Toppy Tuesday – Can the Dollar Fall Faster than our Indexes?
by Phil - December 14th, 2010 8:27 am
It’s a race to the bottom!
While we may have thought we were flatlining yesterday near our breakout, Europe and Asia had a different view of our markets as we pulled back -0.5% to -1.73% when priced in other currencies. While you may not care what happens in other countries, there are 6.5Bn people who would disagree with you there and the US is not the World leader anymore (despite what the citizens of the US may think) – we can no longer afford to ignore things like how exchange rates affect us. Here’s the chart for the Dow, S&P and Nasdaq priced in Dollars, Euros and Yen for the past two months:
Fortunately for the bulls (especially the commodity ones), the dollar has resumed it’s pathetic decline as Obama and The Bernank have combined to dilute our currency by another $2Tn over the next 48 months, from about $14Tn to $16Tn (+14%) plus, possibly, the $110Bn of new $100Bills the Treasury is trying to run off. This has sent the dollar back down from it’s Thanksgiving high and now it’s going to be all about whether or not we can hold that 78.5 line as our Congress finalizes their vote on the Obama Tax Cuts and another $1,000Bn of US debt taken by our citizens in order to hand another $650Bn to the top 1%.
When $100Bills are being printed faster than rolls of Charmin are being made, your currency is probably on it’s way to a crisis. You reach a certain point at which it’s cheaper to just wipe your butt with dollar bills than to go to the store and buy toilet paper and, of course, we’ve all seen pictures of Germans in the 1920′s, fueling their fireplaces by burning bills, which were cheaper than wood. Of course stocks and commodities are going up when priced in dollars – they are making more dollars every day, even Disney now has cartoons trying to explain to kids why this is a bad idea.
On top of the relentless devaluation of our dollar-denominated assets, we also have wild rumors driving up demand for commodities by speculators, who are generally those same top 1% who are being handed money by our Government at a rate of $2Bn per day. If you had to put away $2Bn a day, where would you…
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DiggTelling Signs-of-the-Times: Layaways, Off-Brands, Goodwill Stores, Consignment Sales, Frugality, all Thrive in Middle-Class Suburbia
by ilene - November 9th, 2010 6:51 pm
Telling Signs-of-the-Times: Layaways, Off-Brands, Goodwill Stores, Consignment Sales, Frugality, all Thrive in Middle-Class Suburbia
Courtesy of Mish
Telling Signs-of-the-Times: In grocery stores, "No-Name" sales are up 2% and now represent 22% of total sales. Some full priced stores now offer consignment sections, an unheard of practice a couple years back.
Layaway sales are back in vogue at Toys-R-Us and jewelers alike. Layaways are a depression era phenomenon that all but died with the mass marketing of credit cards.
Old Stigmas Become New Badge of Honor
Frugality is the new "badge of honor" says the Yahoo!Finance report In a tough economy, old stigmas fall away
The Goodwill store in this middle-class New York suburb is buzzing on a recent weekend afternoon. A steady flow of shoppers comb through racks filled with second-hand clothes, shoes, blankets and dishes.
A few years ago, opening a Goodwill store here wouldn’t have made sense. Paramus is one of the biggest ZIP codes in the country for retail sales. Shoppers have their pick of hundreds of respected names like Macy’s and Lord &Taylor along this busy highway strip.
But in the wake of the Great Recession, the stigma attached to certain consumer behavior has fallen away. What some people once thought of as lowbrow, they now accept — even consider a frugal badge of honor.
At the supermarket, shoppers are buying more store-labeled products, like no-name detergents and cereal, and not returning to national brands.
And in a telling trend, Americans are turning to layaway more often when they buy expensive items such as engagement rings and iPads. The wealthy are also using layaway more often, a drastic change from the past.
"The old stigmas are the new realities," says Emanuel Weintraub, a New York-based retail consultant. "Now, people don’t have a problem saying, ‘I can’t afford it.’ It’s a sign of strength."
Two years ago, having second-hand clothes in the same store that sells regular-priced goods might have driven well-heeled shoppers away. Today, the concept works. The new consignment area, called My Secret Closet, has brought in new customers. Shoppers browse both the retail and consignment areas without hesitation.
"We are seeing a permanent change in how people shop, and we have to respond to that," says Tom Patrolia, who has owned the store for 24 years.
The growth in layaway also reflects Americans’ new willingness to set aside
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Retail Sales Rise .4% from July – How Far to Pre-recession Levels? Where to from Here?
by ilene - September 14th, 2010 11:28 pm
Retail Sales Rise .4% from July – How Far to Pre-recession Levels? Where to from Here?
