Housing Turns Ugly: South Hurt Worst
The number of new housing starts reported in April was a big disappointment. The 523,000 starts didn’t even break into the consensus range predicted...
Capacity Utilization: 2 Sectors That Win
This month’s Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization report from the Federal Reserve fell short of economists’ predictions. Capacity utilization remained essentially flat in April,...
Kentucky Derby Owner Hits 52-Week High
This year a record-breaking 164,858 people attended the 137th running of the Kentucky Derby, breaking a 37 year record. The race was watched by...
Dividend Increases
According to Standard & Poor’s, 2011 is setting up to be an excellent year for dividend increases. To date, at least 150 companies have...
The Key to a Financially Secure Retirement
Fidelity Investments, the nation’s top provider of retirement savings plans, reported that the average 401(k) balance reached a record high at the end of...
From Raging Bull to Angry Bear
The raging bull market in silver has turned into an angry bear. Silver is down 5% this morning and more than 30% from its...
A Warning from Dr. Copper
Copper is said to have a PhD in economics. Why? Copper is a vital component in the construction, electronics, transportation, and industrial machinery industries....
Coal, an Export Story
Over the past year U.S. exports of metallurgical coal (met-coal) have nearly doubled in dollar terms. Increased trade of metallurgical coal, used in the...
A Compulsive Liar
Meet the stock market: he’s a valuable economic indicator, but he also has a tendency to lie—even compulsively. The stock market misdirects, misleads, and...
Jobless Claims Surge to 8 Month High
Weekly jobless claims rose to an 8 month high this week. The Labor Department attributed the increase to a number of transitory factors. Even...