20 Reasons Why America's Next Bank Holiday Will Be a Nightmare - Survival Blog.com - The world is on now on the brink of a global credit crisis that could be far worse than the tumultuous events of 2008. The ongoing sovereign debt crisis in the southern reaches of the Eurozone indicate that bank runs in the region will continue, and that more bank closure "holidays" will be declared. Under a bank holiday, virtually all deposits could be frozen and irredeemable for days, weeks, or even months. The key question is: Will this crisis spread to the rest of Europe and then even to the United States? I urge SurvivalBlog readers--particularly those in Europe--to be proactive, to stay "ahead of the power curve." While the Generally Dumb Public (GDP) wakes up some morning to hear news of a bank holiday, you will have long hence prepared yourself.
Federal Reserve Board Members Gave Their Own Banks $4 Trillion in Bailouts - AllGov.com - Thursday, June 14, 2012 - Following the 2008 financial crisis, the Federal Reserve provided more than $4 trillion in near zero-interest loans and other help to banks and businesses whose executives also served as directors for the national bank. At least 18 current and former Fed regional bank directors had a direct stake in the trillion-dollar bailout given to teetering institutions, according to a report produced by the Government Accountability Office, but released by Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont). “This report reveals the inherent conflicts of interest that exist at the Federal Reserve,” Sanders said in a prepared statement. “At a time when small businesses could not get affordable loans to create jobs, the Fed was providing trillions in secret loans to some of the largest banks and corporations in America that were well represented on the boards of the Federal Reserve Banks.” Sanders wants to end the potential conflicts of interest that come with having bank executives serving on the Fed’s boards. The senator introduced legislation in May that would prohibit banking industry and business executives from serving as directors of the Fed’s 12 regional banks.
Americans saw wealth plummet 40 percent from 2007 to 2010, Federal Reserve says - Washongton Post - Ylan Q. Mui, June 11, 2012 - The recent recession wiped out nearly two decades of Americans’ wealth, according to government data released Monday, with middle-class families bearing the brunt of the decline. The Federal Reserve said the median net worth of families plunged by 39 percent in just three years, from $126,400 in 2007 to $77,300 in 2010. That puts Americans roughly on par with where they were in 1992. The data represent one of the most detailed looks at how the economic downturn altered the landscape of family finance. Over a span of three years, Americans watched progress that took almost a generation to accumulate evaporate. The promise of retirement built on the inevitable rise of the stock market proved illusory for most. Homeownership, once heralded as a pathway to wealth, became an albatross......
A Global Recession? - The warning signs are everywhere - National Review - Larry Kudlow - June 14, 2012 - Is it possible that we are already in a global recession but just don’t know it yet? And is the U.S. itself — still the epicenter of the world economy — standing on the front edge of another recession? I sincerely hope I’m wrong. But warning signs are everywhere.... Here at home, ex-Clinton strategists James Carville and Stan Greenberg sent a memo to President Obama telling him that his campaign message of slow and steady recovery progress is out of touch with Main Street America. They’re right. Of course, Obama’s “private sector is doing just fine” statement is part and parcel of his disconnect from economic reality. And the reality isn’t good. Whether you’re a Democrat or Republican, take a look at the numbers: Job growth has been slipping badly for three months. Retail sales and factory orders are down two straight months. Real incomes are flat. Household wealth is way underwater from the housing collapse, dropping nearly 40 percent in the last three measured years. And GDP was an anemic 1.9 percent in the first quarter. Nearly all leading Wall Street economists are marking down their second-quarter estimates to 2 percent or less. But here’s the key point: 2 percent growth is not a recovery. Many economists would call it a growth recession. When you get that low there’s little margin for error. A shock from Europe, an inventory selloff in the U.S., or almost any unexpected event could push us back into negative territory for an official double-dip recession.
