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The economy is improving (pg. 2)
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| Arbiter |
| quote: | Originally posted by fbgdavidson
For the first time in a while I'm feeling smug about my plays! At the end of March there was a nice dip after the DJI recovered from the sub 7000 range.
I put a nice sum in a fund that tracks performance of the Dow (yeah I'm too lazy to read up annual reports and crack fundamentals of every company :o) and I'm up 45%. Pretty good for a lazy investor :D
Makes up for the fact the rest, and vast majority of my portfolio is still in double digits of redness...:( |
Nice! I am partial to index funds as well, and have gotten a similar return (although that's since November; March caught me off guard and I had to ride it out). |
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| malek |
| watch out for the green bubble bursting. |
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| fbgdavidson |
| quote: | Originally posted by Arbiter
As a contrarian, I've actually been getting a little nervous at the increased optimism I have been noticing the last few weeks. I might get out soon and wait for the next little rought spot to get back in, because you gotta know there's going to be one sooner or later during this recovery. |
Yeah, the major US indices are all up around 12% in the last month.
The markets tend to be ahead of the curve but I'm holding some more on the sidelines until we see a bit of a dip. Throwing a load of money in on the back of 12% monthyl returns doesn't seem wise. As more of a long term investor though (I know I'd lose my shirt day trading!) I'm not one to pull all my money out on a whim. |
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| DOOMBOT |
The stock market goes up a little and this is your indication that the economy is improving?
Meanwhile, back on planet earth, the dollar hit a new low for the year and unemployment and foreclosure rates are still on the rise. |
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| The17sss |
I love how desperate the media is trying to protect Obama and the economy, as if it's getting better. The stock market is up... great. Got a little construction and home buyer increase, great. We even have car sales up because of the cash for clunkers debacle...er, I mean program. But the reality? 3.5 million jobs have been lost in the last 6 months, welfare roles are the highest they've ever been, and without companies hiring, which they aren't, it's a house of cards. For example:
1) Home prices are rising while consumer confidence is declining. According to CNN, "The Conference Board said (last) Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index, which retreated last month, fell to 46.6, down from 49.3 in June. Economists were expecting a reading of 49. It would take a reading above 90 to signal that the economy is on solid footing.":
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?...id=a_VZ2C7gweKY
Also according to Bloomberg: GDP shrinking greater than expected in last quarter, and economy worse than anticipated:
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?...id=aNivTjr852TI
2) Tax revenues show the biggest drop since the Great Depression- a whopping 18%. This is some ominous because guess how that money is going to be recovered? That's right... raising taxes since deficits will now expand beyond the white house's rosey projections. Corporate tax revenues are down 57%, personal income tax revenues are down 22%, and Medicare tax revenue is going to drop for the 3rd time ever.
What's interesting is that during the Reagan and Bush years, the government received the highest amount of tax revenue from those evil corporations that liberals claim get all the breaks.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_plummeting_taxes
3) Time Warner, Verizon, Caterpillar (over 30,000 laid off)... all seeing profits head into the tank and laying off thousands of workers; Obama's General Motors is going to have to lay off another 9000 workers by 2012. June job loss estimates "unexpectedly" exceeded estimates (another 475K of them), NYC apartments sales are down over 50%, demands are growing bigger for a shrinking number of taxpayers, Michigan(17%)/Oregon(16%)/CA/Ohio/Arizona are all seeing well past double digit unemployment.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap...Q6cBtAD99O35K01
http://money.cnn.com/2009/07/29/new...sion=2009072911
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_gm_factory_workers
http://www.cnbc.com/id/31703460
4) 90% of metro areas saw a rise in unemployment again in June:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap...zQvKvwD99OEJMO0
5) 1200 Rhode Island businesses are about to be shut down because of sales taxes they can't pay:
http://www.projo.com/news/content/B...29.3c1d325.html
4) We are trying to borrow ANOTHER $200 billion, and are having a hard time finding lenders, which is devlauing our Tresuries:
http://www.cnbc.com/id/32201716
5) The city/county of Birmingham, Alabama just laid off 2/3 of it's workers: http://www.reuters.com/article/dome...E5724P720090803
6) Arizona is broke and trying to sell its government buildings:
http://www.azcentral.com/news/elect...assets0729.html
7) Our annual deficit reached over $1 trillion for the first time EVER.... while we are still trying to borrow (Bush did not get a chance to address the FY2009 budget, as the Democrats in Congress kept postponing budgeting for FY09 until Bush left office).
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124750836648634011.html
8) According to the Wall Street Journal, the economy is even worse than you think, as the average rate of unemployment is longer than its ever been since tracking that data in 1948. AND, Obama wants to expand those benefits from 79 weeks to 92!!!! 92 in weeks of free handouts? Unreal.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124...ss_opinion_main
9) And finally, here's a little blurb about how TARP is driving up oil prices. http://newsbusters.org/blogs/jeff-p...ving-oil-prices
But the economy is making a comeback baby!! :stongue: |
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| Lira |
| quote: | Originally posted by DOOMBOT
the dollar hit a new low for the year |
Indeed:
Hello there, Amazon, it's time for yet another shopping spree!!! :D |
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| pkcRAISTLIN |
| quote: | Originally posted by The17sss
I love how desperate the media is trying to protect Obama and the economy, as if it's getting better. The stock market is up... great. |
hmmmm. didn't you make some noise about the fall of the stock market after obama was sworn in? i can go and hunt for your exact quote if you make me, but i don't really wanna type "the17sss" and "obama hate" into the TA search engine in case i break it ;) |
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| Sushipunk |
| Haha, yep. Our dollar is up to 0.84 US cents now :toocool: |
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| pkcRAISTLIN |
| quote: | Originally posted by DOOMBOT
the dollar hit a new low for the year |
im sure you realise that there are benefits to having a weaker currency? |
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| DOOMBOT |
| quote: | Originally posted by pkcRAISTLIN
im sure you realise that there are benefits to having a weaker currency? |
Go ahead, humor me.
Just keep this picture in mind as you type...
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| pkcRAISTLIN |
| quote: | Originally posted by DOOMBOT
Go ahead, humor me. |
see, its the fact that you can't even reel off a couple of examples to a basic question is why we struggle to take you seriously; too tied in with ideology to get a firm grasp on simple economics principles.
a weaker currency means that more people will be buying your goods and services.
here is a basic overview of the pros and cons of currency devaluation
http://www.articlesbase.com/investi...lar-224354.html
| quote: | Originally posted by DOOMBOT
Just keep this picture in mind as you type... |
disingenuous nonsense. there is absolutely no mantra that says the US has to be the strongest currency all of the time for the rest of human history ffs.
your currency changes every damn day. whining about a little devaluation after your country plunged the world into a hole is the most absurdly nationalisatic drivel ive heard in a while.
unemployment seems to be a pretty big concern all around, but especially in the US, and a weaker currency attracts other people's dollars or euros or mexican pebbles.
ok?
so dont come in here blowing your doom and gloom horn about currency devaluation as if its the end of the world, it doesn't have to be. |
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| Max Thomson |
| go tell the thousands of people who've been laid off how your nice numbers should make them feel better now that the economy is improving. |
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