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Revised Q2 GDP printed at 1.7% and that was higher than expected (1.0%), but lower than the previous print of 1.8%. And that print of 1.8% was revised downward to 1.1%. realgdp17 The GDP revision polka (pre- and post-revisions): GDP pre post revision Personal consumption growth, a large piece of real GDP, slowed to 1.8% in Q2 from a downward-revised 2.3% in Q1, also beating economists’ consensus estimate of 1.6% growth. pce073113 The personal saving rate (personal saving as a percentage of disposable personal income) was 4.5 percent in the second quarter, compared with 4.0 percent in the first quarter....

We have all heard about liberal media bias, but this is just over the top. When the president begins looking to reporters for advice and approval of his policies, you know there is a problem! And not only is President Obama flaunting his positive reviews from the media a problem, but the fact that these reporters are giving their opinions seriously calls their professionalism into question. In his speech that lasted over an hour yesterday, President Obama said reporters praise his economic proposals as “great and tell him that they are “all good ideas”. The speech which droned on for...

Don't be fooled by the huge run in the US stock market and the rebound in the housing market. The financial crisis never really ended, and its effects continue to roil the global economy. This is the financial crisis that keeps on giving. Right now, I find myself asking many of the same questions about debt, risk and collateral that investors were asking in the run-up to the bankruptcy filing of Lehman Brothers in September 2008. The two big questions I have at the moment: Where's the collateral for all this debt -- private, corporate and governmental -- that has...

For most of his presidency, President Obama has been focused on the economic short run — which makes sense, given that he took office in the midst of the biggest recession since the 1930s. With his big economic speech today, he’s shifting to the long-run, talking about the structural changes he thinks the economy needs to see for the U.S. to prosper going forward. But anyone who thinks that the short-run battle is over should take a look at a new report by Daniel Alpert over at the Century Foundation. Alpert notes that while the headline unemployment number is well...

Many times in the past, politicians have used Orwellian double-speak and sleight-of-hand statistics to cover up their own failures. President Obama is a master of such tactics and nowhere is this more evident in the state of the US economy. We've been told for years that we're in "recovery" and "things are finally looking up." The sad truth is that this is all a lie and Obama's economic policies are leading us all to ruin and this is evident in real world facts. Fact number one: unemployment is much higher than the current 7.6% touted by the Obama administration. There...

Behind Wal-Mart, the second-largest employer in America is Kelly Services, a temporary work provider. Friday´s disappointing jobs report showed that part-time jobs are at an all-time high, with 28 million Americans now working part-time. The report also showed another disturbing fact: There are now a record number of Americans with temporary jobs. Approximately 2.7 million, in fact. And the trend has been growing. In the first quarter of 2013, U.S. staffing companies employed an average of 2.86 million temporary and contract workers, according to the American Staffing Association.

10 Reasons Why America Will Continue To Dominate The Global Economy For Years Steven Perlberg Jun. 22, 2013, 7:08 AMFlickr / Tambako the Jaguar The U.S. economy is in recovery mode right now. Sure, investors have been spooked by Fed taper talks, the Bank of Japan's unprecedented economic experiment, persistent jitters out of Europe, and concerns of a credit crisis in China. But by in large, investors should be pleased with the way things are going domestically, according to a new report from Joseph Quinlan, Chief Market Strategist for U.S. Trust. We walk you through U.S. Trust's 10 theses that...

“Sopranos” star James Gandolfini, who struggled with booze addiction in his final weeks, scarfed down a decadent final meal that included at least eight alcoholic drinks, The Post has learned. Gandolfini guzzled four shots of rum, two pina coladas, and two beers at dinner with his son — while he chowed down on two orders of fried king prawns and a “large portion” of foie gras, a hotel source in Rome said. The Emmy Award winner had attended several Alcoholics Anonymous meetings on Perry Street in the West Village, but people who saw him there “didn’t think that he was...

Reasons Why U.S. Housing Market Recovery Is Genuine Housing-Market / US Housing Jun 19, 2013 - 07:39 PM GMTGary Gately By: Money Morning Gary Gately writes: The housing market recovery is for real this time. Coming after the housing market crash, the recovery is welcome news to those in the industry - and bodes well for the economy as a whole. "It almost seems too good to be true," Lawrence Yun, the chief economist at the National Association of Realtors, told Money Morning. The latest confirmation of the market's rebound is the new survey of home builder confidence from Wells...

Global Recession Forecast - Is PIMCO's Bill Gross Wrong Again? Stock-Markets / Financial Markets 2013 June 17, 2013 - 05:01 PM GMT By: Money Morning Keith Fitz-Gerald writes: Stuart Varney put the question directly to me last week during his Fox Business show: What do I make of comments from PIMCO's Bill Gross...that he's projecting a 60% chance of a global recession in the next three to five years? Now, Bill Gross is obviously one of the most powerful men in the world. PIMCO, the firm he founded, is the world's biggest bond manager. He has assets under management of...

