News
FOX News | US manufacturing shrinks for first time in 3 years
U.S. manufacturing shrank in June for the first time in nearly three years, a troubling sign as evidence builds that economic growth is slowing.
Bloomberg | Euro-Area Manufacturing Contracted for 11th Month in June
Euro-area manufacturing output contracted for an 11th straight month in June as Europe’s debt crisis sapped demand across the continent.
CNBC | US Small Business Lending Jumps in May
Lending to small U.S. businesses rose in May to its highest level this year, a sign of stronger economic growth ahead even as other data suggest fragility, a report showed on Monday.
FOX News | Congress passes student loans, highway jobs bill
Congress emphatically approved legislation Friday preserving jobs on transportation projects from coast to coast and avoiding interest rate increases on new loans to millions of college students, giving lawmakers campaign-season bragging rights on what may be their biggest economic achievement before the November elections.
CNN Money | Chinese manufacturing continues to slump
The National Bureau of Statistics in Beijing said Sunday morning that the China Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index for June fell to 50.2 from 50.4 in May. Any reading below 50 signals contraction in the manufacturing sector.
Bloomberg | China’s Manufacturing Growth Weakens as New Orders Drop
Chinese manufacturing indexes slipped to seven-month lows as overseas orders dropped, and South Korea cut its estimate for exports this year, underscoring risks to Asian economies from Europe’s debt crisis.
FOX News | US construction spending rose 0.9 percent in May
A surge in homebuilding pushed U.S. construction spending up by the largest amount in five months, the latest indication that the housing sector is slowly recovering.
WSJ | Banks Face Foreclosure Regulation by States
States across the country are proposing a range of new rules that would make it more difficult for banks to foreclose on troubled homeowners.
Econ Comments & Analysis
AEI | Opposing view: Don't rely on refinancing
The Federal Reserve continues its efforts to lower interest rates and the administration keeps expanding mortgage refinance programs, all in an effort to promote more lending. One result has been 14 million residential refinances since 2009.
WSJ | Merkel: Just Say Nein to Eurobonds
The European financial crisis has created an unusual mix of allies. Politicians, hedge fund managers, liberal pundits and the financial press are determined to convince German Chancellor Angela Merkel that economic salvation requires the European Central Bank to issue eurobonds.
Hillsdale News | Federal Student Aid and the Law of Unintended Consequences
Federal student financial assistance programs are costly, inefficient, byzantine, and fail to serve their desired objectives. In a word, they are dysfunctional, among the worst of many bad federal programs.
Washington Times | The pension bubble
As if the housing market collapse and European debt crisis weren’t bad enough, another fiscal disaster looms on the horizon. New rules adopted last week by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) clarify the depth of mismanagement of state and local government pension programs. When the bills come due, it’s going to be very, very expensive.
WSJ | Obama and 'The Wealth of Nations'
President Obama should put Adam Smith's "The Wealth of Nations" at the top of his summer reading list. This was clear after listening to his 54-minute list of economic excuses and policy proposals delivered earlier this month on the campus of Cuyahoga Community College in Cleveland.
Blogs
WSJ | Economists React: ISM Indicates ‘Economy Is Going Nowhere’
Economists and others weigh in on the unexpected contraction in the U.S. manufacturing sector.
Heritage Foundation | Chart of the Week: Household Income Soars In Energy-Producing States
North Dakota: More Jobs and Better-Paying Jobs
Econ Matters | Crude Oil Market: A Perfect Bear Storm Despite the Euro Pop
Crude oil prices, along with world stocks, surged on Friday after euro zone leaders reached an accord on directly recapitalizing regional banks as well as measures to cut soaring borrowing costs in Italy and Spain.
