Relevant and even prescient commentary on news, politics and the economy.

ISM manufacturing poor again in October

 – by New Deal democrat As usual, next week there will be a dearth of economic data, so I’ll report on construction spending then. In the meantime, we got another poor ISM manufacturing report, with the total index declining to 46.5, the lowest reading this year, while the more leading new orders component increased 1.0 […]

October jobs report: Milton mayhem!

– by New Deal democrat Well, I warned you . . . . I expected a downdraft from the hurricanes, especially Milton, and also the Boeing strike. And boy did we get one! Let me be clear: if there were no special factors, this report would be recessionary, period. And there were some signs of […]

Maybe the Last Two or Three Years Were Not So Bad Economically?

Unless you are a Republican and then nothing is good economically. This difference between the economic negative vibes and the real economic facts is laughable. Even such doubt was evident in the Summer of 2024 when things were improving. The improvement during and after the summer still did not change much doubt of the administration […]

September personal income and spending: another positive report across the board

 – by New Deal democrat Briefly, NDd is one of the longtime posters at Angry Bear. I have known him for a long time and enjoy reading his commentaries on Labor, Employment, and Income. They are timely reveals and expressing the issues with various parts of the economy. ~~~~~~~ The monthly personal income and spending […]

Acetate and alternatives to the photosynthesis economy

Agriculture requires photosynthesis to make food. However, the photosynthetic mechanism is slow, inefficient and requires a lot of resources. A recent paper describes an electro-agriculture technology that combines carbon dioxide electrolysis with biological systems to boost the efficiency of food production. If implemented at scale, such a system could reduce agricultural land use in the […]

Jobless claims, with hurricane effects abating, claims return to normal

 – by New Deal democrat It appears that, as I suspected earlier this month, the big YoY jump in initial jobless claims was largely due to the effects of the hurricanes, and is now abating. First, for the week initial claims declined another -12,000 to 216,000. The four week moving average declined -2,250 to 236,500. […]

Prelim. Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Report

I included Table 1 for you to use as a backup to the written preliminary report. Click on it to enlarge. I have to leave and go to the Veterans Admin. to pass on more information. When I get back, I will add an opinion to this commentary and delete this message. Real gross domestic […]

No, overregulation isn’t crushing the American free market

Here’s House Speaker Mike Johnson: “We want to take a blowtorch to the regulatory state. These agencies have been weaponized against the people. It’s crushing the free market; it’s like a boot on the neck of job creators and entrepreneurs and risk takers. And so health care is one of the sectors, and we need […]

U.S. Economic Growth Extends Solid Streak

by Harriet Torry WSJ U.S. GDP rose at a 2.8% annual rate in the third quarter, easing slightly from the previous quarter. The U.S. economy continued its recent strong stretch this summer, bolstered by hefty consumer and government spending. Gross domestic product increased at a 2.8% annual rate in the third quarter, adjusted for seasonality and inflation, […]