Economy Shrinks in 4th Qtr, Experts Shocked...Again!

Posted by Brian
H/T to The Drudge Report

The holiday season is historically the time of year that retail stores ensure that they turn a profit for the year.  Specifically, "Black Friday", the day after Thanksgiving, is given that moniker for the reason that the red ink on their books goes into the black.
Therefore, you would expect that the fourth quarter would produce some of the largest growth in the economy due to holiday buying sprees. Nay, nay.
The latest report from the Commerce Department shows that the economy shrank 0.1% in the fourth quarter.  What is the Dem response? That this is the "best-looking contraction in U.S. GDP you'll ever see." Excuse me? The spin is that this is a positive?  If this were a Republican administration, they would be screaming bloody murder!

What these so-called experts fail to take into account is that both business and the consumer have little confidence in the fiscal policies of Barack Obama. People are being tighter with the money that they still have.  Businesses are putting off hiring, or are failing to reinvest in their companies in the form of machinery, materials, etc.  People are unsure of what is around the corner.  And for good reason: millions of Americans saw a decrease in their paychecks on their first paycheck of the new year due to an increase in the Social Security tax, which Obama and the media skillfully hid to the public.
To be fair, economists are starting to predict a potential new recession due to out-of-control federal spending, of which Obama and the statists want to increase even more, and more new taxes and federal mandates on business in the pipeline due to ObamaCare.
I wonder how many more times that the media will report that experts are "shocked" at the state of the economy given the disastrous economic policies of Obama and his imperial presidency.
The dumbing down of America continues.

GDP Shows Surprise Drop for US in Fourth Quarter  
Published: Wednesday, 30 Jan 2013 | 8:11 AM ET

The U.S. economy posted a stunning drop of 0.1 percent in the fourth quarter, defying expectations for slow growth and possibly providing incentive for more Federal Reserve stimulus.

The economy shrank from October through December for the first time since the recession ended, hurt by the biggest cut in defense spending in 40 years, fewer exports and sluggish growth in company stockpiles.

The Commerce Department said Wednesday that the economy contracted at an annual rate of 0.1 percent in the fourth quarter. That's a sharp slowdown from the 3.1 percent growth rate in the July-September quarter.
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U.S. Depression Continues: U.S. Manufacturing Slumps 3rd Time in 4 Months

Posted by Brian
Consumer confidence continues to fall as manufacturing orders fell for the third time in four months.  Orders for computers, electronics, machinery, and vehicles all fell.  Non-defense spending, an indicator of overall consumer confidence, fell 2.1%.
Just as a not-so-subtle reminder: Obama declared the recession over in October 2009. Since that time GDP growth is anemic, (2.2% in last quarter), and real household income has fallen nearly 6%, and though the Obama Administration say that his economic programs have created 4 million jobs, over 6 million Americans lost their jobs during that time, for a net of over 2 million Americans out of work since he took office.
Obama told Matt Lauer in 2009 that if he couldn't turn the economy around in three years that his presidency would "be a one term proposition".
Not only has he not turned it around, his policies have made it worse by every measure. Therefore, isn't it right that we should hold him to the standard he set for himself in 2009?

US Factory Orders Post Surprise Fall in April 
Published: Monday, 4 Jun 2012 | 10:12 AM ET

New orders for U.S. factory goods fell in April for the third time in four months as demand slipped for everything from cars and machinery to computers, the latest worrisome sign for the economic recovery.

The Commerce Department said on Monday orders for manufactured goods dropped 0.6 percent during the month. The government also revised its estimate for new orders in March to show a steeper decline. 

Economists had forecast orders rising 0.2 percent in April.

Related articles

• US Consumer Confidence Slumped in May: Report

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• Consumer confidence in the economy plunged in May

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• Consumer confidence unexpectedly cools in May

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• Unemployment rate increases to an unnerving 8.2 percent

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• Weak U.S. jobs report for May and unemployment rise show economy sputtering

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Fund Manager Issues Warning That Stock May Be About To Collapse

Posted by Brian

WARNING: Stocks May Be About To Collapse

Henry Blodget |

Now that the Europe crisis is solved and volatility has disappeared and stocks just climb higher every day despite high valuations and mediocre economic data, it's worth considering that this state of affairs may not last forever.

Fund manager John Hussman, for one, is freaked out enough by the current mix of conditions that he has gone so far as to issue a "warning" that stocks may be about to collapse.

