Tell me again why Bush is not doing a good job?
Consumer Confidence at 14-Month High
49 minutes ago Add Business - Reuters to My Yahoo!
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. consumer confidence (news - web sites) surged to its highest level in over a year, exceeding economists' rosy expectations, as consumers grew more hopeful about the job market, a report said on Tuesday.
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Private research firm the Conference Board (news - web sites) said its index of consumer confidence climbed to 91.7, its highest level since Sept. 2002, from a revised 81.7 in October. Wall Street analysts had forecast a rise to 85.0.
"Consumers believe a slow but sure labor market turnaround is underway," said Lynn Franco, director of research at the Conference Board.
The percentage of consumers saying that jobs were hard to get fell to 29.5 percent in November from 33.7 percent the previous month. Consumers' view of the future grew rosier, lifting the expectations component of the index to 99.4 in Nov. from 91.5. The present situation index rose to 80.1 from 67.0.
Here is another one for you Liberals....
Economy Surges in Third Quarter, Spending Soars
1 hour, 19 minutes ago Add Business - Reuters to My Yahoo!
By Glenn Somerville
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Robust business and consumer spending powered the U.S. economy ahead at an even brisker clip in the third quarter than first thought, the government said on Tuesday in a report that also showed the biggest corporate profits jump in more than a decade.
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Quote Data provided by Reuters
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Best buys for your gadget lover, plus great gifts under and when money's no object.
Gross domestic product, or GDP (news - web sites), shot up at an 8.2 percent annual rate, more than double the second quarter's 3.3 percent gain and the strongest quarterly advance in 19-1/2 years.
A month ago, the Commerce Department (news - web sites) said GDP grew at a 7.2 percent rate.
The 8.2 percent gain surpassed Wall Street economists' forecasts for a revision to 7.8 percent. Bond prices initially dipped on the signs of resurgent growth but steadied later.
The report pointed to a long-awaited revival in corporate investment, with nonresidential business spending surging at a 14 percent annual rate, double the second quarter's 7.3 percent and ahead of the initially reported third-quarter rise of 11.1 percent.
Analysts said this number was especially heartening.
"This is a red hot economy," said economist Patrick Fearon of A.G. Edwards and Sons Inc. in St. Louis, Missouri. "It looks like a lot of the revision came in investments, which is a positive sign because that had been an area of real weakness for a while."
The department sharply revised its estimate of inventory reductions, saying stocks of unsold goods fell by $14.1 billion in the quarter instead of the $35.8 billion drop it originally reported.
Consumer spending, bolstered by tax cuts, grew at a revised 6.4 percent annual pace in the third quarter, below the 6.6 percent pace estimated a month ago but well ahead of the second quarter's 3.8 percent growth rate.
Most forecasters say the third-quarter jump in GDP is unlikely to be matched in coming quarters as the impact of this year's tax cuts wanes but they still foresee growth in a range of about 4 percent for the balance of this year and into 2004.
Economist Ken Mayland of Clearview Economics LLC in Pepper Pike, Ohio, said the report showed a better balance in growth that was promising for continued healthy expansion.
"The next phase of economic recovery has to be reinforced by capital spending ... here we have some very strong evidence that businesses loosened up on the purse strings: a real sign of confidence in the economy," Mayland said.
Corporate profits after tax climbed at a 10.6 percent annual rate during the quarter, a sharp change from the second quarter's 5 percent contraction. Commerce said it was the strongest pickup in profits since a 12.4 percent jump in the fourth quarter of 1992.
Fed officials have said firmer corporate profits are vital to sustained growth, not only because they bolster confidence but also because they provide the means and incentive for companies to hire new workers and add to production capacity.
Commerce will issue a final estimate of the quarterly growth data next month.
Shhhhhhh... They have nothing to bitch about if the economy turns... The economy and the spotted owls are about all they have left... (and the economy is not going to be an action item on their side)
Spoken like a true Liberal....LOL W/o Sept. 11th I would have to agree with not going into Iraq. But damn I would rather strike first for a change. Don't you agree?
If we are going to sacrific American lives, I would like to think we were going after the right targets and not being lied to by our President as to the reasons.
Now, let me ask you, do you support the current Adminstrations change in its position on nation building?
When all is said and done you can't fall back on the WOMD as justification for this War. So, spin it all you want - put it into new contexts or whatever you want - but the truth is he misled the American people about his motivations. Lets have some fun and go back and read Gerald's posts about how off the mark I was on questioning the "intelligence sources" being quoted. [img]/images/graemlins/laughing.gif[/img]
I do not think he mislead us at all. He truly believed and I think he still does that Iraq had WOMD. Do you think if we had not gone in there that Sadaam would have stopped funding terrorist? I know they still have there supporters but damn if that did not eliminate one big supplier. You have to start somewhere. It is about time we struck while the iron was hot. Remember, our armed forces are 100% voluntary. It would be hard to fight anywhere if your troops did not believe in your cause. I don see any mass exodus by any of them or saying we should not be there. I think that speaks volumes.
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