Employment costs posted another modest gain in the July-to-September quarter, with compensation for state and local government employees turning in the weakest performance in nearly three decades.
Filed under: Economy
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Roubini: U.S. on track for ‘fiscal train wreck’
NYU economics professor Nouriel Roubini. (Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images)
The U.S. economy is a “fiscal train wreck” waiting to happen that risks ushering in a period of stagnation featuring minimal growth, high unemployment and deflationary pressure, U.S. economist Nouriel Roubini wrote on Friday.
In a commentary for the Financial Times, Roubini — one of the first economists to predict the housing crash in the United States and known as ‘Dr Doom’ for his pessimistic forecasts — said fiscal and monetary stimulus had prevented another depression.
But he said that further quantitative easing likely to be announced by the Federal Reserve next Wednesday will have little effect on U.S. growth in 2011, “so fiscal policy should be doing some of the lifting to prevent a double dip recession,” he said. Get the full story »
Treasury gets strong bidding for $29B in bonds
Investors are lending $29 billion to the government in the last Treasury auction this week.
The Treasury sold seven-year notes at a 1.97 percent yield, versus 1.89 percent in September’s auction. That means it was slightly more expensive for the government to borrow $29 billion from investors this month. Get the full story »
Target shortchanges shoppers with certain coupons
Shoppers at a Target in Falls Church, Va., May 28, 2010. (Reuters)
By Gregory Karp | Target Corp., the mass merchandiser with about 1,750 stores nationwide, for months has been shortchanging its customers who use certain manufacturers’ coupons by crediting them for a fraction of their face value.
Target is calling it a computer glitch. Avid coupon users are calling it an outrage. Get the full story »
Unemployment claims drop sharply to 434K
Fewer people applied for unemployment benefits last week, the second drop in a row and a hopeful sign the job market could be improving.
The Labor Department said Thursday that initial claims for jobless benefits dropped by 21,000 to a seasonally adjusted 434,000 in the week that ended Oct. 23.
Fed seen buying up to $100 billion in assets a month
Most leading economists expect the Federal Reserve to buy between $80 billion and $100 billion worth of assets per month under a new program to bolster the struggling economy, a Reuters poll found on Wednesday.
Estimates for how long the Fed will print money and how much it will eventually spend varied widely, from $250 billion to as high as $2 trillion.
In a similar Reuters poll of primary dealers conducted on October 8, dealers mostly forecast the total size of the new program at $500 billion to $1.5 trillion. Get the full story »
Consumer confidence up slightly, but still gloomy
A concierge and a valet assist a shopper at a mall in Glendale, Calif., Aug. 30, 2010. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Americans got slightly more optimistic about the economy in October, but still have an overwhelmingly gloomy outlook, according to the latest reading on consumer morale.
The Consumer Confidence Index rose to 50.2 in October, up from 48.6 in September, the Conference Board, a New York-based research group that compiles the index, said Tuesday.
High unemployment and unfavorable business conditions have dragged the index down to a painfully low level, far below 90 — the level which indicates a stable economy. Overall, the index has been volatile, not trending in any one direction for more than three months in a row this year. Get the full story »
Volcker sees no inflation, deflation any time soon
The United States does not face a problem of rising inflation for several years and also does not risk a damaging spell of falling prices, Paul Volcker, former chairman of the Federal Reserve, said Monday. Get the full story »
Report: More business spending, loans on-time
A key measure of U.S. business sentiment improved sharply in September, a lender group told Reuters Monday, as companies raised their investment in equipment and software and did a better job of staying current on their debts.
The Equipment Leasing and Finance Association said that U.S. businesses originated $5.8 billion in loans, leases and lines of credit last month to invest in capital equipment, which can include everything from tool-and-die machines and delivery trucks to office furniture and computer hardware and software. Get the full story »
Dollar resumes slide on ‘currency wars’ promise
The dollar resumed its months-long slide Monday after weekend talks by finance officials of the Group of 20 nations promised to avoid “currency wars,” but offered few specifics on enforcement.
Bernanke: Fed studying foreclosure practices
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, in a speech on foreclosures and housing finance, said he expects a broad federal banking and housing agency investigation into alleged improper foreclosures to conclude next month. And he lauded the Chicago Federal Reserve for its analysis of foreclosure problems at the community level.
Chicago Fed activity index slips
Production declines led to another drop in the nation’s economic activity in September, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago reported Monday. Get the full story »
Economists: Hiring outlook improving
The outlook for hiring is improving as U.S. businesses continue to report growing demand and increased profitability, according to a survey of leading economists. In its October industry survey, the National Association of Business Economists said Monday that employment conditions improved in the third quarter to the highest level since the start of the 2008-2009 recession. Get the full story »
Oct. 22, 2010 at 1:48 p.m.
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Filed under: Economy, Government, Jobs/employment, Labor, Retirement France moves closer to raising retirement age
France’s Senate has approved a contested pension reform raising the retirement age to 62 despite months of nationwide protests and strikes.
After 140 hours of debate, the Senate approved the reform Friday with a vote of 177-153. Get the full story »
Worker’s comp insurers pinched by jobs’ weakness
The weak outlook for U.S. employment could hurt insurers that cover work-related injuries.
Persistently high unemployment translates to fewer workers to cover, which cuts into revenue. And “worker’s comp” providers face higher payouts because claiming workers are staying on benefits longer for lack of other jobs. Get the full story »
