News
Bloomberg | Business Activity in U.S. Expands for First Time in Three Months
Business activity in the U.S. expanded in November for the first time in three months, showing superstorm Sandy is less damaging to the economy nationally.
USA Today | AAA warns E15 gasoline could cause car damage
E15, a higher blend of ethanol and gasoline, has rolled out in a handful of states. But its use in older vehicles is generating warnings from AAA, which says E15 could be harmful to pre-2012 vehicles.
Bloomberg | Germany Seen Recession-Bound in Poll Showing Euro Crisis
Germany, Europe’s largest economy, will be tipped into recession as the sovereign debt crisis roiling its neighbors extends into the new year, according to the Bloomberg Global Poll.
Market Watch | Why mortgage deduction may sail by fiscal cliff
As Washington battles over fiscal-cliff compromises, it’s likely that lawmakers will kick the can or at most make only small adjustments to one tax break that analysts say is ripe for reform: the mortgage-interest deduction.
Bloomberg | Corporate Bond Sales in U.S. Climb to Cap Busiest November Ever
Corporate bond sales in the U.S. capped the busiest November on record as issuance climbed to $45 billion this week, while relative yields narrowed as companies sought to lock in borrowing costs at almost unprecedented lows.
Market Watch | U.S. personal spending declines in October
Consumer spending in the U.S. fell 0.2% in October, the first decline in five months, while incomes were essentially flat, the Commerce Department said Friday.
Bloomberg | ECB Withholding Secret Greek Swaps File Keeps Taxpayers in Dark
The European Central Bank’s court victory allowing it to withhold files showing how Greece used derivatives to hide its debt leaves one of the region’s most powerful institutions free from public scrutiny as it assumes even more regulatory power.
National Journal | Fundamentals of Recent Economic Growth Are Not Fine
The economy is growing faster than initially thought, according to a Thursday report, but it may be taking on more fat than muscle, which could slow down growth in the final few months of the year, economists say.
Blogs
Calculated Risk | Kansas City Fed: Regional Manufacturing Activity "Eased Further" in November
According to Chad Wilkerson, vice president and economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, the survey revealed that Tenth District manufacturing activity eased further in November, while producers’ expectations were unchanged from last month at modestly positive levels.
Daily Capitalist | BEA Raises 3rd Quarter 2012 GDP Growth Estimate To 2.67%
In their second estimate of the US GDP for the third quarter of 2012 the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) found that the economy was growing at a 2.67% annualized rate, an upward revision of +0.65% from the previously published first estimate for the quarter.
Calculated Risk | A few comments on GDP Revision and Unemployment Claims
GDP Revision: Although Q3 real GDP growth was revised up from 2.0% annualized to 2.7%, the underlying details were disappointing.
AEI | A rather weak attack on NGDP targeting
I find much value in the idea of the Federal Reserve adopting a nominal GDP target. It provides a rule-based system to guide monetary policy and an anchor to economic expectations.
