The mainstream media is starting to grasp the picture

Posted by Jason Apollo Voss on Apr 1, 2010 in Blog | 0 comments Today’s WSJ ran a thought piece today entitled, “Jobs Picture Clouded by Long-Term Unemployed” by Gerald F. Seib.  The gist of the story is that the unemployment picture is skewed by the number of long-term unemployed, many of whom have stopped looking for work.  The article quotes Bureau of Labor Statistics reports of the number of long-term unemployed of around 6 million. ...
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Further mixed economic data

Posted by Jason Apollo Voss on Apr 1, 2010 in Blog | 0 comments Today saw the release of other economic data beyond initial jobless claims.  Specifically, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s construction spending figures and the Insitute of Supply Management’s manufacturing index. Construction spending in February fell by 1.3%, its fourth consecutive monthly decline.  Additionally, January’s data were revised down to 1.4% past the initial...
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How many people are looking for work?

Posted by Jason Apollo Voss on Apr 1, 2010 in Blog | 0 comments Because the stock markets are closed tomorrow due to Good Friday the initial jobless claims data was reported today by the Department of Labor.  Here’s the skinny…initial jobless claims were down by 6,000 to a level of 439,000.  Meanwhile, the previous week was revised upward by 3,000 more jobless claims.  The four-week moving average which aims to smooth volatility declined by 6,750...
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The investor elephant in the room just put on some weight

Posted by Jason Apollo Voss on Mar 31, 2010 in Best of the Blog, Blog, Predictions | 1 comment Today saw the release of March private payroll data from the nation’s largest processor of payroll checks, ADP.  Unemployment “unexpectedly” increased by 23,000 jobs in March vs. an expected 50,000 jobs added by a swath of economists. Analysis: Folks this is not good news.  Not only did the economy not add jobs last month, it shed quite a few jobs.  Economists are clearly...
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The long awaited consumer-spending figures

Posted by Jason Apollo Voss on Mar 29, 2010 in Blog | 0 comments Hello everyone, Today saw the release of the long-awaited (by me) February consumer-spending figures.  The Commerce Department stated that U.S. consumers increased their spending by 0.3% in February.  Meanwhile, personal incomes were flat.  So what that means is that people must have increased their spending by reducing savings or by increasing their debt.  However, on average, people increased...
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The sinking of a South Korean naval vessel

Posted by Jason Apollo Voss on Mar 26, 2010 in Blog | 4 comments Good afternoon folks! Today saw the sinking of a South Korean naval vessel near disputed North/South Korean territorial waters.  So far the information is sketchy.  However, what is known is that the vessel sank rapidly and that many of its 104 crew members are feared dead.  Another South Korean naval vessel is said to have returned fire at an unidentified vessel, but this is so far...
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The EU bailout of Greece

Posted by Jason Apollo Voss on Mar 26, 2010 in Blog | 2 comments Yesterday the EU put the finishing touches on its bailout package for the troubled Greek economy.  Key to moving the deal back into the EU court from the IMF court was the involvement of France.  The deal is valued at 22 billion Euro and combines monies from both the EU and the IMF.  However, the IMF has a secondary role in the aid package. Analysis: While it sounds like Greece is out of the...
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