Analysis Topic: Economic Trends Analysis
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Sunday, January 05, 2014
The Minimum Wage Forces Low-Skill Workers to Compete with Higher-Skill Workers / Economics / Economic Theory
By: George_Reisman
The efforts underway by the Service Employees International Union, and its political and media allies, to raise the minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 per hour would, if successful, cause major unemployment among low-skilled workers, who are the supposed beneficiaries of those efforts.
Saturday, January 04, 2014
The State of Free-market Thinking in Japan? / Economics / Japan Economy
By: MISES
Marc Abela talks with us about the state of Austrian economics and the freedom philosophy in Japan. Abela, a Canadian by birth, has lived in Japan for almost 20 years and has organized the Mises Meeting in recent years, at which Japanese scholars in the Austrian tradition gather to discuss their scholarship. He also organized the recent birthday celebration for Toshio Murata, who introduced Austrian economics to Japan. Abela was one of the founders of the Tokyo Tea Party and continues to be involved with Japanese for Tax Reform and other free-market groups in Japan.
Friday, January 03, 2014
Eurozone Economy Expands but Hollande Concedes France Crippled by High Taxes / Economics / France
By: Mike_Shedlock
Eurozone manufacturing is at a 31-month high according to Markit. Every country but France and Greece are expanding. French manufacturing is at a seven-month low in an intensified downturn.
Read full article... Read full article...The seasonally adjusted Markit Eurozone Manufacturing PMI® rose for the third month running to post 52.7 in December, up from 51.6 in November (and unchanged from the earlier flash estimate).
Sunday, December 29, 2013
Malaysia Bracing for Possible Indonesia Economic Meltdown / Economics / Asian Economies
By: Sam_Chee_Kong
Indonesia is the fifth largest economy in Asia and the fourth most populous country in the world. Thanks to the strong macro-economic reform and liberalization of its international trade. As a result a strong economic growth to the tune of 6-8% is achievable for the past few years. Since the last Asian Financial Crisis, Indonesia has made much stride in poverty eradication, economic growth and human capital development. To stabilize prices, Monetary Policy tools such as interest rates, liquidity management and macro-prudential measures are used. Other measures taken to ensure sustainable economic growth includes raising minimum wage, reduction in fuel subsidies, electricity and other essential items, increase cash payment to low income group and broaden the tax base.
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Economic Forecasts and Drivers 2014 - The Fed, Inflation-Deflation, Interest Rates, Housing and Speculation / Economics / US Economy
By: John_Mauldin
It's that time of year again, when we begin to think of what the next one will bring. I will be doing my annual forecast issue next week, but my friend Gary Shilling has already done his and has graciously allowed me to use a shortened version of his letter as this week's Thoughts from the Frontline. So without any further ado, let's jump right to Gary's look at where we are and where we're going.
Friday, December 27, 2013
What's Fueling the Post Christmas Sales? / Economics / Shopping
By: Jonathan_Davis
I was on BBC Radio London yesterday talking about the Sales. The idea was that we’re all being duped into buying stuff we don’t need. Well Duh!!! Isn’t that the basis of our economy for the last 25 years?
However, I think this year is a watershed.
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Wednesday, December 25, 2013
How Government Austerity Cutbacks Ended Sweden’s Great Depression / Economics / Economic Austerity
By: MISES
Per L. Bylund writes: During the recent financial crisis, Sweden has emerged as one of very few financially sound economies. The country’s strong position, setting it apart from most Western nations, makes it an interesting example of what could — or should — have been done. Indeed, Paul Krugman, the former economist and Nobel Prize laureate, has repeatedly pointed approvingly at how the Swedes handled their depression in the early 1990s as the reason for their recent success. Specifically, he notes the nationalization of some banks at the time of the crisis. While he misses the point by focusing exclusively on a narrow selection of short-term measures rather than longer-term changes, as is the hallmark of a Keynesian, Krugman is right that Sweden has done some things right.
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
U.S. Economy - The ‘Real’ Goods on the Latest Durable Goods Data / Economics / US Economy
By: PhilStockWorld
Earlier today I posted an update on the December Advance Report on November Durable Goods Orders. This Census Bureau series dates from 1992 and is not adjusted for either population growth or inflation.
Let’s now review the same data with two adjustments. In the charts below the red line shows the goods orders divided by the Census Bureau’s monthly population data, giving us durable goods orders per capita. The blue line goes a step further and adjusts for inflation based on the Producer Price Index, chained in today’s dollar value. This gives us the “real” durable goods orders per capita. The snapshots below offer an alternate historical context in which to evaluate the standard reports on the nominal monthly data.
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Tuesday, December 24, 2013
Economic Illiterate Proposal: Inflation Creates Jobs / Economics / Economic Theory
By: Mike_Shedlock
Those looking economically illiterate proposals can have a field day reading Ezra Klein's "Wonkblog" on the Washington Post.
In Full Employment Gives People Jobs Klein states (citing two others) "The Federal Reserve Bank's focus on keeping inflation below 2 percent effectively sacrifices the other half of its dual mandate: full employment."
It's difficult to know where to start debating such economic lunacy, but let's briefly discuss the notion of a "dual mandate".