Now, John Hussman would be the first to admit that timing such crashes precisely is basically impossible, so don't guffaw at him if stock prices are higher a month from now.

Read More at Business Insider

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• Hussman: Market Has Turned 'Hard Negative' (blogs.wsj.com)
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Report: “Income Declined Twice As Much In The Recovery As In The Recession Itself.”

Posted by Brian
h/t to The Blaze

Even as President Obama has boasted that his economics policies have helped the economy "turn the corner", or have brought us "back from the brink", how many of us have looked at him and his claims with utter disbelief?  I know I have. His words don't match what I have seen happen in my community (where unemployment is way above the national average, over 15% in some areas), or to my family.
Well, now we have a study that backs up what so many Americans have felt, or suspected. The Obama Administration has been blowing sunshine up American's butts for the last three years.

Americans’ Incomes Have Dropped 6.7 Percent During the ‘Recovery’ 

10:03 AM, NOV 1, 2011 • BY JEFFREY H. ANDERSON

New evidence suggests there’s a reason why this economic “recovery” hasn’t felt much like a recovery. Figures from the Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey, compiled by Sentier Research, show that the “recovery” has actually been harder on most Americans than the recession from which they’ve allegedly been recovering.

According to Sentier’s report, the median American household income has actually fallen during the “recovery.”  Not only that, but it has fallen even more than it did during the recession. Gordon Green, former chief of the Governments Division at the U.S. Census Bureau and co-author of the report (with fellow Census veteran John Coder), says, “Real income fell by 3.2 percent during [the recession].  And during the recovery it went down by 6.7 percent.” So “income [has] declined twice as much in the recovery as in the recession itself.”

Read More at The Weekly Standard

Obama: "If I Don't Fix (Economy) In 3 Yrs....One-Term Proposition"

Posted by Brian

Words Mean Things:  What Obama Said In January 2009

Three years ago President Obam sat down with Matt Lauer and discussed a range of topics, including the economy and Gitmo.  The interview was held 10 days into his presidency, during which he make some of the following claims/promises"

• Regarding the "recovery package", that there is "transparency and accountablility" and the "an independent board looks at these programs before the money goes out the door".
• False - In fact there was very little transparency, and we don't know, even now, where the money really went, other than to union slush funds and the auto bailout.
• "we're not going to be spending $4 trillion".
• True and False - We've spent over $5 Trillion dollars since Obama took office.
• On closing Gitmo - "It's the right thing to do.  Ultimately it will make us safer"
• Promise Broken - Gitmo is still open.
• "If I don't have this done (turn the economy around) in 3 years, then there 's going to be a one-term proposition".
• After nearly 3 years - 9.1% unemployment, housing market in a double-dip recession, the Fed looking at a QE3.  Accountability

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Toward the end of the interview, Matt Lauer, ever the consumate tough-as-nails journalist, asks the toughest question of the night...about a peanut butter recall.  Obama assures Lauer that a thorough review of the FDA will happen,  and that "at bare minimum we should be able to count on our government keeping our kids safe when they eat peanut butter". Whew! I feel better knowing the Obama was at the helm during the 'Great 2008 Peanut Butter Recall'.

It's Official. Double-Dip Housing Recession. Financial Markets Next?

Image via Wikipedia

Posted by Brian
It has been whispered for most of the last year.  A thing nobody, except maybe the current administration, wanted to consider.  A second, longer, and deeper downturn in the economy.  The housing market has now officially been declared as being in a double-dip recession.  The question now is whether this will now begin to spread to the financial markets , and then the manufacturing and retail sectors. The word "depression" is now starting to be used.  How's the hope and change working out for you now?
I work in the manufacturing sector, and regardless of what this adminstration and the media is reporting, the numbers are beyond dismal.  They suck. Furloughs are back in an attempt to save jobs.  Inventories are increasing, and sales are decreasing.
Folks, hang on to your ass for at least the next 18 months.

Double-Dip Housing Recession Confirmed

S&P's Case-Shiller home price index drops in 19 of 20 metro areas. Only Washington D.C. escaped housing value drop year-over-year.
By Jason Knott
May 31, 2011

There is more discouraging news for integrators looking for the housing market to bounce back.

Housing prices in the U.S. fell in March for the eighth consecutive month, and one key index has officially declared a "double-dip" housing recession.
READ MORE HERE--->  http://www.cepro.com/article/double_dip_housing_recession_confirmed/

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• Financial sector takes a beating (businessinsider.com)
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