Courtesy of Mish
Inquiring minds are investigating the Advance Monthly Retail Sales Report for August 2010, noting the discrepancy between what is reported and reality.
The U.S. Census Bureau announced today that advance estimates of U.S. retail and food services sales for August, adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes, were $363.7 billion, an increase of 0.4 percent from the previous month, and 3.6 percent above August 2009.
Total sales for the June through August 2010 period were up 4.7 percent from the same period a year ago. The June to July 2010 percent change was revised from +0.4 percent to +0.3 percent .
Retail trade sales were up 0.5 percent from July 2010, and 3.7 percent above last year. Nonstore retailers sales were up 10.5 percent from August 2009 and gasoline stations sales were up 9.6 percent from last year.
As typical, Calculated Risk has some nice charts of the data.
Calculated Risk writes "This graph shows retail sales since 1992. This is monthly retail sales, seasonally adjusted (total and ex-gasoline). Retail sales are up 8.4% from the bottom, but still off 4.3% from the pre-recession peak."
Although that is what the data says, I don’t buy it. If retail sales were back to within 4.3% of the pre-recession peak, sales tax collections would be back towards the pre-recession peak, if not exceeding the pre-recession peak.
Why might they exceed the peak? Because of numerous state sales tax hikes.
The Slow Rebound – Very Slow
September 02, 2010: State Tax Revenues Slowly Rebound, But …
The Nelson Rockefeller Institute reports State Tax Revenues Are Slowly Rebounding. However, as always, the devil is in the details. Let’s take a look.
Preliminary tax collection data for the April-June quarter of 2010 show improvement in overall state tax collections as well as for personal income tax and sales tax revenue. However, revenue collections remain significantly below peak levels and are still weak in a number of states.
The Rockefeller Institute’s compilation of data from 47 early reporting states shows collections from major tax sources increased by 2.2 percent in nominal terms compared to the second quarter of 2009, but was 17.2 percent below the same period two years ago.
State Tax Collections
…
July Seasonally Adjusted Retail Sales “Mixed Bag”; Manufacturing Output Rises Led by Auto Sector
by ilene - August 17th, 2010 5:26 pm
July Seasonally Adjusted Retail Sales "Mixed Bag"; Manufacturing Output Rises Led by Auto Sector
Courtesy of Mish
Excluding autos and gas retail sales ran out of steam in July 2010. Please consider the SpendingPulse Report July Retail Sales Show Mixed Results.
After several months of sales slowdown, total retail sales have stabilized somewhat, although overall growth has slowed sharply since earlier this year. In fact, growth in July headline numbers was driven largely by an increase in spending on gasoline, which is why the ex-auto ex-gasoline number is a better barometer to measuring the underlying health in retail spending.
July’s growth rate excluding auto and gasoline leaves the three-month average year-to-year growth rate of retail sales at 1.0%, well below the 3.5% for the prior three months. The ex-auto year-over-year numbers tell a similar story of a shallow and stabilizing trough, with the unadjusted three-month average year-over-year growth rate slowing to 1.6% compared to the 6.5% average growth rate for the previous three months.
The first table above compares June and July 2010 vs. the same month in 2009.
The second table shows July 201o vs. June 2010 seasonally adjusted. For an alleged recovery, these are weak numbers.
Industrial Production up 1 Percent, Led by Autos
Inquiring minds are taking a look at the July Federal Reserve Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization report.
Industrial production rose 1.0 percent in July after having edged down 0.1 percent in June, and manufacturing output moved up 1.1 percent in July after having fallen 0.5 percent in June. A large contributor to the jump in manufacturing output in July was an increase of nearly 10 percent in the production of motor vehicles and parts; even so, manufacturing production excluding motor vehicles and parts advanced 0.6 percent.
The production of consumer goods moved up 1.1 percent, as the output of consumer durables jumped 4.9 percent: Production for all of its major components advanced. In addition to a gain of 8.8 percent in the output of automotive products, which was mainly due to a large increase in light truck assemblies, the indexes for home electronics and for miscellaneous goods increased 1.3 and 1.5 percent, respectively; the index for appliances, furniture, and carpeting moved up 0.5 percent.
Among components of consumer nondurables, the output of non-energy nondurables declined 0.2 percent, and the output of consumer energy products moved up
…
Who Knows Better?
by ilene - August 14th, 2010 2:46 am
Who Knows Better?
Courtesy of Michael Panzner at Financial Armageddon
In my latest column for DailyFinance, "The Disconnect Between Consumer Confidence and Retail Sales," I argue that the yawning gap between these two measures is telling us something. Chances are, it’s saying that consumers know better than the official statistics about what’s really going on in the U.S. economy.
