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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: i-node who wrote (436840)	11/26/2008 10:45:17 AM
From: tejek	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1574198

4 new reports reveal battered economy 19 minutes ago By MARTIN CRUTSINGER AP Economics Writer (AP:WASHINGTON) The government released a quartet of reports Wednesday that paint a bleak picture of the nation's economy: Jobless claims remain at recessionary levels, Americans cut back on their spending by the largest amount since the 2001 terrorist attacks, orders to U.S. factories plummeted and homes sales fell to the lowest level in nearly 18 years. The Labor Department reported that initial requests for unemployment benefits fell to a seasonally adjusted 529,000 from the previous week's upwardly revised figure of 543,000. But claims remain at recessionary levels. The four-week average, which smooths out fluctuations, rose to 518,000, its highest level since January 1983, when the economy was emerging from a steep recession. One minor bright spot showed the number of people continuing to claim unemployment insurance dropped unexpectedly to 3.96 million, from the previous week's 4.02 million, which was the highest level in 25 years. The labor market has grown by about half since 1983. Meanwhile, the Commerce Department reported that consumer spending plunged by 1 percent in October, even worse than the 0.9 percent decline that had been expected. Consumer spending accounts for two-thirds of total economic activity. Orders to U.S. factories for big-ticket manufactured goods also plunged last month by the largest amount in two years. Orders for durable goods dropped by 6.2 percent, more than double the decline economists expected. The Commerce Department report showed widespread declines throughout manufacturing led by decreases in autos and airplanes. The department also reported that new home sales decreased 5.3 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual sales pace of 433,000 homes, the lowest level since January 1991, another period when the country was undergoing a steep housing downturn. The median price of a new home sold in October fell to $218,000, down 7 percent from a year ago, and the lowest since September 2004. Wall Street appeared ready to give back some of its recent gains as investors reacted to the downbeat economic readings. The Dow Jones industrial average fell more than 60 points in early trading Wednesday. The stock market is coming off of three sessions of gains, so some giveback, especially with disappointing data, is to be expected. With the economy showing further signs that it is headed into a steep swoon, the administration and the Federal Reserve rolled out two new programs Tuesday that would provide up to $800 billion in an effort to get more loans flowing in such critical areas as mortgage lending, credit cards, auto loans and small business loans. Credit markets liked the new efforts, but private economists said the new moves were not likely to be the last changes in the government's vast rescue program, which has already undergone significant alterations since it was passed by Congress on Oct. 3. Analysts believe more work will need to be done because of their expectations that the economy's vital signs will continue to worsen as the country slips into what many believe could be the worst recession since the early 1980s. The unemployment rate has hit a 14-year high of 6.5 percent, putting pressure on personal incomes. The government reported Tuesday that the overall economy, as measured by the gross domestic product, shrank at an annual rate of 0.5 percent in the July-September quarter, reflecting the fact that consumer spending fell at the fastest pace in 28 years. Nariman Behravesh, an economist at IHS Global Insight, said he was expecting GDP to shrink at a 4 percent rate in the current quarter, reflecting the battering consumers are taking from the worst financial crisis since the 1930s. He predicted that the economy would remain in recession through the first half of next year. "We are in the early stages of one of the worst recessions in the postwar period, even factoring in a massive stimulus program," Behravesh. To revive the economy, President-elect Barack Obama has said a top priority will be working with Congress to enact a stimulus package with the goal of creating 2.5 million new jobs over the next two years. Analysts believe such an effort will require spending between $500 billion to $700 billion, a figure that would be on top of all the money being spent to stabilize the financial system. In the latest efforts to stabilize the financial system, the Federal Reserve announced Tuesday that it will buy $200 billion in securities backed by different types of debt including credit card loans, auto loans, student loans and loans to small businesses. That market essentially froze in October. These types of loans as a result have become harder to obtain and have carried higher interest rates The Fed also announced that it will spend $500 billion to buy mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and another $100 billion to directly purchase mortgages held by Fannie, Freddie and the Federal Home Loan Banks. This would greatly expand an initial modest effort announced in September with the goal of creating increased demand for mortgage-related assets. The hope is that this will drive down the price of mortgages and make home loans more available. Analysts predict the Fed program could send mortgage rates down by as much as one-half to a full percentage point in coming months, helping to spur demand in the beleaguered housing market, which is suffering its worst downturn in decades. The latest federal moves raised U.S. commitments to contain the financial crisis to nearly $7 trillion _ though no one thinks the government will actually spend anything like that figure. In the case of the Federal Reserve, the amount covers huge loans that financial institutions will have to pay back. In the case of the Treasury rescue effort, the government will at some point sell the stock it owns back to the banks, presumably when the banking system is doing better and the stock will be worth more. news.ino.com

