As Wages and Hours Stagnate and Lag Inflation, Fed Declares Victory and Goes Home
by Lee Adler, Wall Street Examiner
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As they wallow happily in their Fed generated stock market profits, employers continue to successfully squeeze the powerless US working class.
The BLS reported Friday that average hourly earnings rose by 1.2% on a yearly basis to $23.81 in July. The annual rate of increase fell from 2.8% in June and 2% in May. The rate of increase in average wages has fluctuated from 1% to 2.9% since 2010, averaging around 2%. It is now below that level after mostly weaker readings over the post 10 months. Meanwhile the June CPI rose by 2.9% on an annual basis, showing just how badly workers are getting squeezed.
What We Read Today 14 August 2013
Econintersect: Click Read more >> below graphic to see today's list.
The top of today's reading list has a review of legal problems JP Morgan is facing with the government ........ and the last article shows the relationship between the broad measurement of unemployment (U-6) and depressed household incomes.
Prometheus: Stock Market Bubble Update
Since early February, stock market investment risk has remained in the highest one percentile of all historical observations. The latest speculative advance during July increased risk to another historic extreme, joining a select group of four time periods that includes the long-term tops in 1929, 2000 and 2007. According to the valuation components of the [...]
Markets Close Down - Investors Running For High Ground
Closing Market Commentary For 08-14-2013
Markets slide sideways in the now familiar daily session dance, where the bulls and bears change partners every once in a while, but never getting to first base.
By 4 pm the averages took a turn down just before the session close as more and more investors are starting to take profits and seek high ground.
Who Is Driving the Auto Lending Recovery?
by Andrew Haughwout, Donghoon Lee, Joelle Scally, and Wilbert van der Klaauw - Liberty Street Economics, Federal Reserve Bank of New York
This morning, the New York Fed released its Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit for the second quarter of 2013. It shows a $78 billion decline in overall household debt from the previous period.
The Going-Nowhere Market Slides Sideways
Midday Market Commentary For 08-14-2013
By noon all of the morning activity slipped into a nonchalant, sideways moving, narrow and mostly lackluster market. Oh, did I mention low volume too. Yes, there were spurts of BTFDing but with identical selling to offset any gains.
We are definitely in a consolidation phase as one half of the market owners (funds and large holdings accounts) does not want to do anything while the other half (cash crowd and ma and pop investors) are teetering on selling.
Cairo Crackdown Chaos: Video of Deadly Clashes as Protests Spread
Many people were reported killed in clashes as Egyptian security forces violently broke up sit-in camps of Muslim Brotherhood supporters in Cairo. Officials say at least 15 are dead, while various reporters' estimates put the toll at 40-90.
Markets Opened Up But Poor Financial's Melt Indices Down
Opening Market Commentary For 08-14-2013
Premarkets were down -0.20% until the 8:30 am financials were reported. The 'not-so-good' reports sent the futures higher, go figure.
The markets opened higher (0.25%) and quickly started melting down after testing yesterday's highs. The indices are currently in an obvious consolidation phase and investors are trying to get comfortable with their finger on the buy/sell buttons. Markets do look increasingly tired and weak, but this scenario has happened before and the markets moved on to set new historical highs and everyone knows this.
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Nonfinancial Leverage NFCI Again Deteriorates Slightly w/e 09August 2013
The Nonfinancial leverage subindex of the National Financial Conditions Index increased slightly (less good) this week but still remains well inside of economic expansion territory. Econintersect focuses on non-financial tools to monitor the economy.
This index remains on a "less good" trend line, and is believed to be a good forward indicator a recession is coming. A value above zero is a recession warning.
Heart Surgery in India
By Dr. Mercola
The average cost of a coronary bypass at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio is $106,385. In India, you can get the same procedure for 95,000 rupees, or $1,583, which is half the price it cost 20 years ago. And, efforts are underway to bring the cost down even more, to about $800, within a decade.
July 2013 Producer Price Index Moderates
Written by Steven Hansen
The Producer Price Index has moderated after two previous months of significant jumps in inflation. This index is becoming very volatile (noisy).
Read more >>
The Detroit Bail-In Template: Fleecing Pensioners to Save the Banks
by Ellen Brown, Web of Debt
The Detroit bankruptcy is looking suspiciously like the bail-in template originated by the G20's Financial Stability Board in 2011, which exploded on the scene in Cyprus in 2013 and is now becoming the model globally. In Cyprus, the depositors were 'bailed in' (stripped of a major portion of their deposits) to re-capitalize the banks. In Detroit, it is the municipal workers who are being bailed in, stripped of a major portion of their pensions to save the banks.
Major Channels: Aug 12, 2013
by Pebblewriter, Pebblewriter.com
It's sometimes difficult to keep track of the various channel lines appearing on charts - especially in close-up views.To help with the big picture, here are a few of the key channel systems I'm tracking.
Why Housing 'Recovery' Spurring Economic Growth Is A Lie
by Lee Adler, Wall Street Examiner
Last week we saw clearevidence of raging inflation in the bubble in existing home sales. But (recovery) it ain't, in terms of the single family housing development industry. While builders have expressed that they think the market is doing just great, the truth revealed today in the Commerce Department's new home sales data for June is that the market is only back to 2008 levels. The market was in the late stages of the housing crash then.
Read more >>
The Economist: Are We Doomed?
Econintersect: An interesting editorial by R.A. in the The Economist is worth reading. There are a number of reasons why this is so, which will be listed after the Read more >> jump. Note: The reader is alerted that the news presented here will conclude with some obviously editorial observations.
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Hindenburg disaster, 06 May 1937, Lakehurst, N.J.
Investing.com: Technical Analysis 13 August 2013
Investing.com Technical Analysis (as of Tue, 13 August 2013 05:00pm EDT)
by Investing.com Staff, Investing.com
Below, technical overviews and analysis for key stock indices, commodities and
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currency pairs, based on market activity at the end of the 13 August 2013 U.S. session. This information is a comprehensive summary derived from simple and exponential moving averages along with key technical indicators shown for specific time intervals.
The History of the Fed Balance Sheet Making Money for the Government
by Meryam Bukhari, Alyssa Cambron, Michael Fleming, Jonathan McCarthy, and Julie Remache - Liberty Street Economics, Federal Reserve Bank of New York
Historically, the Federal Reserve has held mostly interest-bearing securities on the asset side of its balance sheet and, up until 2008, mostly currency on its liability side, on which it pays no interest.
Infographic of the Day: Twelve Signs Of The Silent Killer
Ovarian cancer hits 1 in every 100 women, but is often detected too late to cure. Known as the 'silent killer', ovarian cancer is one of the least talked about cancers, yet it is the fifth most common cancer in women. Many do not realize that there many warning signs to watch for that could be easily disregarded or mistaken for some something else.
Europe's Massive Minimum Wage Disparity
by Felix Richter, Statista.com
Figures released by Eurostat have revealed an enormous gulf in monthly minimum wage levels across the European Union. Luxembourg has the highest minimum wage in the EU by a considerable distance - Luxembourgers earn euro 1,874 before the deduction of income tax and social security contributions.
As they wallow happily in their Fed generated stock market profits, employers continue to successfully squeeze the powerless US working class.
currency pairs, based on market activity at the end of the 13 August 2013 U.S. session. This information is a comprehensive summary derived from simple and exponential moving averages along with key technical indicators shown for specific time intervals.