Click here to read the article.
Pirate Equity’s Recipe for Ugly
by ilene - August 13th, 2010 3:37 pm
Pirate Equity’s Recipe for Ugly
Courtesy of Joshua M. Brown, The Reformed Broker
I don’t do a lot of cooking-related posts here, but this particular recipe caught my eye. Follow the instructions perfectly – we wouldn’t want anything to accidentally go right or anything:
From Pirate Equity:
Ingredients:
- .4% increase in retail sales in July
- Rising 4 week average of Initial jobless claims
- .3% rise in value of business inventories in June
- Rising savings rate
- 9% rise in foreclosures in July
- 19% rise in trade deficit on declining exports
- Anemic GDP growth
- Rising fiscal deficit
- Modest income growth
- Tight credit
- Likelihood of higher taxes next year
Separate autos and gasoline from numbers to extract negative retail sales. Mix together with increase in savings rate, rising 4 week average of initial jobless claims, .3% rise in value of business stockpiles in June, rising savings rate and a 9% increase in foreclosures in July. Gently pour mixture into a large bowl with a 19% rise in the trade deficit, anemic GDP growth, a rising fiscal deficit, modest income growth, tight credit conditions and the high likelihood of higher taxes in the future.
Use egg beater to mix the above to creamy texture. Pour over a bed of Chinese rice and serve cold.
Yield: 1 healthy serving of an ugly economic outlook for the US.
Source:
Recipe For Ugly (Pirate Equity)
We’re In A One-and-a-half Dip Recession
by ilene - July 23rd, 2010 1:59 pm
We’re In A One-and-a-half Dip Recession
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Courtesy of Robert Reich
We’re not in a double-dip recession yet. We’re in a one and a half dip recession.
Consumer confidence is down. Retail sales are down. Home sales are down. Permits for single-family starts are down. The average work week is down. The only things not down are inventories – unsold stuff is piling up in warehouses and inventories of unsold homes are rising – and defaults on loans.
The 1.5 dip recession should be causing alarm bells to ring all over official Washington. It should cause deficit hawks to stop squawking about future debt, blue-dog Democrats to stop acting like Republicans, and mainstream Democrats to get some backbone.
The 1.5 dip recession should cause the President to demand a large-scale national jobs program including a new WPA that gets millions of Americans back to work even if government has to pay their wages directly. Included would be zero-interest loans to strapped states and locales, so they didn’t have to cut vital services and raise taxes. They could repay when the economy picked up and revenues came in. The national jobs program would also include a one-year payroll tax holiday on the first $20,000 of income.
The President should stop talking and acting on anything else – not the deficit, not energy, not the environment, not immigration, not implementing the health care law, not education. He should make the whole upcoming mid-term election a national referendum on putting Americans back to work, and his jobs bill. Are you for it or against it?
But none of this is happening. The hawks and blue dogs are still commanding the attention. Herbert Hoover’s ghost seems to have captured the nation’s capital. We’re back to 1932 (or 1937) and the prevailing sentiment is government can’t and mustn’t do anything but aim to reduce the deficit, even though the economy is going down.
It looks like there’ll be an extension of unemployment benefits. (If it weren’t for the human suffering involved, I wish the Republicans had been forced to filibuster that bill all summer and show the nation just how much they care about people without jobs.) But the fiscal stimulus resulting from this will be tiny. Jobless benefits are humane but they alone don’t get jobs back.
And what about the Fed? It’s the last game in town. The 1.5 dip recession should…
Bernanke Says Economic Outlook is “Unusually Uncertain”, Fed Prepared for “Actions as Needed”
by ilene - July 21st, 2010 5:32 pm
Bernanke Says Economic Outlook is "Unusually Uncertain", Fed Prepared for "Actions as Needed"
Courtesy of Mish
Be prepared for Quantitative Easing Round 2 (QE2) and/or other misguided Fed policy decisions because Bernanke Says Fed Ready to Take Action.
Treasuries rose, pushing two-year yields to the fourth record low in five days, as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the economic outlook is “unusually uncertain” and policy makers are prepared “to take further policy actions as needed.”
Ten-year note yields touched a three-week low as Bernanke said central bankers are ready to act to aid growth even as they prepare to eventually raise interest rates from almost zero and shrink a record balance sheet.
“An unusual outlook may call for unusual measures, and that means the Fed may take more action as needed, which would lead to lower rates,” said Suvrat Prakash, an interest-rate strategist in New York at BNP Paribas, one of the 18 primary dealers that trade with the central bank.
