22 Sep 2006

Posted at 15:11h in The Friday Brief by
No one doubts the economy is slowing, but there is mounting debate as to how fast; will we get the “soft landing” that is hoped for or something more disruptive? Just a month or two ago the worry was that continued economic growth combined with tight labor might spark inflation. So far that has not happened. The most recent report of prices paid at the producer level released Tuesday showed a drop of .4%, well below expectations.

19 May 2006

Posted at 12:23h in The Friday Brief by
Last week we discussed the abundance of global economic growth and how, so far, it had not been accompanied by excessive inflation.  Even in the face of commodity prices rising straight up, record oil prices, rising wages, and tight supplies in almost all raw material category.  The pressure relief valve is productivity.  It has been rising steadily all over the world, keeping a lid on inflation. 

11 Feb 2005

Posted at 16:45h in The Friday Brief by
President Bush was in town yesterday conducting a town-hall-styled meeting to further explain his plans for a Social Security overhaul.  His aim is to provide workers with better growth than the current system’s performance, thereby generating more income at retirement.  A further advantage is the potential to pass any remainder along to heirs.  His plan obviously faces huge hurdles as many in Congress don’t believe there is a significant problem and others feel it can be fixed with less dramatic changes.  It is the President’s hope that he can remove much of the political fire from the discussion to have an honest and open discussion of options to improve this mammoth government program.

27 Feb 2004

Posted at 15:44h in The Friday Brief by
Tuesday’s Consumer Confidence numbers reported an unexpected erosion of confidence in the economy.  During February as the Democratic candidates marched through each state in their presidential quest their criticism of the economy grew louder and more focused.  As jobs or the inability of the current economy to create substantial job growth seems to resonate so well with some voters, politicians’ criticisms of the economy and the current administration have grown louder and, on occasion, outlandish.  Political experts suggest that negative campaigning is not only effective, but may be the only way to win modern elections.  But, there is a cost – the words are carried far and wide and more people than ever seem to accept them at face value.