Monthly Archives: December 2014

ISM Non-Manufacturing: Continued Growth In November

Today the Institute for Supply Management published its latest Non-Manufacturing Report. The headline NMI Composite Index is at 59.3 percent, up from last month’s 57.1 percent. Today’s number came in above the Investing.com forecast of 57.5. Here is the report summary: “The NMI® registered 59.3 percent in November, 2.2 percentage points higher than the October reading of 57.1 percent….

Jobs: Shale States Vs Non-Shale States

Consider: lower oil prices unequivocally “make everyone better off”, Right? Wrong. First: new oil well permits collapse 40% in November; why is this an issue? Because since December 2007, or roughly the start of the global depression, shale oil states have added 1.36 million jobs while non-shale states have lost 424,000 jobs. *  *  * This should…

The Illusion Of Full Employment And Technology

Recently, Tim Duy wrote an interesting piece entitled “Yes, I am Optimistic” wherein he stated that: “The lesson no one wants to draw from this recovery is that the US economy is both stronger and more resilient than commonly believed. Do not dismiss the real improvement in the economy since 2009. It is not unimportant that 2014…

EC Third Quart

On Monday, the third quarter earnings season will officially close out, with H&R Block as the final S&P 500 company to report. The season is ending with impressive earnings growth of 11.7%, paired with revenue growth of 4.8%, proving that companies are still closely managing costs and using share buybacks to get a pop on…

ADP: US Private Payrolls Increased 208k In November

US companies added 208,000 workers in November, according to this morning’s ADP Employment Report. The gain was a bit softer than the consensus forecast,but overall the labor market continues to show a solid rate of growth. “At this pace the unemployment rate will drop by half a percentage point per annum,” Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics,…

The Faux Nikkei

“Hey, Nikkei, you’re so fine, you’re so fine you blow my mind, hey, Nikkei!” OK, as a child of the 80s, I couldn’t help myself. Anyway……. The Japanese stock market seems like it’s just doing great guns. I mean, goodness gracious me, look at this – gee whillikers! Just for kicks, I decided to see…