From Calculated Risk: After the excellent stock market returns in January (just kidding – actually the worst January ever), it is probably time to check in on the Four Bad Bear markets … first, from MarketWatch: U.S. stocks end worst January on record with more losses The S&P 500 index fell 19 points, or 2.3%, […]
From Calculated Risk: Note: This is a new “record low”, but the index has only been compiled since 2002, so this is the first recession for the index. From the National Restaurant Association (NRA): Restaurant Industry Outlook Softens as the Restaurant Performance Index Fell to a Record Low in December The outlook for the restaurant […]
Weakness in the bulk commodities markets, reflecting the depth of the recession, is shown by the incredible 92% decline in the Baltic Dry Index. … Construction and energy-intensive manufacturing are the first sectors to slump in a recession. This has cut the demand for bulk commodity inputs, leading to the Baltic Dry Index decline. Cargo […]
From Calculated Risk: More cliff diving … From the International Air Transport Association: Cargo Plummets 22.6% in December (hat tip Bob_in_MA) In the month of December global international cargo traffic plummeted by 22.6% compared to December 2007. The same comparison for international passenger traffic showed a 4.6% drop. The international load factor stood at 73.8%. […]
From Calculated Risk: The Census Bureau reports, New Home Sales in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 331 thousand. This is the lowest sales rate the Census Bureau has ever recorded (starting in 1963). …This graph shows New Home Sales vs. recessions for the last 45 years. New Home Sales have fallen […]
From Calculated Risk: From the American Trucking Association: ATA Truck Tonnage Index Plummeted 11.1 Percent in December (hat tip Dave of SV) Click on graph for larger image in new window. The American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index plunged 11.1 percent in December 2008, marking the largest month-to-month reduction since April […]
World economic growth is set to fall to just 0.5% this year, its lowest rate since World War II, warns the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In October, the IMF had predicted world output would increase by 2.2% in 2009. It now projects the UK, which recently entered recession, will see its economy shrink by 2.8% […]
As many as 51 million jobs worldwide could be lost this year because of the global economic crisis, says the International Labour Organization (ILO). The UN agency says that would push up the world’s unemployment rate to 7.1% by the end of 2009, compared with 6.0% in 2008 and 5.7% in 2007. … "If the […]
From Calculated Risk: S&P/Case-Shiller released their monthly Home Price Indices for November this morning. This includes prices for 20 individual cities, and two composite indices (10 cities and 20 cities). This graph shows the year-over-year change in both indices. The Composite 10 is off 19.1% over the last year. The Composite 20 is off 18.2% […]
A weak housing market and decreased consumer spending raised the state’s jobless rate to its highest level in 14 years By Dean Calbreath (Contact) Union-Tribune Staff Writer The unemployment rate in California soared to 9.3 percent last month – its highest point in 15 years – as construction firms, hotels, restaurants, casinos and amusement parks […]
