Archive for Between the Lines
Federal Tax Receipts Surged In April To New Record
Gary D. Halbert Between the Lines Federal tax receipts surged in April to generate the largest monthly US budget surplus in seven years, the latest sign that climbing stock values, hefty corporate profits and rising incomes for wealthier Americans are improving the nation’s budget picture. The US Treasury collected a…
Why The U.S. Economy Continues To Disappoint
Gary D. Halbert Between the Lines There are a lot of theories as to why the US economy, now entering its sixth year of “recovery,” has not lived up to expectations, much less the average rebound of the post-war era. CNBC’s Jeff Cox (who I read frequently) offered up his…
Over Half of Americans Don’t Own Stocks or Equity Funds
Gary D. Halbert Between the Lines At a time when the US stock market is still flirting with record highs, more than half of Americans are sitting on the sidelines, with nothing invested in stocks, equity mutual funds or ETFs. A Bankrate.com survey released last Thursday found that 52% of…
US Job Openings Hit 14-Year High in February
Gary D. Halbert Between the Lines While last Friday’s unemployment report for March was a huge disappointment with only 126,000 new jobs created last month, the Labor Department had some good news to report on Tuesday. The Bureau of Labor statistics (BLS) reported that the number of job openings in…
Silence Falls On Chicago’s Futures Trading Pits
Gary D Halbert Between the Lines When I finished my Master’s degree in international business (Thunderbird), I went to work as a grain merchandiser for Continental Grain Company. As such, I bought and sold grain (corn, wheat, soybeans, etc.) all across Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, etc. Those purchases…
Fed Turns Dovish On Interest Rate Hike
Gary D. Halbert Between the Lines The Fed’s policy statement released at the conclusion of yesterday’s meeting came as a surprise. While the Fed Open Market Committee (FOMC) did remove the word “patient” from its guidance on when the first rate hike might happen, it added additional language that suggests…