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That 70's Feeling (Economy) |
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Written by James M. Pethokoukis
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Sunday, 27 August 2006 |
Give me a one-handed economist," President Truman once supposedly demanded of his White House staff. "All my economists say, 'On the one hand ... on the other.'" Good thing Truman isn't sitting in the Oval Office these days. He might be dealing with an awfully exasperating fellow-the dreaded three-handed economist. On the one hand, the economy looks as if it might be headed into deep trouble, even a recession. The bubblicious housing market, a critical support for the economy in recent years, is clearly popping. Home sales have fallen to their lowest levels since 2004, while the number of homes sitting on the market is at a 10-year high. And luxury home builder Toll Brothers-whose stock price has been halved during the past year-last week reported a 19 percent drop in profits from a year earlier. |
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Inflation Slowing |
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Written by Louis Uchitelle
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Thursday, 17 August 2006 |
The government’s latest report on consumer prices, issued yesterday, suggests that inflation is slowing. The overall rise came to a seasonally adjusted 0.4 percent in July, mainly because of a surge in gasoline prices and in the monthly cost of renting a home, even as the housing market itself deteriorated. Nothing else went up very much, the government reported, and apparel prices plunged because of deep discounts in women’s summer clothing as retailers sought to work down inventories. This latest reading for the Consumer Price Index comes a week after the Federal Reserve halted its string of 17 consecutive interest rate increases. |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 17 August 2006 )
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Debt and National Security |
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Written by Rep. Ron Paul
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Sunday, 24 October 2004 |
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Once again the federal government has reached its “debt ceiling,” and once again Congress is poised to authorize an increase in government borrowing. Between its ever-growing bureaucracies, expanding entitlements, and overseas military entanglements, the federal government is borrowing roughly one billion dollars every day to pay its bills. |
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 13 February 2008 )
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