Where Your 2011 Federal Tax Dollars Went
The Federal Income Tax deadline was two days ago (April 17), so I hope you filed on time or filed an extension to avoid those penalties. As you wrote that check to the IRS, did you happen to ask yourself, where is this money going?
Is The Time Right For The Fed To Begin QE3?
Now that the giddy effects caused by two enormous rounds of Quantitative Easing and an Operation Twist are starting to wear off for the credit-addicted Wall Street crowd, the question on every investors mind is: When will the Fed announce QE3?
‘Massive jobs shortfall’ predicted for global economy
International Labour Organisation said the group of developing and developed nations had seen 20m jobs disappear since the financial crisis in 2008.
10 Cities Where Rents Are Rising the Most
Here are 10 cities where rents are rising the most, according to data provided by research firm REIS.
IMF Sharply Downgrades Outlook for U.S, Europe
The world economy has entered a “dangerous new phase,” according to the chief economist of the International Monetary Fund. As a result, the international lending organization has sharply downgraded its economic outlook for the United States and Europe through the end of next year.
Gloom and Doom: Consumer Sentiment Plunges to 31-Year Low
Consumer sentiment inched up in early September but Americans remained gloomy about the future with their expectations falling to the lowest level since 1980, a survey released on Friday showed.
SAT Scores Fall Nationwide: Another Sign of U.S. Economic Decline
The College Board today announced that 43 percent of 2011 college-bound seniors met the SAT® College and Career Readiness Benchmark.
Income Slides to 1996 Levels
The income of the typical American family—long the envy of much of the world—has dropped for the third year in a row and is now roughly where it was in 1996 when adjusted for inflation.
Foreclosures Soar 200% in August
Bank of America is ramping up its foreclosure processing, sending out far more notices of default to borrowers in August than in previous months, well over 200 percent more month-to-month.
REPORT: U.S. Poverty Rate Soars to Nearly 1 in 6
The ranks of U.S. poor swelled to nearly 1 in 6 people last year, reaching a new high as long-term unemployment woes left millions of Americans struggling and out of work.
Obama’s debt commission warns of fiscal ‘cancer’
The two leaders — former Republican senator Alan Simpson of Wyoming and Erskine Bowles, White House chief of staff under President Bill Clinton– sought to build support for the work of the commission, whose recommendations due later this year are likely to spark a fierce debate in Congress.
Consumer Confidence Index plummets to 52.9 in June; Lowest numbers since March
U.S. consumers are increasingly worried about jobs and the economy, the Conference Board said Tuesday, as it reported that its consumer confidence index plummeted to 52.9 in June — the lowest level since March — from a downwardly revised 62.7 in May.
Secretive and Powerful BIS Annual Report Released
The very fabric and the seams of the financial system are coming apart. Who knows what the timetable is for the implosion of the current monetary system? We are witnessing the greatest wealth transfer in history, and the horrors of the aftermath of this tragedy will not be forgotten for decades.
Consumer spending, incomes edged up in May
Americans spent a little more in May but not enough to speed along the economic recovery.
Consumer spending rose 0.2 percent last month after no change in April, the Commerce Department said Monday. Incomes rose for the sixth time in seven months, boosting household finances and potentially providing fuel for greater future spending.
New home sales plunge to lowest level on record
Sales collapsed a record 33 percent to an annual pace of 300,000 last month from April, less than the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News and the fewest in data going back to 1963, figures from the Commerce Department showed today in Washington. Demand in prior months was revised down.
Merrill Lynch: "Gold Will Hit $1,400/oz by 2012"
Merrill Lynch metals analysts maintain gold will hit a US$1,500 per ounce target by the end of next year as investor demand pushes gold prices higher.
In research published Monday, analysts Michael Widmer, Francisco Blanch, and Alex Tonks are predicting average gold price forecasts of US$1,200/oz this year, $1,350/oz in 2011, and $1,400/oz in 2012, up from $1110/oz, $1179/oz and $1109/oz. respectively.
Bank failure is 83rd in ’10; pace more than double last year’s
The 83 closures so far this year is more than double the pace set in all of 2009, which was itself a brisk year for shutdowns. By this time last year, regulators had closed 40 banks. The pace has accelerated as banks’ losses mount on loans made for commercial property and development.
China to Overtake U.S. as World’s Top Manufacturer
The US remained the world’s biggest manufacturing nation by output last year, but is poised to relinquish this slot in 2011 to China – thus ending a 110-year run as the number one country in factory production.
Central banks join gold rush
Foreign banks and investors alike have been flocking to the precious metal over the last year, sending it soaring to record highs.
Over 90 Banks Miss Their Bailout Payments
More than 90 U.S. banks and thrifts missed making a May 17 payment to the U.S. government under its main bank bailout program, signaling a rising number of lenders are struggling to meet their obligations.
Russia to Buy Canadian, Aussie Dollars for First Time
Russia may add the Australian and Canadian dollars to its international reserves for the first time after fluctuations in the U.S. dollar and euro.
Treasury Dept: China’s US govt debt holdings hit 2010 high
China’s holdings of US debt climbed to the highest level this year, the US Treasury said Tuesday even as Beijing stepped up attacks on the United States for its burgeoning debt.
UBS Forecasts: Gold, the ‘ultimate currency,’ to hit $1,500
AG said today in a report that projects prices will hit $1,500 (U.S.) an ounce in the next 12 months and says anything below $1,200 represents a buying opportunity.
Home repossessions hit record high in May
U.S. foreclosure activity fell in April as lenders repossessed homes at a record pace but started far fewer new actions against struggling homeowners, signaling a plateau in loan failures, RealtyTrac said on Thursday.
IMF: Risks to global economy have ‘risen significantly’
The risks to a robust global recovery have ‘risen significantly’ as many governments struggle with debt, a leading official from the International Monetary Fund has warned.
U.S debt to rise to $19.6 trillion by 2015
The U.S. debt will top $13.6 trillion this year and climb to an estimated $19.6 trillion by 2015, according to a Treasury Department report to Congress.
Government Jobs Account for 95% of May Job Increases
American companies hired fewer workers in May than forecast and workers dropped out of the labor force, indicating government support is still needed to spur economic growth. Private payrolls rose by 41,000, Labor Department figures showed today, trailing the 180,000 gain forecast by economists. Including government workers, employment rose by 431,000, boosted by a jump in hiring of temporary census workers. The jobless rate fell to 9.7 percent from 9.9 percent.
U.S. National Debt Tops $13 Trillion Mark
The federal government is now $13 trillion in the red, the Treasury Department reported Wednesday, marking the first time the government has sunk that far into debt and putting a sharp point on the spending debate on Capitol Hill.
Fed’s Hoenig lays out plan to hike interest rates
Thomas Hoenig, the president of the Kansas City Federal Reserve bank, laid out on Thursday his proposed plan to take short-term interest rates from near-zero to 4.5%. In a speech in Bartlesville, Okla., Hoenig said the country pays a high cost for low interest rates, suggesting that the financial crisis stemmed from the very low interest rates of 2002-2005.