The Fed chief didn’t elaborate on steps the Fed might take as he affirmed the Fed’s policy of keeping rates low for an “extended period.” Economic data over the past month that were weaker than analysts projected have prompted investor speculation the Fed may increase monetary stimulus in a bid to keep the economy growing and reduce a jobless rate from close to a 26-year high.
“Bernanke acknowledged that things weren’t very strong economically and left action on the table without going into details, and that’s sending investors from stocks into bonds,” said James Combias, New York-based head of Treasury trading at primary dealer Mizuho Financial Group Inc.
Monetary Policy Report to the Congress July 2010
Inquiring minds are slogging through the 56 page Monetary Policy Report to the Congress July 2010. Here are a few key snips.
Summary of Economic Projections
Participants generally made modest downward revisions to their projections for real GDP growth for the years 2010 to 2012, as well as modest upward revisions to their projections for the unemployment rate for the same period.
Participants also revised down a little their projections for inflation over the forecast period. Several participants noted that these revisions were largely the result of the incoming economic data and the anticipated effects of developments abroad on U.S. financial markets and the economy. Overall, participants continued to expect the pace of the economic recovery to
…
Bernanke Reiterates the Fed’s “Whatever It Takes” Pledge for the Thousandth Time
by ilene - July 21st, 2010 5:27 pm
To summarize and save you time, Jr. Deputy Accountant writes:
Bernanke Reiterates the Fed’s "Whatever It Takes" Pledge for the Thousandth Time
I won’t call Bernanke a one trick pony since he’s got more tricks than a Hollywood madam but I will say this: the man is nothing if not consistent.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress Wednesday the economic outlook remains "unusually uncertain," and the central bank is ready to take new steps to keep the recovery alive if the economy worsens.
Testifying before the Senate Banking Committee, Bernanke also said record low interest rates are still needed to bolster the U.S. economy. He repeated a pledge to keep them there for an "extended period."
Whatever it takes!
Full text of Bernanke’s semi-annual monetary policy check-in with Congress may be found via the Board of Governors.
Deflationary Wage Pressures Hit Canada; Attitudes and Wal-Mart, the 800-Pound Gorillas
by ilene - July 15th, 2010 5:12 pm
Deflationary Wage Pressures Hit Canada; Attitudes and Wal-Mart, the 800-Pound Gorillas
Courtesy of Mish
A consortium of 30,000 union workers at Canadian food stores have gone on strike over company demands to reduce wages by as much as 25% and reduce pension benefits as well.
For their part, grocers want to remain competitive with Wal-Mart, the 800-pound retail gorilla. Who has the upper hand and why?
Please consider Ontario Loblaw workers approve strike mandate amid stalled contract talks.
Loblaw Co. workers in Ontario have overwhelmingly voted to give their union a strike mandate if Canada’s largest grocery chain doesn’t back down from concession demands that it says are necessary to remain competitive against its non-unionized rivals.
Over 97 per cent of members of the United Food and Commercial Workers union, which represents nearly 30,000 employees at stores under names such as Loblaws, Zehrs, Real Canadian Superstores and Fortinos, have voted in favour of a strike.
Loblaw says it must modify some of its existing agreements in order to stay competitive, as earnings have declined about five per cent from where they were five years ago.
Workers are frustrated over company proposals that would cut wages by up to 25 per cent, increase waiting times for benefits eligibility and reduce full-time jobs. Workers at those stores make between the minimum wage of $10.25 and $25 an hour, plus benefits.
But Loblaw says that it must increase efficiency to take on a growing number of non-unionized competitors, like U.S.-based retail giant Wal-Mart, which has been ramping up its focus on low-cost groceries.
"We are striving to reach an agreement that would enable the company to continue to meet the demands of today’s highly competitive retail landscape," Julija Hunter, the company’s vice-president of public relations, said in an emailed statement.
"In many contracts we pay 10 per cent more than competitors and have 15 per cent less flexibility. That’s a real competitive disadvantage. That’s not sustainable," Hunter said.
Attitudes and the 800-Pound Deflationary Gorilla
Like it or not, and the unions and Wal-Mart haters won’t, there is only one reasonable way of looking at this….
Loblaws, Zehrs, Real Canadian Superstores and Fortinos need to be competitive to stay in business. If they fail to stay in business, every job at everyone of those stores will be lost or reorganized in a bankruptcy process. Accrued pensions may blow up in…
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Philip R. Davis is a founder Phil's Stock World, a stock and options trading site that teaches the art of options trading to newcomers and devises advanced strategies for expert traders...
Ilene is editor and affiliate program
coordinator for PSW. She manages the Favorites backup site
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