Looming Repossession Spike Threatens Housing Recovery - Newsmax - Moneynews.com - June 14, 2012 - Lenders initiated foreclosure proceedings against more U.S. homeowners in May, setting the stage for increases in home repossessions and short sales — scenarios that could further weigh down home values in coming months. Default or scheduled-home-auction notices were filed for the first time against 109,051 homes last month. That's an increase of 12 percent from April and up 16 percent versus May last year, foreclosure listing firm RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday.... Some 8.7 million U.S. homes entered the foreclosure process between January 2007 and last month, RealtyTrac said. Out of those, 4.3 million properties ended up foreclosed-upon..... Banks took back 54,844 properties last month, up 7 percent from April, the firm said..... All told, foreclosure-related notices were reported on 205,990 U.S. properties last month, an increase of 9 percent from April and down 4 percent versus May last year, RealtyTrac said.....
Skousen: Much of U.S. Recovery Has Been ‘Artificial’- Newsmax - Moneynews.com - June 15, 2012 - Forrest Jones and Paul Scicchitano - The U.S. recovery has been largely artificial in nature, the product of Federal Reserve meddling that is actually preventing the country from achieving lasting economic growth, economist and author Mark Skousen tells Newsmax.TV in an exclusive interview. Since the downturn, the Federal Reserve has done all it can to juice recovery. On top of cutting interest rates to near zero, the Fed has rolled out two rounds of bond buybacks, officially known as quantitative easing (QE), with the aim of spurring recovery. QE1 saw the Fed buy $1.7 trillion in assets from banks, mainly mortgage securities, while QE2 saw the central bank snap up $600 billion of Treasury bonds, the latter of which wrapped up on June 30, 2011. The move, also called balance-sheet expansion, aims to push long-term interest rates lower and encourage investment and hiring. After QE2, the Fed announced a policy of selling short-term government bonds and buying longer-term debt in tandem to further ensure long-term interest rates stay low, a move dubbed Operation Twist by the markets since it twists the numbers around on the yield curve. In reality, it's all just printing money out of thin air or temporarily propping up the economy, and it's definitely not the right medicine for the economy even though more such policies are likely on the way, says Skousen, a columnist for Franklin Prosperity Report, published by Newsmax.
Beef: It’s What’s (Expensive) for Dinner - Yahoo Finance - Lisa Scherzer, The Exchange – June 14, 2012 - The average retail price of beef from January through April this year is 7.7% higher than the same period a year ago, according to the USDA's Economic Research Service data, while it's remained steady over the past few months, says John Michael Riley, an assistant professor in Mississippi State University's department of agricultural economics. And the average price in 2011 was 9.8% higher than in 2010. Higher Prices Will Continue - Shoppers are going to continue to see higher prices at the meat counter — and not just for beef. Chris Hurt, a professor of agricultural economics at Purdue University, says he expects the average price of beef to rise to about $5.30 a pound next year. So far this year through May, retail prices have averaged $5.03 a pound — a record high for this time period (it was $4.72 a pound for January-May 2011 and $4.83 for all of 2011). The latest Consumer Price Index for all food is projected to increase 2.5% to 3.5% in 2012. Two main factors have contributed to the rise: a drought that devastated parts of the U.S. last year and a shrinking supply of cattle.
New rules make it harder to get unemployment benefits - CNN Money - Tami Luhby @CNNMoney - June 15, 2012 - Millions of jobless Americans now have another hurdle to pass before collecting federal unemployment benefits. New rules passed by Congress this year require that the jobless go to their local One-Stop Career Center for an in-person assessment if they want to receive federal unemployment checks. This means the unemployed now have to trek to these centers, which has left some states scrambling to find space and personnel to handle all these one-on-one meetings. Some 9 million people are expected to go through these assessments by year's end. Plus, in order to comply with the new federal rules, some states are ramping up their requirements on documentation of the jobless' attempts to return to the workforce.
Fear & Greed Index beta - What emotion is driving the market now? - CNN Money
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