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BMW Remains On Top

Wednesday, August 11th, 2010

Second-quarter profits indicate that BMW is still the best when it comes to luxury cars makers.

  • BMW’s net profit for the 2nd quarter rose to $1.1 billion, and sales rose 12.5%.
  • Although the luxury car market was hit hard by the economic downturn, there has been a faster-than-expected rebound.
  • The new generation 5-Series is expected to boost sales even further.

Facts & Figures

  • BMW is the world’s best-selling luxury car maker, ahead of Audi and Mercedes-Benz.
  • In the first 6 months of 2010, 696,026 BMW, Mini, and Rolls-Royce cars were sold.
  • BMW now expects sales to rise by approximately 10% (to more than 1.4 million cars) in 2010, which is significantly more than expected at the beginning of the year.

Best Quote

“Sharp sales volume growth on major markets and a high-value model mix are the main reasons for the strong second-quarter performance. [BMW] improved efficiency significantly in all areas of the company.” – Norbert Reithofer, Cheif Executive, BMW

More Concerns About The Economy

Wednesday, August 11th, 2010

The U.S. is still slowly recovering from the worst recession since the 1930s.

  • The economy has now grown (slowly) for four straight quarters.
  • The slow economy growth has made little impact on the unemployment rate.
  • New home construction, imports, and business investments all increased in the second quarter.
  • Consumer spending, which normally accounts for 70% of U.S. economic activity, didn’t rise as much as expected.

Facts and Figures

  • The current unemployment rate is 9.5%.
  • While imports increased by 28.8%, exports increased by 10.3%, creating a trade deficit.
  • Business investment increased by 17%, which was the largest increase since the beginning of 2006.
  • New home construction increased 27.9%.

India Battles Poverty With New Food Distribution System

Tuesday, August 10th, 2010

India, a country pulsing with the potential for economic power, wavers under the weight of poverty.

  • India debates whether or not to implement a new food distribution system that will give out food coupons and cash to citizens.
  • The plan is part of a movement that aims to gives every citizen a constitutional right to food.
  • The new food distribution system will allow every Indian family a monthly 77-pound bag of grain, sugar and kerosene.
  • Though it is possible that issuing food coupons will greatly improve poverty in India, many are concerned that the new freedom of choice it allows recipients will encourage corruption.

Facts & Figures

  • 42% of all Indian children under the age of 5 are underweight.
  • 70% of the $12 billion food budget is wasted, stolen or absorbed by bureaucratic and transportation costs.

Best Quote

“The question is whether there is a role for the market in the delivery of social programs. This is a big issue: Can you harness the market?” – Bharat Ramaswami, Rural Economist, Indian Statistical Institute.

Our Ever Weakening Dollar

Tuesday, August 10th, 2010

As concerns about the struggling economic recovery rise, the U.S. dollar falls.

  • The dollar index has hit a 3 month low (81.354) after reports were released that the economy slowed 2.4% in the second quarter.
  • Other currencies, like the Euro, Sterling, and Aussie, increased.
  • Experts said that the rise in other currencies is unlikely to continue if the U.S. economy continues to struggle.

Facts & Figures

  • The Euro rose 0.2% to $1.3072, nearing a 3 month high.
  • The Sterling hit a 6 month high of $1.5820.
  • The Yen fell from an 8 month high.

Best Quote

“We’re seeing a disconnection as U.S. data stays weak yet risk appetite is strong. Weak U.S. data will translate into risk aversion at some point.” -Tom Levinson, Currency Strategist, ING

Obama Disappointed By Funding For Poverty Project

Monday, August 9th, 2010

Obama needs a hefty sum to implement his project, Promise Neighborhoods, and the senate and the house are reluctant to pay up.

  • It seems unlikely that President Obama will receive the full amount of funding he requested from next year’s budget for Promise Neighborhoods – a program that helps nonprofits set up anti poverty projects.
  • This year, only $10 million was delegated to the cause, however because the program was largely in the planning stages, it was sufficient to cover costs.
  • In order to implement the program over the next five years, a large increase in funds is required, an increase that the Senate and House appropriations committees will not dole out.

Facts & Figures

  • The Obama administration requested $210 million for the project.
  • The Senate allocated only $20 million to the cause.

Best Quote:

“Every significant policy decision made by the Department on Promise Neighborhoods has been made behind closed doors, with little or no public knowledge or input,” – Paul Lester, Senior Vice President for Public Policy, Promise Neighborhoods.

Consumer Spending Slows Further During Spring Quarter

Monday, August 9th, 2010

The United States is on a slow road to economic recovery that gets longer and longer as consumers spend less.

