles and homes, there is simply too much inventory on the dairy cow market.
“Right now, there are no buyers,” he said. “When it’s on the upswing, we’ll sell. Until then, we’ll struggle through.”
Closing:
I can only imagine the Gvt is stockpiling the powdered milk for the bread-lines and soup kitchens that will soon open in droves...
Regards
Randy
Saturday, January 03, 2009
Bloomberg: Auto Sales Due Monday
December 2008 Auto sales data is due out on Monday.
Analyst Expectations (but could possibly come in worse):
- Chrysler down 48%
- GM down 41%
- Ford Down 33%
2008 was the worst year for the auto makers since 1992.
Analyst Expectations (but could possibly come in worse):
- Chrysler down 48%
- GM down 41%
- Ford Down 33%
2008 was the worst year for the auto makers since 1992.
Fed Presidents Gather in San Fransisco
Though I disagree w/Stephen Gallagher's low inflation expectations, I find it very interesting the Fed Presidents are getting together so early in the new year, as their first 2009 FOMC meeting isn't scheduled until January 27-28
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)