Posts Tagged ‘recession recovery’

Americans are Spending More (yay!)… But Not Necessarily Getting More (boo)

Saturday, April 2nd, 2011

tiny-egg.jpg
(photo credit:  Eggybird)

Every month for the past eight months, dutiful Americans have been pulling out their wallets and handing their money to other Americans in exchange for goods and services. In other words, they’ve been lubricating the wheels of our creaky economic machine.

Why? Well, part of it is that they’re more confident now that the recession is over and there are real signs of a recovery. But the other, more significant part is that the cost of living increased. That’s right: inflation.

Food and gas prices went up, which means that more of Joe American’s dollars went to feeding his family and driving to work than to buying a new television or a trampoline for the kids.

Ben Bernanke from the Fed says that nobody should be worrying about out-of-control inflation – food and gas prices will come down again. But if he’s wrong, it’s the Fed’s job to take action to make sure Joe still has a few dollars left to pay for his morning coffee after feeding the kids and driving to work.

And by the way… while inflation sounds like a bad thing, it’s really not as bad as its evil twin, deflation.

Have you been spending more money since last summer? Why?

The Recession’s Been Over For More Than A Year Now

Monday, September 20th, 2010

Are we late in reporting this, or what?

  • After almost a year of analysis and debate, the National Bureau of Economic Research has announced that the recent recession officially began in December of 2007 and ended in June of 2009.
  • The good news in the report ends there. The NBER doesn’t rule out the possibility of another recession, just indicates that any subsequent recession would be a new one.
  • The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development also released a report emphasizing that the recovery, especially in the labor market, will take at least three more years. It praised and encouraged the Obama administration’s handling of the economic crisis, and suggested that taxes and interest rates will probably have to be raised to make up for some of the damage done.

Facts & Figures

  • Unemployment probably won’t return to pre-recession levels for another 3 years.
  • Unlike past recessions, this one could result in permanently increased unemployment numbers.
  • Though tax increases are unpopular, the United States has a lower tax rate than many other countries.

Best Quote

“The committee did not conclude that economic conditions since that month have been favorable or that the economy has returned to operating at normal capacity.” – from the National Bureau of Economic Research’s report

Does An Increase In Donations Mean A Recovering Economy?

Wednesday, July 14th, 2010

In the first quarter of 2010, charitable donations rose sharply, which may indicate an economic recovery.

  • After donations to charity fell in 2009 due to the recession, first quarter reports indicate that 2010 looks much more promising.
  • Many charities are working on new fund-raising approaches in order to make donations seem more personal.
  • Even though things are looking up, it will still take a while for nonprofits to fully recover from the recession.

Facts and Figures

  • The median rate of growth for the 73 charities that The Chronicle of Philanthropy polled was 14%.
  • Donations decreased by about 12% in 2009.
  • The 73 organizations polled raised a total of $564.4 million more in the first quarter of 2010 than in the first quarter of 2009.

Best Quote

“The economy has certainly loosened up a bit, and that has loosened up how our donors feel and how we all feel.” – Joe Kender, Vice President for Advancement at Lehigh University