  • Sluggish consumer spending and stagnant personal incomes reflect a slow economy this spring.
  • Experts believe that economic growth will lose further momentum in the second half of the year as high unemployment, insecure consumers and renewed troubles in housing continue to plague recovery.
  • The rate of economic growth in the United States is about half the pace of what it normally is for a country coming out of a recession.

Facts & Figures

  • Consumer spending accounts for 70% of total economic activity.
  • The GDP slowed to an annual growth rate of 2.4% in the April-June quarter.

Floods Bring Displacement And Disease To Pakistan

Friday, August 6th, 2010

In a country thats infrastructure is already unstable, a disastrous flood seems like the last straw.

  • The worst floods in the history of Pakistan have devastated the country, killing thousands and leaving millions homeless.
  • Many fear that the lack of clean drinking water and the close quarters of survivors is the perfect breeding ground for lethal diseases such as cholera.
  • The flood came at a time when the Pakistani government was already struggling under a weak economy and a brutal war against Taliban militants.

Facts & Figures

  • The flood has forced 2 million people from their homes.
  • The death toll from the flood has ranged from 870 to 1,200.

Best Quote:

”We are reaching people at their doorsteps and in the streets, especially women and children who are stuck in their homes.” – Saqib, Activist, Falah-e-Insaniat charity

With India and Britain, The Empire Doesn’t Strike Back

Friday, August 6th, 2010

India experiences colonialism role reversal as Britain scrambles to hook into their budding economy.

  • The British Prime Minister, David Cameron, plans a visit to India that will focus on increasing trade between the two countries.
  • Mr. Cameron’s trip indicates the global economy’s shift towards developing nations and his commitment to latch onto India’s booming business world.
  • During Cameron’s trip he will ring the opening bell on the Bombay Stock Exchange, introduce a solar-powered mobile handset and deliver a speech entitled “U.K. and India: A New Economic Partnership” to bankers and businessmen.

Facts & Figures

  • British companies Marks & Spencer and Bentley Motors have started investing in India in recent years to tap into new wealth.

Best Quote:

“India is an incredibly dynamic market that will grow substantially in the next five to 10 years.” - Stephen Phipson, President, Smiths Detection.

New Study Suggests Early Teachers Affect Students For Life

Friday, August 6th, 2010

Although previous studies suggested that the beneficial effects of a good kindergarten teacher fade over time, a new study indicates the opposite, making a good case for the value of education.

  • Past studies measuring the effectiveness of kindergarten teachers use standardized test scores to acquire results.
  • According to this method, having better teachers improves your performance for awhile, but by the time you get to junior-high and high school, the effects are negligible.
  • A new study, measuring income instead of test scores, found the opposite: the benefits of having a good teacher in kindergarten coincides with increased average income later in life.
  • The effects of good education are still hotly debated, but this study makes a case for the value of skilled teachers.

Facts and Figures

  • A team of six researchers studied the life paths of 12,000 people who had been part of an educational experiment as children. They are now approximately 30 years old.
  • The team discovered that, by age 27, these people were earning about $100 per year more for every percentile point they had moved up in test-score distributions in kindergarten.
  • If this study is accurate, its authors estimate that an exceptional kindergarten teacher is worth $320,000 per year.

Best Quote

“The worry has been that education didn’t translate into earnings. But this is telling us that it does and that the fade-out effect is misleading in some sense.”–Douglas Staiger, an economist at Dartmouth

Jobless Claims And Recovery Concerns Rise

Thursday, August 5th, 2010

As jobless claims rise, Americans are becoming even more concerned about the economic recovery.

  • New unemployment claims rose last week, which may indicate a weak economic recovery.
  • The unemployment rate is expected to climb to 9.6% (up from 9.5% in June).
  • While growth expanded 3.7% in the first quarter of 2010, it fell to a 2.4% annual rate in the second quarter.
  • Generally speaking, consumers have cut spending.

Facts & Figures

  • Claims for state unemployment benefits rose 19,000 (the highest since April).
  • 4-week average of new jobless claims rose 5,250 to 458,500.
  • Jobless claims fell in 2009 but have stalled this year.
  • The number of people on emergency benefits rose 60,993 to 3.31 million in mid July.

Best Quote

“The bottom line is that any recovery in employment is going to be very slow. It’s likely that we’re still 9.5 percent unemployment or awfully close to it by the end of the year.” -Scott Wren, Senior Equity Strategist, Wells Fargo Advisors in St. Louis

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