According to the U.S. Census Bureau, for the first time in 35 years, more businesses in the U.S. economy are dying each year than being established. In 2013, 400,000 businesses started in the U.S. and 470,000 closed down. (Source: “American Entrepreneurship: Dead or Alive?” Gallup Inc. web site,…

IMF Lowers Economic Outlook for 2015 In what appears to be standard routine these days, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) slashed its economic outlook for 2015. This would mark the fourth consecutive downward revision from the IMF, suggesting that China’s stock market crash has left a deep impact…

Despite what the politicians tell us about economic growth in the U.S economy, Americans are earning significantly less today than they did before the 2008 financial crisis. The U.S. Census Bureau just reported that in 2014, real median household income in the U.S. economy was 6.5% lower than…

A fundamental problem that has plagued the U.S. economy in recent years is the fact that public companies are spending and borrowing for stock buybacks and are not investing in their businesses. In fact, by preferring to spend their money on stock buybacks as opposed to capital expenditures…

A new report shows poor households cannot earn enough to live in even the least expensive metropolitan American cities. This is a signal that the country’s slow-motion economic collapse is hitting low-income workers the hardest. Commentators continue to cheer on America’s so-called booming economic recovery. Last quarter, the…

I have written over and over again on how distorted the U.S. business sales and inventory figures are. Manufacturers are stockpiling products. Retailers are experiencing a decline in sales. Consumer spending is getting softer. But it’s more than just retail that is becoming a drag on the U.S.…

In a country where the annual gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate could be eight percent, its stock market should be a good place to invest, right? Well, according to the portfolio strategy research team at The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS), China’s economic growth will come back…

What used to be a leading indicator, the stock market has now become a lagging indicator. For months (in these pages), I have written about how sick the U.S. economy has become. Stock market investors are waking up to the reality that world economic growth is either non-existent…

In the month of July, the Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index declined nine percent from May. The index stood at 99.9 in June and plunged to 90.9 in July—the lowest level since September of 2014! A sub-index of this confidence index, called the Expectation Index, which measures how…

According to a Gallup survey, 51% of Americans say that they are in the middle or upper-middle class. Between 2000 and 2008, an average of 61% of Americans identified themselves to be in middle and upper-middle class. (Source: Gallup, April 28, 2015.) In the survey, the percentage of…

According to a study by Economic Policy Institute, a nonpartisan think tank, between 2009 and 2014, the salaries of CEOs at the largest U.S. companies increased by 54.3%. (Source: Economic Policy Institute, June 22,2015.) But the average American hasn’t done that well. Between 2009 and 2013, median U.S.…

Traders received another piece of disappointing economic data, suggesting the U.S. economic outlook isn’t as rosy as many economists believe. On Tuesday, June 30th, the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) reported Midwest manufacturing activity declined last month. In May, the Chicago Purchasing Manager Index (PMI) climbed to 49.4…

Since the credit crisis of 2008, the policies of the Federal Reserve have spurred immense financial inequality in the U.S. Those individuals (a very small minority) who were able to take advantage of the monetary policies of the Fed have done extremely well in expanding their wealth. But…

If you think the U.S. economy is improving, this story says that, truth be told, it’s the complete opposite for the economy, as recent data suggest there is no growth. U.S. Economy’s Jobs Market Tormented In March of this year, only 126,000 jobs were added to the U.S.…

Despite being the global reserve currency, the U.S. dollar has been a second-rate currency, trading in the doldrums. At least that was until last July when it began to show signs of life. Since then, the U.S. dollar index has risen more than 21%. But why is the…

There are issues brewing in the stock market with interest rates fears and the strengthening greenback that could drive the S&P 500 lower by five percent or more. When Will the Fed Increase Interest Rates? First, we have the fears surrounding rising interest rates after the strong improvement…

Look at any newspaper or watch any financial news channel and you will hear someone saying the U.S. economy is growing. To prove their point, they will refer to gross domestic product (GDP) figures and unemployment data. Yes, the GDP numbers and the unemployment picture do look better,…

The chart below shows us that between April and August of this year, home prices in the U.S. declined. The S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index is only released 60 days after each month’s end, so while data for September and October are not yet available, based on what…

According to research by UC Berkeley, in 2012, the top one percent of income earners in the U.S. earned 22.5% of all the income. The bottom 90%, on the other hand, earned less than 50% of all the income. (Source: Pew Research Center, January 7, 2014.) Income inequality…

On November 30, Switzerland’s citizens will cast a very critical vote. Through a referendum, they will vote for or against the Swiss National Bank increasing its gold bullion reserves to 20%, the central bank halting the selling of gold, and the storing of gold bullion in the country.…