Archives: August 2009

Banks Loosen White Collar a Bit

Posted by: Greg T. Spielberg on August 18, Categories:

Banks not quite giving away money, but survey shows they're being less strict. According to Chicago-based Northern Trust (NTRS), business credit is getting a bit easier to grab on...

Optimistic Indicators from the Business(Week) Community

Posted by: Greg T. Spielberg on August 14, Categories: Economy

More Manufacturing Shipments Hit America's Ports in July

Posted by: Greg T. Spielberg on August 13, Categories:

July saw a 7% increase in the number of global manufacturers shipping to American ports according to U.S. Customs Data compiled by Panjiva, a tracker and profiler of foreign...

Non-Oil Trade Deficit Decreasing

Posted by: Greg T. Spielberg on August 12, Categories: Economy

On his Economics Unbound blog, BusinessWeek chief economist Mike Mandel writes about America's evaporating non-petroleum trade deficit. Check it out, and see the numbers....

High-Voltage Future for Hard-Hit Indiana Town

Posted by: Greg T. Spielberg on August 12, Categories: Confidence

By Diana Holden Last week, Barack Obama made his second journey as president to Elkhart, (Ind.) to win support for his economic initiatives. Elkhart County, located in my home...

Cleveland Businesses Save Money By Practicing Sustainability

Posted by: Greg T. Spielberg on August 11, Categories:

By Emily Schmitt Recently, I reported on a story about Entrepreneurs for Sustainability (E4S). The Cleveland (Ohio) nonprofit teaches its 7,000 members, mostly local entrepreneurs and small-business owners, to...

Two Optimism Indexes Show Gains; BusinessWeek/YouGov's Hits 50

Posted by: Greg T. Spielberg on August 10, Categories: Economy

A couple of optimism indexes were up recently including BusinessWeek/YouGov’s Optimism Index, which tipped 50 for the first time in its five-month history. While it dropped back down to...

A Mosaic of Optimistic Economic Indicators

Posted by: Greg T. Spielberg on August 07, Categories: Economy

Let’s start from the top and move down. Nonfarm payroll fell 247,000 last month – the loss of workers hasn’t been so small since August 2008. Unemployment, now at...

Whole Foods and New York Investment Firms Smile

Posted by: Greg T. Spielberg on August 06, Categories:

This is the first week I've felt truly optimistic about the American economy. I generally am optimistic, but it's a general je ne sais quoi that is nothing to write...

Recession Ending, Canadian Economist Says

Posted by: Joe Weber on August 05, Categories: Economy

“Home sales have risen for three straight months in the U.S., led by previously hard-hit states like California and Arizona. Home prices have likely bottomed, with the Case-Shiller index posting its first monthly increase in three years. This could unleash a wave of pent-up demand for homes.”

America's Economic Recovery: The Main Event in BW's Debate Room

Posted by: Greg T. Spielberg on August 03, Categories: Economy

It’s likely we’ll debate the end date of the recession until America’s downturn has come and gone. The official designation – “recession” – is a lagging indicator anyway, declared...