You are here

Deficits

Male Retirement Age and Life Expectancy

Submitted by Roanman on Sat, 03/20/2010 - 16:26

 

I like to troll through Dr.Mark Perry's blog every week or so.

Dr. Perry is a professor at the University of Michigan, Flint Campus, School of Management.

Here's a nice table that illustrates what might be the single most profound issue with the "Social Security Trust Fund".

We are living a lot longer.

But retiring younger.

Click anywhere in the chart for Mr. Perry's fine blog, "Carpe Diem"

 

 

It's the Spending Stupid!!!!!

Submitted by Roanman on Wed, 03/03/2010 - 07:16

 

With the following set of Charts, The Heritage Foundation does a very nice job of demonstrating just exactly what our issues are with respect to the deficit.

All the below charts link to The Heritage Foundation's site, and another dozen or so thought provoking items.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To quote Gregor MacDonald

Submitted by Roanman on Thu, 02/11/2010 - 06:51

 

“The inevitable coming of the sovereign debt panic finally engulfed Europe this week as the derisively (or perhaps affectionately) named PIGS spilled their slop on the continent.

But Portugal, Ireland, Greece, and Spain are hardly worthy of so much attention.

In truth, they are little more than the currently favored proxies among the leveraged speculator community (cough) for the larger problem of all sovereign debt.

Indeed, the credit default swaps on these smaller European satellite states were not alone this week in making large moves higher.

UK sovereign risk rose strongly, and so did US sovereign risk. With a downgrade warning from Moody’s to boot.

“Notable among three of the PIGS are their relatively small populations, and small contributions to either world or European GDP.

While Spain has a population over 45 million, Portugal and Greece have populations roughly equal to a US state, such as Ohio–at around 10 million.

And Ireland? The Emerald Isle has a population similar to Kentucky, at around 4 million.

While the PIGS are without question a problem for Europe, whatever problems they present for Brussels are easily matched by the looming headache for Washington that’s coming from large, US states such as California, Florida, Illinois, Ohio, and Michigan.

“My seven states of energy debt represent a full 35% of the total US population.

As with other US states, they face looming policy clashes between protected state and city workers on one hand, and the growing ranks of the private economy’s underemployed on the other.

The recent circus at the LA City Council meeting was a nice foreshadowing that the days of unlimited borrowing by governments–against future growth based on cheap energy–is coming to an end.

Washington can print up dollars and fund these states for years, if it so chooses.

But just as with the 70 million people in Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain, the 108 million people in these seven large states are probably facing even higher levels of unemployment as austerity measures finally slam into their cashless coffers, and reduce their ability to borrow.”
 

To Quote Ibn Khaldun, and Arthur Laffer

Submitted by Roanman on Tue, 01/12/2010 - 07:37

Random stuff to think about

Submitted by Roanman on Tue, 12/08/2009 - 08:24

 

From the Associated Press

The number of Americans unemployed for 27 weeks or more in the US is over 5.9 million.

The most on record from 1948.

18% more than 90 days ago.

Long-term unemployment 38.3%.

Americans out of work for 14 weeks or less is 6.3 million, down from 7.1 million in August.

An 11% decline.

 

I've taken the occasional Porter Stansberry newsletter over the years, and have found the writing and the research to be good, the investment ideas, meh.

Porter says,

"Within the next 12 months, the U.S. Treasury will have to refinance $2 trillion in short-term debt."

Porter's analysis?  They're gonna print it.

 

From Monty Guild, Guild Investments

Facts Evaporate Myths 

 

Myth 1. China is dependent upon exports to the U.S.

Of total Chinese exports, 38 percent go to emerging markets, 21 percent to the European Union, 18 percent to the U.S. and 8 percent to Japan.

Additionally, exports have fallen to about 14 percent of China’s GDP if you include only the value added in China.

Total exports including those partially manufactured goods brought into China from other countries (and which have value added in China before export), make up about 30 percent of China’s GDP.

The fact is that exports to U.S. make up somewhere between 2.5 percent and 5 percent of China’s total GDP.

Infrastructure and consumer sectors have replaced exports as the main drivers of China’s GDP growth.

 

Myth 2. Very little is manufactured in the U.S. any more.

Merrill Lynch provides us with the following facts ‘…the U.S. is still the largest manufacturer by a long shot, making up 20 percent of the world’s total manufacturing output.

Furthermore, when focusing on the value added (as defined by the World Bank), the U.S. contributes more than double the production of the next largest producer, China.’

 

Myth 3: The U.S. does not export much except software and weapons.

Fact: The U.S. is the world’s third largest exporter (Germany is number one, and China is number two).

The U.S. exports value added industrial chemicals and supplies, capital goods like production machinery, computer and telecommunications equipment, motor vehicles and parts, and aircraft and aircraft parts.

The U.S. also is the world’s leading exporter of food, feed, and beverages.

Additionally, many billions of dollars in consumer goods, medicines, and media and entertainment products are exported by the U.S. each year.

 

 

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - Deficits