To: i-node who wrote (436840)	11/26/2008 10:46:09 AM
From: tejek	Respond to of 1574198

New home sales fall to slowest pace since 1991 5 minutes ago By MARTIN CRUTSINGER AP Economics Writer (AP:WASHINGTON) Sales of new homes fell in October to the lowest point in nearly 18 years while the median price of a new home dropped to the lowest level since 2004. The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that new home sales decreased 5.3 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual sales pace of 433,000 homes, the lowest level since January 1991, another period when the country was undergoing a steep housing downturn. The median price of a new home sold in October fell to $218,000, down 7 percent from a year ago. It was the lowest median sales price since September 2004. The drop in new home sales was bigger than analysts had expected and left sales 40.1 percent below where they were a year ago. The bad news on new home sales follows other reports this week that paint a bleak picture of the housing industry. On Tueday, a report on home prices and downbeat earnings results from homebuilder D.R. Horton showed further deterioration in the housing market. The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index said home prices tumbled a record 16.6 percent during the third quarter from the same period a year ago. Prices are at levels not seen since the first quarter of 2004. Fort Worth, Tex.-based D.R. Horton Inc. reported a nearly $800 million loss in its fiscal fourth quarter on slower home sales and more than $1 billion in charges. A report Monday showed sales of existing homes fell a bigger-than-expected 3.1 percent in October to an annual rate of 4.98 million units. The median or midpoint price for existing homes plunged to $183,000, down 11.3 percent from a year ago. The disappointing performance for both new and existing homes showed that the country is still in the grips of a severe housing downturn. The problems in housing have sent shockwaves through the entire economy as mounting mortgage foreclosures have cost banks billions of dollars in loan losses, creating the worst financial crisis to hit the country in seven decades. President-elect Barack Obama has said Congress should begin working on a sizable stimulus program even before he is sworn in on Jan. 20, with the goal of creating 2.5 million jobs over the next two years to keep the economy from falling into a prolonged recession. The housing industry also is appealing for help from the new administration. The report on new home sales showed sales were down 18 percent in the West and 6 percent in the South. Sales posted a 22.6 percent increase in the Northeast and were up 6 percent in the Midwest. The drop in sales pushed the inventory of unsold homes up to 11.1 months, meaning it would take that long to exhaust the stock of unsold homes at the October sales pace. Builders, who have been slashing production in an effort to get control of inventories, are being faced with soaring mortgage defaults which are dumping more unsold homes on an already glutted market. The National Association of Home Builders reported last week that its survey of builder confidence fell to an all-time low of 9 in November, down from 14 last month. Index readings higher than 50 indicate positive sentiment about the market. But the trade group's index has drifted below 50 since May 2006 and below 20 since April. The housing slump already has cost the country 3 million jobs in construction and related industries, and the home builders are urging Congress to help with increased support for the industry. Tighter lending standards, rising defaults and fear about the housing market's future have sidelined buyers, an absence felt acutely by homebuilders such as Pulte Homes Inc. and Centex Corp. news.ino.com

To: i-node who wrote (436840)	11/26/2008 10:46:49 AM
From: Brumar89	Respond to of 1574198

I guess Barry realized he knew zip about foreign and defense matters and has picked people he can hand it off to. Screw the promises to the left. He's picked an acceptable Treasury Secretary also. His AG has no integrity (not good) - if he okayed a pardon for Marc Rich, Rezko will know there's one waiting for him too. Emanuel will dominate the WH. Am worried about some real big mistakes in the energy, environment area. Waxman, Pelosi, Reid are incompetent nuts. Probably gonna do real damage to our economy.