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Thursday, November 3, 2011

General Economics

News                                                                                                                             
CNN: Money | Consumers are scared? Really?
With all the worries about Europe being on the brink of financial disaster again and increased nervousness about the U.S. economy, you'd think consumers would be cowering in a closet in fear and stuffing their money in the mattress.
Politico | Report: Poverty hits record level
The number of Americans below poverty level has hit a new record, making up about 20.5 million people, The Associated Press reports.
WSJ | Europe's Greece Ultimatum
France, Germany Say the Nation Must Decide Whether to Stay in Euro or Go.
CNN: Money | TD Bank adds $9 savings account fee, hikes others
As other banks recoil from the customer wrath they faced after attempting to introduce debit card fees, TD Bank is rolling out a brand new fee and hiking others.
WSJ | Euro-Zone Data Add to Signs of Slump
Manufacturing activity in the euro zone contracted in October at its steepest rate since July 2009, adding to signs that growth in the region is grinding to a halt just a day before the European Central Bank decides whether or not to cut its key interest rate.

Econ Comments                                                                                                             
Financial Times | Five grim and essential lessons for world leaders
The depression that looked possible then has been avoided but the outlook is hardly satisfactory. What can be learnt from the past three years as the G20 gathers in Cannes? The world’s leaders, especially the Europeans, will ignore the following lessons at their peril.
Washington Times | DECKER: The China surge
Beijing is running circles around a limping U.S. economy.
CNN: Money | The telltale symptoms of troubled companies
A recently published list of 10 troubled corporations highlights just how difficult it is to address rampant cronyism on many major companies' boards.
Atlantic | Welcome to America's Lost Decade
The U.S. may face a prolonged period of stagnation. That's the warning from a Reuters op-ed written earlier this week by PIMCO CEO and co-CIO Mohamed El-Erian.
Reason.com | You Want More Equality? Support More Capitalism
A person can't go but a few clicks on the Internet these days without tripping over some shocking item about the "explosion" of income inequality that has, like the dark smog of capitalistic excess, been choking the life out of this unjust nation.
The Street | Cramer: CEOs Fret More About Obama Than Europe
Can this economy turn without Washington's help? Can it turn even with Washington hurting it? Those are the two questions I am asking industrial CEOs and the answers are a little surprising.
Market Watch | 5 ways to improve the U.S. retirement system
U.S. has 10th best pension system of 14 countries studied.
USA Today | Could Japan's economic malaise strike here in U.S.?
Japan has suffered more than two decades of subpar economic growth, made all the more miserable by falling consumer prices, a stagnant real estate market and a moribund stock market. The worry: that the U.S. economy devolves into something like Japan's.

Blogs                                                                                                                             
Daily Capitalist | Free Trade: The Giant Sucking Sound
Ross Perot in his ill fated presidential run back in 1996 predicted that the passing of NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) would result in a “giant sucking sound” of jobs going to Mexico. Of course he was and is wrong.
Café Hayek | Breaking news: creditors lose money in MF Global collapse!
The collapse of MF Global, a highly leveraged gambler on Europe’s fate using other people’s money means that those who funded those gambles have lost virtually all of their money.
Atlantic: Megan McArdle | Could Smarter Rules Have Protected MF Global's Clients?
There are some kinds of problems that seem like an indictment of the system--like, say the 2008 mess. No matter what your political persuasion, you probably think that the chaos of 2008-9 indicates that we need to somehow change the rules that goverened those markets.
WSJ: Real Time Economics | World-Wide Factory Activity, by Country
Purchasing managers' index were mostly lower across the globe.
NRO: The Corner | Who Is Optimistic About the EuroZone?
I can see a scenario where Greece gets a better deal from EU leaders thanks to this referendum move. But I doubt a deal acceptable to all parties, including the private sector, that could fix Europe exists at this point.
Daily Capitalist | Manufacturing Is Not “OK” And Will Decline In Coming Months
The U.S. ISM Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for October showed mixed results.