Saturday, December 29, 2012

Reserve Bank Credit 1228

FRED Graph

 

Notes: 

Reserve Bank credit is the sum of securities held outright, repurchase agreements, term auction credit, other loans, net portfolio holdings of Commercial Paper Funding Facility LLC, net portfolio holdings of LLCs funded through the Money Market Investor Funding Facility, net portfolio holdings of Maiden Lane LLC, net portfolio holdings of Maiden Lane II LLC, net portfolio holdings of Maiden Lane III LLC, float, central bank liquidity swaps, and other Federal Reserve assets.

Monday, December 24, 2012

Why everybody wants a slice of Raspberry Pi

In a world where computers are increasingly powerful and are concealed within ever more glossy slabs of aluminum, the Raspberry Pi (RPi) offers surprising proof for the virtue of moderation.

When the RPi launched in February of this year, demand far outran supply, and all 10,000 sold out immediately -- crashing the distributing websites in the process.

Now, far exceeding it's inventor's original estimates, the RPi is set to sell as a million units within its first year of availability.

Watch the video here.

All American Investor 

Monday, December 17, 2012

That Terrible Trillion

As you might imagine, I find myself in a lot of discussions about U.S. fiscal policy, and the budget deficit in particular. And there’s one thing I can count on in these discussions: At some point someone will announce, in dire tones, that we have a ONE TRILLION DOLLAR deficit.

 

 

No, I don’t think the people making this pronouncement realize that they sound just like Dr. Evil in the Austin Powers movies.

Anyway, we do indeed have a ONE TRILLION DOLLAR deficit, or at least we did; in fiscal 2012, which ended in September, the deficit was actually $1.089 trillion. (It will be lower this year.) The question is what lesson we should take from that figure.

Source That Terrible Trillion - NYTimes.com http://nyti.ms/UMbYZV

Thursday, December 13, 2012

PRODUCER PRICE INDEXES - NOVEMBER 2012


The Producer Price Index for finished goods fell 0.8 percent in November, seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today.

Prices for finished goods decreased 0.2 percent in October and rose 1.1 percent in September.

At the earlier stages of processing, prices received by manufacturers of intermediate goods declined 1.2 percent in November, and the crude goods index edged up 0.1 percent.

On an unadjusted basis, the finished goods index advanced 1.5 percent for the 12 months ended November 2012, the smallest increase since a 0.5- percent rise for the 12 months ended July 2012. (See table A.)


Read the full blown report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Bernanke Critics Can’t Fight Bonds Showing No Inflation

As Ben S. Bernanke considers whether to worry about inflation before adding to his record monetary stimulus today, he has the bond market on his side.

Debt traders are anticipating prices will accelerate at the Federal Reserve’s target rate of about 2 percent during the next five years.

 The break-even rate for five-year Treasury Inflation Protected Securities -- a yield differential between the inflation-linked debt and Treasuries -- was 2.07 percentage points on Dec. 11.

 That’s a measure of the outlook for consumer prices over the life of the securities.

Source: bloomberg.com via Bob on Pinterest

Friday, December 07, 2012

THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION -- NOVEMBER 2012

Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 146,000 in November, and the unemployment rate edged down to 7.7 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today.

Employment increased in retail trade, professional and business services, and health care.


Read the full blown report in the Bureau of Labor Statistics -- 

Thursday, December 06, 2012

Affordable Care Act Saves Consumers $1.5 Billion

Consumers saw nearly $1.5 billion in insurer rebates and overhead cost savings in 2011, due to the Affordable Care Act’s medical loss ratio provision requiring health insurers to spend at least 80 percent of premium dollars on health care or quality improvement activities or pay a rebate to their customers, according to a new Commonwealth Fund report.

Consumers with individual policies saw substantially reduced premiums when insurers reduced both administrative costs and profits to meet the new standards. While insurers in the small- and large-group markets achieved lower administrative costs, not all of these savings were passed on to employers and consumers, as many insurers increased profits in these markets.