Looks like the market isn't buying those revised >UP productivity numbers...
How dumb do they think the speculating public really is?
Now I remember, we talked about F years ago when it was $40-$50 and we made good $ shorting it, correct?
I trade it from time to time, same as I do with HDI..
MOT another short winner for me today ($10 Dec puts)+100%
I love these short time penny options!!!
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WASHINGTON -- Worker productivity grew much faster in the third quarter than originally thought, an encouraging sign for the nation's struggling businesses.
Productivity rose at a brisk 5.1% annual rate, the Labor Department reported Wednesday. That reading -- which measures the amount of output per hour of work -- was even better than the impressive 4% growth rate previously estimated for the July-through-August period and represented a considerable pickup from the 1.7% pace registered in the second quarter. The latest figure was also much better than economists expected.
Improved productivity helps companies by keeping a lid on labor costs for each unit produced and allows businesses that have cut their payrolls to keep pace with consumer demand. That could give a boost to profits, which took a big hit during last year's recession. Labor costs fell at an annual rate of 0.2% in the third quarter, an improvement from the 2.2% growth rate in the second quarter.
Productivity gains also allow the economy to grow faster without triggering inflation since companies can pay workers more without having to raise prices to cover the cost. Keeping inflation at bay gives Federal Reserve policy makers room to lower interest rates to kick start the economy without fear of igniting price increases.
The government reported last week that the gross domestic product -- considered the best measure of economic health -- grew at a brisk 4% annual pace in the third quarter. That was stronger than the 3.1% growth rate first estimated. But economists are predicting the summer boom will be followed by a winter lull. They are forecasting a fourth-quarter economic growth rate of just more than 1%.
Hourly compensation in the third quarter rose at a brisk 4.9% rate, compared with a 3.9% pace in the second quarter. Adjusted for inflation, hourly compensation increased at a 3% pace in the third quarter, compared with a 0.5% growth rate in the previous period.
The latest compensation growth rates marked the biggest increases since the third quarter of 2000, suggesting that workers who have jobs are making gains.
For the 12 months ending September, productivity grew at a brisk 5.6% pace, representing the strongest showing since the first quarter of 1973.---Right!
If things are so good, why are things so bad?
I think the PPT comes in today, we may even get a green close in some indexes when the smoke clears at the close.
Maybe I will reverse.... |
