Will the world economy go through another crisis in 2013? Nouriel Roubini thinks so. Check out the video from CNBC.
Category: Economy (Page 8 of 12)
Things keep getting worse in the housing market as foreclosures glut the market and depress prices. It’s so bad that some are calling it a double-dip recession in the housing market.
If the numbers showing housing prices slumming it around their spring 2009 lows aren’t troubling enough, then the surrounding context certainly is. The federal government spent trillions of dollars lifting housing — the recession’s great instigator — out of its trough. And now that home prices have collapsed again, the feds have far fewer tools available to prop them up again.
This does not bode well for the entire economy, but it just shows how long it’s going to take to work through all the excesses of the mortgage bubble. In Las Vegas, the foreclosures are now spreading to upscale homes as well, giving high rollers the opportunity to come in and scoop up real estate gems on the cheap.
Fortunately, there is one silver lining, as young people now actually have hope of getting an affordable home if they have decent income. With all the bad news out there for young people in the job market, at least there’s some good news. Unfortunately, many people are paying the price for the excesses of the past decade.
The Chamber of Commerce supported Republicans in 2010 with a ton of financial support, assuming that the GOP would be pro-business. Instead, the House Republicans and most Republican Senators are more than happy to hold the American economy hostage to their ideological demands.
The Chamber of Commerce sent a letter to Congress on Friday urging legislators to quickly raise the debt ceiling, while also warning of catastrophe should the government continue spending at its current rate.
The Chamber, which represents business interests, helped elect many of the Republican members of Congress who are now threatening to vote against raising the debt ceiling. Republicans are demanding major cuts to government spending and long-term programs in return for their support.
The Chamber understands the consequences of messing around with the full faith and credit of the United States, while the Tea Party crowd seems happy to let the whole system collapse just to make a point. Remember the TARP vote and how many Republicans were willing to let all the banks collapse? Nobody should be surprised.
The U.S. auto business continues its spectacular rebound from its near-death experience. Sure, there’s a long way to go, but this is excellent news and shows a commitment to invest in America.
Growing demand for General Motors Co. cars and trucks is pushing the Detroit automaker to add thousands of jobs and spend $2 billion to upgrade plants across the country.
GM CEO Daniel Akerson confirmed Tuesday that the company will create or preserve more than 4,000 jobs in eight states by investing heavily in 17 facilities nationwide. So far, the company has only announced millions of dollars in upgrades at plants in Toledo and Bowling Green, Ky. It is expected to release specifics about other plants during the next few months.
While much of the planned spending hinges on winning state and local tax incentives, the company says it needs to boost production and resume hiring to meet rising consumer demand.
The U.S. economy and job market needs a boost like this. Hopefully this will continue.
The domestic auto industry is doing very well, and that’s reflected in the news coming from AutoNation:
AutoNation Inc. (NYSE: AN – News) announced that its board of directors has authorized the repurchase of up to an additional $250 million of common stock under its existing share buyback program. This has increased the total authorized amount under the program to $395.9 million.
Last year, the automotive retailer had increased the authorization amount during May and July by $250 million each. In the first quarter of 2011, the company repurchased 1.8 million shares at an aggregate price of $58.8 million, reflecting an average price of $32.60.
During the quarter, AutoNation reported a rise in profit to $70.3 million or 46 cents per share from $58.8 million or 34 cents in the year-ago period driven by strong new and used vehicle sales. The profit exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3 cents per share.
This is excellent news for the economy, and hopefully we’ll see gas prices start to decrease, giving Americans more disposable income.
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