|
Most reasonable
(and unconflicted) observers would agree that the
U.S. economy is not "recovering" in any real sense of the word.
That doesn't necessarily mean, of course, that they aren't hopeful about
the future. Unfortunately, various reports, including the three articles
featured below, suggest the outlook going forward is worse than what
we have now -- and looking shakier by the day.
"Murdoch
Warns of ‘Fearful’ Business" (Financial
Times)
News
Corporation’s James Murdoch has warned that companies have become
“very fearful” about the macroeconomic environment in recent
weeks, with the corporate mood “not great” as consumer confidence
and spending falters.Speaking on stage at the
Cannes Lions advertising conference, Mr Murdoch,
deputy chief operating officer of News Corp, said: “The mood music has
shifted, people are very fearful.”He added:
“Hopefully companies are in a good enough shape after the shock of
2008-2009 that we are a better position to go forward.”
"Analysis:
Christmas Gloom for China Toymakers as Orders Shrivel" (Reuters)
China may be
the world's toy-making capital, but for Cheung Tak Ching the Christmas season is shaping up to be lean and
joyless.
Sitting in a
showroom amid an array of bright smiling toys he makes for Walt Disney Co
(DIS.N) and Mattel Inc (MAT.O), the 40-year
industry veteran bemoans a 5-10 percent fall in pre-orders.
"Our
customers, mainly in the United States, still have good levels of inventory
after restocking last year," said Cheung, managing director of Wah Lung Toys, which operates several factories in
southern China employing nearly 8,000 workers.
After wrenching
change that saw hundreds of toy factories in China shut down in the 2008
financial crisis, hopes were high for a rebound. But Europe's debt crisis and
a sluggish U.S. economic recovery are curbing Western demand, while cost and
Labor pressures within China are mounting.
...
The slowdown in
China's industrial growth is also reflected in the freight cargo market.
Throughput in Hong Kong's container terminals grew only 1.2 percent in the
first five months, the Hong Kong Port Development Council said in preliminary
data.Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd (0293.HK), the
world's largest international cargo carrier, said freight fell 12.9 percent
in May from a year earlier."The American
economy still is dismal. Consumer confidence is starting to drop as most
people believe that there is going to be a double-dip recession," said
Shaun Rein, managing director of China Market Research Group in Shanghai.
"Nation's
Small Businesses Seem Stuck in Recession, U.S. Bank Survey Finds (MinnPost)
Despite
pronouncements that the recession ended two years ago, small-business owners
see a very different reality, according to a recent 25-state survey.Seventy-eight percent of of
nearly 3,000 small-business owners think the United States is still in a
recession, according to Minneapolis-based U.S. Bank, which released the
survey Thursday.While that’s down from the 89
percent who saw the nation in a recession a year ago, 85 percent of
respondents also think the economy will still be stuck in a recession this
time next year.
Michael J. Panzner
|
