News
CNN Money | State retiree benefits gap grows to $1.26 trillion
States are $1.26 trillion in the hole when it comes to their pension and retiree health obligations, according to a report released Tuesday.
CNN Money | Home prices near 'double dip'
Home prices in February sank 3.3% to just above the post-crisis lows reached in April 2009. It was the eighth straight month of declines.
CNN Money | Is the economy losing its mojo?
Inflation took a big bite out of the recovery in the beginning of the year, according to the latest forecasts, which have plummeted over the last several weeks.
National Journal | Frank: Cut Defense Budget, Reexamine NATO
Financial Services chair talks debt ceiling and military spending.
Yahoo | Oil slips as dollar gains, gasoline up for 34th straight day to $3.86 per gallon
The price of crude oil was stable Monday, dipping one cent to settle at US$112.28 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange as the U.S. dollar pulled back from lows set earlier in the day..
Econ Comments
RCM | Let's Put to Bed the 'America Is Bankrupt' Myth
To read economic and political commentary with any kind of frequency is to be bombarded daily - and hourly for that matter - with breathy articles about a United States groaning under deficits that surely signal bankruptcy, Social Security checks that eventually won't clear, and of course a looming financial crisis. A recent New York Times column by noted deficit scold David Stockman naturally referenced America's "desperate" financial situation.
NRO | In Search of Petrovillains
The Delegator-in-Chief has announced the creation of yet another inert task force, this one forced upon the attorney general and tasked with examining the role of “traders and speculators” in skyrocketing gasoline prices.
NRO | The Welfare State and the Selfish Society
Capitalism teaches people to work harder; the welfare state teaches people to want harder. Which is better?
AEI | Even US Can't Afford Generous Defined Benefits Systems
The defined benefit is dying. Barack Obama is struggling to keep it alive, but it's apparent that it's something that even as bounteously rich a society as ours can't afford.
Blogs
Reason | The Myth of Homeownership Wealth Creation
Homeownership is a decent savings account that grows with inflation, but it is not a wealth builder as many believe
Minyanville | Lasting Effects of Japan's Earthquake on China, Global Economies
Expect to see some downside surprises in China's PMIs as a result of a trade slowdown with Japan.
WSJ: Real Time Economics | Economists React: New Home Sales
New home sales rebounded 11% in March from the record-low they plumbed a month earlier. The number of new homes on the market slipped to 183,000, the lowest level since 1967 – but so few new homes are being sold it would still take more than 7 months to exhaust that supply. Economists react:
The Atlantic | What a Crisis Looks Like
There's been some discussion over the last few days of what is going to happen if China starts reducing its position in US Treasuries. Seeking Alpha has a good summation of the problem:
Café Hayek | Will Wilkinson on Paul Krugman
Agree with him or not (I nearly always do agree with him), the Economist‘s Will Wilkinson is unfailingly worth reading and pondering. His latest essay is an excellent example.
WSJ: Real Time Economics | How Gasoline Price Hikes Affect Buying Choices
A dollar is a dollar. So if rising prices cut into our purchasing power, textbook economics suggests that we’d carefully weigh all our buying decisions to determine where to cut back, and by how much.
The American | Green Energy: Don’t Envy Germany
Germany’s promotion of renewable energies is commonly portrayed as setting a standard for the rest of the world. It is instead a cautionary tale.
Reports
RCM: Wells Fargo | New Home Sales Jumped in March, but Still at Low Level
New home sales rose 11.1 percent in March to a 300,000-unit annual pace. Previous months’ data were upwardly revised by a net 32,000 units. Median and mean home prices both fell on a year ago-basis.