JIM O'NEILL: We Could See A Bond Crash Steven Perlberg Jun. 14, 2013, 12:33 PM As the market speculates on when the Fed will begin to slow its quantitative easing program, former Goldman Sachs Asset Management chairman Jim O'Neill isn't alone in believing a taper would mean turbulence for financial markets. But for O'Neill, it would also "not be a stretch" to see 5% yields on the 10-year Treasury, reports Bloomberg. Given the 10-year's current 2.11% yield, that would imply a big sell-off in the bond market. O'Neill talked about that — and his prediction for a bond crash —...

ANALYST: 'There Are So Many Dominoes Just Waiting To Topple That We’re No Longer Sure What To Watch' Matthew BoeslerJune 12, 2013 The reverberations emanating from rising U.S. Treasury yields over the past several weeks are shaking financial markets around the world. Almost every government bond market – across both developed and emerging economies – is experiencing rising yields as U.S. Treasuries get cheaper, yield more, and thus become more attractive to global investors. At the same time, fears that the Federal Reserve may begin to taper back monetary stimulus – which have been driving the rise in Treasury yields...

While economists and politicians celebrate economic recovery, the American people refuse to accept the good news. Only a third of the public sees the nation headed in “the right direction” – a figure that’s dropped ten points since President Obama’s re-election. Improved unemployment numbers hide the fact that millions have dropped out of the work force. The percentage of the working age population that’s employed is only 58.6% – much worse than 2007, and virtually unchanged since the recession’s darkest days. New claims that US households have, overall, regained the wealth they lost, concentrate on improved circumstances for the top...

Best Explanation For The Fake U.S. Housing Market Recovery Housing-Market / US Housing Jun 06, 2013 - 04:37 PM GMT By: Profit Confidential Michael Lombardi Michael Lombardi writes: The average American Joe isn’t participating in the U.S. housing market. As a matter of fact, according to the Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance HousingPulse Tracking Survey, investors purchased 69% of “damaged” properties in April 2013, while first-time home buyers accounted for only 16% of “damaged” purchases. It is very well documented in these pages how home prices in the U.S. economy are being driven upward by institutional investors. Affirming my stance on the...

MIKE O'ROURKE: Here's The 'Bearmageddon Scenario' That Would Be A Nightmare For The Stock Market And Bernanke Joe Weisenthal Jun. 7, 2013, 5:23 AM Strategist Mike O'Rourke of JonesTrading has a section of his latest note describing the "bearmageddon scenario" for stocks and the Fed. He doesn't say that this is his base case, but he thinks it's worth pondering a possible path forward that sees the economy weaken, and the futility of QE exposed, boxing in everyone. He writes: The Bearmageddon Scenario is one where the economic data rolls over and turns negative. The reason we are mentioning it...

JOBS REPORT BEATS AT 175K, UNEMPLOYMENT RISES TO 7.6% Joe Weisenthal and Matthew Boesler June 7, 2013, 8:29 AM It's a beat! The change in nonfarm payrolls in May's jobs report came in at 175,000, better than expectations for 163,000. Last month's number was revised down to 149,000 from 165,000. The unemployment rate actually edged up from 7.5% to 7.6%. The change in private payrolls was 178,000, which beat expectations for a 175,000 gain. Last month's private payrolls number, however, was revised down to 157,000 from 176,000. Manufacturing payrolls fell by 8,000. Economists were predicting a gain of 4,000. Average...

ALBERT EDWARDS: Everyone's Worst Fears For The Stock Market And Economy Have Been Confirmed Sam Ro Jun. 6, 2013, 7:50 AM Albert EdwardsIn the last month, the economy gave us some particularly worrisome economic data. Societe Generale's Albert Edwards flags two data points: Q1 corporate profit growth, which unexpectedly turned negative, and the May ISM manufacturing report, which is now signaling a contraction in the sector. "History tells us that this is a warning sign we ignore at our peril," he wrote. Edwards notes that the ISM numbers have been on the same path as they were going into the...

<p>"It's not a recovery. It's not even normal growth. It's bad," UCLA economist Edward Leamer says.</p> <p>The country's tepid growth in its gross domestic product isn't creating enough good jobs to build a strong middle class, according to a UCLA report released Wednesday.</p>

MISS: US COMPANIES ADD ONLY 135,000 JOBS Sam Ro June 5, 2013The ADP jobs report is out, and it's a miss. US companies added only 135,000 jobs in May, which was well below the 165,000 expected by economists. The April measure was also revised down to +113,000 from a prior reading of +119,000. "Notably, a gain of 5,000 jobs in the construction industry during May was offset by a decline of 6,000 lost jobs in the manufacturing industry," said ADP's Carlos Rodriguez. Here's a break down by company size: * Small (1-49 employees): +58,000 * Medium (50-499 employees): +39,000 *...

CHART OF THE DAY: Home Prices Are Rising At The Fastest Pace Since February 2006 Mamta Badkar Jun. 4, 2013, 9:24 AM Home prices (including distressed sales) climbed 12.1% year-over-year in April, according to Corelogic's latest home price report. Home prices were up 3.2% month-over-month in April. This was the biggest year-over-year increase since February 2006, and the 14th straight monthly increase. Moreover, on an annual basis, home prices were up in all 50 states for the second straight month. Ex-distressed sales home prices were up 11.9% on the year, and 3% on the month. "Increasing demand for new and...