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Saturday, December 21, 2013
After the QE Taper: The Fed’s Non-Plan Is Unchanged / Economics / Inflation
By: MISES
Frank Hollenbeck writes: As an economist, it is getting more difficult to understand the logic underlying current monetary policy in the U.S. There are two main channels by which economists think monetary policy can influence growth and employment. The first is to lower interest rates to spur investment and consumption spending. The second is to induce inflation so real wages drop, spurring output and employment.
Friday, December 20, 2013
Fiat Money Quantity and it's Increasingly Likely Hyperinflation / Economics / Money Supply
By: Alasdair_Macleod
By November, the most recent month for which statistics are available, the US Fiat Money Quantity (FMQ) had grown to $12.351 trillion. This is $4.96 trillion more than it would be if it had grown in line with the established average monthly growth rate from 1960 to the month before the Lehman Crisis. By this measure monetary inflation since August 2009 is now 67% above trend. This is illustrated in Chart 1 below.
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Portugal Europe’s Economic Comeback Kid? / Economics / Euro-Zone
By: Investment_U
Marc Lichtenfeld writes: I had just returned to my hotel room in Innsbruck, Austria, when my wife called. Before I could tell her about the beautiful scenery and amazing experiences I was having on The Oxford Club’s European Opportunity Expedition, she stopped me.
I needed to hop a flight to Portugal immediately, she said. My father – who also happened to be in Europe, though not part of our tour – was having emergency (though, fortunately, routine) surgery in Lisbon.
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
If Money Printing Failed in Japan, Why Would It Work in the U.S.? / Economics / Quantitative Easing
By: Profit_Confidential
What the Federal Reserve is doing in the U.S.—its effort to get the economy going via its money printing program—has already been tried by the second-largest economy in the world: Japan.Unfortunately, the easy monetary policy implemented by the Bank of Japan didn’t spur the Japanese economy. So why would it work for the U.S. economy?
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Wednesday, December 18, 2013
The Mirage Called a “U.S. Economic Recovery” / Economics / Economic Recovery
By: DailyGainsLetter
Mohammad Zulfiqar writes: “Just give up being so negative; there’s economic growth in the U.S. economy.”
These were the exact words of my good old friend, Mr. Speculator. Over the weekend, when I received a call from him, he added, “You see the average American is better off than before. There are jobs; and no matter where you look, you won’t find much negativity. Look at the stock markets; they probably will show a 30% increase for 2013.”
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Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Inflation in the United States - Keeping it Real! / Economics / Inflation
By: James_Quinn
“One only needs to reflect on the dramatic decline in the value of the dollar that has taken place since the Fed was established in 1913. The goods and services you could buy for $1.00 in 1913 now cost nearly $21.00. Another way to look at this is from the perspective of the purchasing power of the dollar itself. It has fallen to less than $0.05 of its 1913 value. We might say that the government and its banking cartel have together stolen $0.95 of every dollar as they have pursued a relentlessly inflationary policy.” - Ron Paul – End the Fed
The BLS reported the CPI this morning. They tell me that inflation is well contained and has only risen by 1.2% in the past twelve months. Our beloved Federal Reserve chairman is worried inflation is too low. It is fascinating that the only people worried about inflation being too low are Ivy League educated economists and bankers whose wealth depends upon the middle class sinking further into poverty.
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Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Economic Lessons from Nazi Germany - Starvation and Military Keynesianism / Economics / Economic Theory
By: MISES
Julian Adorney writes: Many Americans, from the Glenview State Bank of Chicago to author Ellen Brown assume that the Nazi economic regime was successful, but closer examination tells a tale of rationing, shortages, and starvation. Learning why their economy failed can teach us how to avoid the same fate.
Thursday, December 12, 2013
U.S. Sub-Par Economic Recovery With a Propensity Towards a Downturn / Economics / US Economy
By: John_Mauldin
It is a regular ritual for major US businesses: the end-of-the-quarter conference call in which the CEO dissects what just happened and gives us some insight on what to expect for the future of the company. My good friend Rich Yamarone, the chief economist at Bloomberg, is the creator of the Bloomberg Orange Book, a compilation of macroeconomic anecdotes gleaned from the comments CEOs and CFOs make on their quarterly earnings conference calls. He not only sits and listens to them present their views, he also picks up the phone and talks to them. He is very clued in on what's happening in the real world of business.
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Why Last Month’s Employment Numbers Should Worry Investors / Economics / Employment
By: Profit_Confidential
Michael Lombardi writes:
Finally some good news in the U.S. jobs market?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Friday that, in November, 203,000 jobs were added to the U.S. jobs market. As a result, the unemployment rate went down to 7.0% from 7.3% in October. In addition to this, the BLS also revised the job numbers from October and September, saying 20,000 more jobs were created than previously reported. (Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, December 6, 2013.)
Sunday, December 08, 2013
Enormous Discrepancy Between U.S. Jobs and Employment / Economics / Employment
By: Mike_Shedlock
Now that employment distortions related to the government shutdown in October are behind us, let's take a detailed look at the recent and growing discrepancy between jobs as reported on the establishment survey and employment as reported on the household survey.
Saturday, December 07, 2013
Will The Real U.S. Economy Please Stand Up? / Economics / US Economy
By: Sy_Harding
Are economic reports finally indicating an acceleration in the economic recovery - or not?
Markets need to know. Investors need to know. Most importantly, the Fed needs to know.
The prognosis changes from month to month, even week to week, and this week even day to day, as expectations for Fed action move from taper on, to taper off, to taper on and back again.
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