Fed Chief Ben Bernanke said today that ”the recession is very likely over at this point” and that he is confident that “comprehensive reform will be forthcoming”. However, we can already see the old argument that the free market works best when unregulated coming. Greed will never go away and the lobbyists, and the politicians beholden to them, are sure to put up a fight against stringent regulation. Some things never change. So, After Bernanke’s comments today and President Obama’s yesterday regarding reform, do you feel that congress can deliver the necessary legislation to reform our financial markets to prevent a recession of this magnitude again? And, do you think Wall Street will buy in, or resist?
Today, One year after the collapse of Lehman Brothers that sent the financial world into chaos, President Obama will deliver a speech to Wall Street, but has anything really changed? Executives are still getting huge salaries and bonuses, many after being saved with taxpayer money. Have the lessons of this recession already been lost after the last round of, in some cases, obscene profits as many average American continue to struggle? Let us know if you feel Wall Street has changed or is it just business as usual?
Most financial analysts, and so called experts, are saying that recession is, or is just about over, and that we will return to growth by the end of the year. The markets seem to agree with a rather large run up since the March lows, despite staggeringly high unemployment. But we are not interested in what they think, we are interested in what our fellow average Americans out on the street think. We at AmeriGobble think you know better. So, is the recession over?
Apple CEO Steve Jobs returned to work yesterday after a year long medical leave and brought along a sense of excitement that only he can. What do you think will be the impact of his return on Apple?
After years on NAFTA, outsourcing and the recent staggering job losses, will there be a manufacturing base left in America in 10 years? Can Green technology provide the manufacturing base we need to sustain a viable middle class in America?
Good news out of Detroit. In response to the increased demand ignited by the Federal “Cash for Clunkers” program, GM will be adding shifts, overtime and reinstating 1,350 workers to help produce an additional 60,000 vehicles this year.
While this is great considering the depths that GM fell to, we hope that they are not overestimating demand, only to left with a plethora of unsold vehicles. Put simply, will the buyers be there. Maybe, maybe not.
In the short term this can only help the economy by putting more money into to pockets of hard working Americans. Considering we have a consumer driven economy here in the US, the impact of this can not be understated. Jobs create spending. The more money paid to employees, the more money the employees spend. While we at AmeriGobble don’t expect that consumer confidence will suddenly skyrocket or that the unemployment rate will drop with this announcement, every little bit helps.
However, in the long term we at AmeriGobble are unsure of the demand for new vehicles and that is where caution in forecasting is crucial. While the “Cash for Clunkers” program has been extended it is becoming apparent that demand for that program is on the decline, as those with clunkers and the money to buy a new vehicle have already largely participated. Mistakes in forecasting can have devastating effects on a company. Remember there is a carrying cost to holding onto an unsold vehicle, and with high inventories layoffs again may result.
So, leave us a gobble and tell us what you think about this move by GM and if you think the demand will still be there for these additional 60,000 vehicles.
Stock market up, consumer confidence down. Home sales increasing, foreclosure at record levels. Corporate profits up, retail sales down. Unemployment rate down, but 227,000 jobs lost in July. We are confused by all the conflicting data here at AmeriGobble so maybe you can help us out.
We are just trying to get an accurate gauge on where things really stand with the economy. We know this is a deep recession, but the recent sentiment by experts and the media almost sounds rosy. Like we have turned the corner. Just the other day Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke issued a optimistic statement hinting that the recession is nearly over, and indicating that interest rates will be kept low for some time. The result, a vigorous market rally continuing the upswing started back in March! Good times ahead for all, right.
Then just today we get reports that retail sales declined and confidence among the consumer is eroding. Result, the market tanks. What gives! If the consumers are not yet ready to start spending, then how can the experts be so rosy. What are we missing?
Anyway, we trust you more than anybody here at AmeriGobble, so give us a gobble and let us know where you think things stand with economy right now, because we can’t tell fact from fiction or head from tails right now. And it seems that the experts and media can’t either!
The results are in. The Federal Cash for Clunkers program has undoubtedly been a smashing success, with hundreds of thousands old clunkers now off the road, replaced by new fuel efficient vehicles. On it’s own merits this sounds like a dream program, but before we pass final judgment on such market manipulating programs, let’s consider what some of the unintended consequences may be.
First, where are all the new car sales going to come from in the next year or two. Will there be enough demand left after the program runs it course or did the next few years worth of demand just get consumed in the last few weeks. If this current rush just cannibalized future sales, where will that leave the industry? Vulnerable to say the least.
Also, since the Clunkers are being destroyed, they are being removed from the used car market supply, which is likely to cause a spike in used car prices. So in essence, one man’s $4,500 savings is likely to be a substantial increase on the price of a used car for someone else. Every action has a reaction.
Finally, there may be an impact on small auto shops. With so many clunkers off the road and more new cars on the road, there may not be as much demand for auto repair shops, especially since the new car warranties are pretty good these days. The older cars are their bread and butter.
So, while the Cash for Clunkers program seems to have successfully met its goal, it is often the unintended consequences that are remembered the most. Give us a Gobble and tell us what you think of the cash for Clunkers program.
At some point we assume there will be no more jobs to cut and thus the new jobless claims will be zero. But that won’t happen for a while and it won’t be good news when it does, it will simply mean that the unemployment rate will have maxed out and we’ll all be left wondering what we are going to do next. Today the US Department of labor announce that 247,000 jobs were lost in July so this could still get real ugly
While some analysts cheer about the decrease in numbers of jobs being lost while as they play on “Wall Street”, our thoughts here at AmeriGobble are with the hard working Americans looking to make ends meat in an uncertain and trying job market. In particularly, what are we going to do long term to add enough jobs to have a functioning and productive society capable of producing a livelihood for all who want to participate? Once we get to zero jobless claims where will we be? We need a long term plan! We need a plan other than enriching Wall Street that creates jobs. No more gimmicks, no more trickle down, no more games!
We need Jobs that create value for the American people. We need wind and solar factories here in America and we need to produce energy efficient vehicles, homes, smart electrical grids, wind and solar farms. We need solar panels that are made in America on every building in America. We need bold, project based plans that create jobs, leave a lasting infrastructure that the helps the economy be providing savings in the future. We need to be leaders again and we need to lead by example. We need to produce quality.
It seems like there are so many possibilities for new jobs in the “green” economy, but that the dream is still is out of reach. One thing is for sure if the public and private stakeholders can’t come up with a plan, we will miss the boat!
At AmeriGobble, we are very pleased to see the success of the Federal Cash for Clunkers program and hope that new funds can be made available by the senate to continue the program. This is the kind of stimulus spending from the government that AmeriGobble has wanted to see from the beginning.
We like the concept of getting the old low mileage, polluting vehicles off the road, giving consumers a good deal and stimulating the car industry all at the same time. Even better, we get to see our stimulus tax dollars actually stimulate something. It’s almost like government can actually do something. It may not be perfect, but it sure is having more of an impact than any of the stimulus dollars spent thus far.
One of the benefits that will be interesting to track is one that has not been discussed much and that is what the impact on the US demand for oil will be. While this program alone will not change things significantly, if we can eventually upgrade our fleet of vehicles in the US, we could well be on our way to the energy independence we so greatly desire.
Leave us a gobble and let us know what you think the impacts of the Cash for Clunkers program will be and if you feel the program should be extended.
