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Without Recovery There Is Every Need To Examine The Worst Case

May 18, 2016

Without Recovery There Is Every Need To Examine The Worst Case

There is a great deal that is wrong with mainstream economic commentary, starting with its unwavering devotion to orthodox economics and unshakable faith in their “stimulus.” No matter how little is actually stimulated there is never any doubt that the media will simultaneously forget the last one while lavishing praise on the next one. It is, however, the actual economic commentary itself that may be the most damaging. Because nothing works, every news story is printed from the shallowest, narrowest perspective. It is a grave disservice to the public and journalism.

As an example, on July 15, 2015, the Wall Street Journal published an article on Industrial Production that wasn’t unique or atypical. If you read these kinds of stories you find them utterly devoid of differences, so this effort was entirely symptomatic. At the time, industrial production for June 2015 was estimated to have risen 0.3% month-over-month, ending a string of six consecutive M/M declines. That fact more than the degree of the rise was cheerfully reported as if meaningful.

U.S. industrial production rose in June, a sign that the improving economy is helping the sector break out of a slump.

Industrial production, a measure of output in the manufacturing, utilities and mining sectors, rose a seasonally adjusted 0.3% from May, the Federal Reserve said Wednesday.

Even though the article noted that one month was nowhere near enough to overcome those prior declines, it didn’t matter because it was finally a plus sign conforming to the mainstream “narrative.”

The pickup comes as other measures show improvement in the economy this spring, with employment continuing to climb and wages creeping up as the labor market tightens…

“Weakness in manufacturing appears to be past its peak,” wrote Jim O’Sullivan, chief U.S. economist for High Frequency Economics in a note to clients.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

2 Things That Are Happening Right Now That Have Never Happened Outside Of A Recession

June 3, 2015

2 Things That Are Happening Right Now That Have Never Happened Outside Of A Recession

Question Dollar - Public DomainIf we are not heading into a recession, why does our economy continue to act as if that is precisely what is happening?  As you will see below, we learned this week that factory orders have declined year over year for six months in a row.  That is something that has never happened outside of a time of recession.  We have also seen new orders for consumer goods fall dramatically.  In fact, the only time we have seen a more dramatic decline in that number was during the last recession.  And when you add these two items to what I have written about previously, the overall economic picture becomes even more disturbing.  Corporate profits have fallen for two quarters in a row, our exports fell by 7.6 percent during the first quarter of 2015, and U.S. GDP contracted by 0.7 percent during Q1.  Even though Barack Obama and the mainstream media are willingly ignoring them, the truth is that these numbers are absolutely screaming that we are going into a new recession.

Sometimes, a picture is worth more than a thousand words, and I believe that is certainly the case with the chart that I have posted below.  It comes from Zero Hedge, and it shows that factory orders have declined year over year for six months in a row.  The only times when this has ever happened before have been when the U.S. economy has been in recession…

 

Factory Orders 2015

When we look at new orders for consumer goods, we see a similar thing happening.  This next chart comes from Charles Hugh Smith, and it really doesn’t need much explanation…

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Olduvai IV: Courage
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Olduvai II: Exodus
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