Lamar Thames

Now that the  Great Recession is officially over (according to newspaper headlines and television reports, at least), I just want to know one thing: WHERE IS MY JOB?

I understand it will take some time for the unemployed to return to work. I just hope it is sooner rather than for a lot of people. I honestly don’t think I will be able to return to the workforce anytime soon, however. There is the age thing, a lack of qualifications and, well, just the time it will take for the job market to rebound to anything resembling a healthy economy.

Thankfully, I was able to draw unemployment (which may be extended another 13 weeks), so the blow might not have affected my wife and I as much as it did others.

Like I have said before, and news reports are confirming, there are some silver linings to the dark side of the recession. Such as, laid-off construction workers are adapting to different lines of work, prices are coming down (grocers and restaurants are offering considerable discounts) and the nation’s per-person savings rate has more than doubled in the past year.

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For the week ending Feb. 20, 2009:

Stocks fell around the world this week as investors remained skeptical of the U.S. government’s effort to bail out the financial sector. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell to a six-year low on Thursday, while Japan’s Topix stock index tumbled to its lowest level in 25 years. As the selling ensued, Treasuries rallied, and gold rose above $1,000 per ounce.

U.S. economic news Obama administration takes aggressive stance to hall foreclosures
U.S. President Barack Obama pledged $275 billion for a program to cut mortgage payments for struggling homeowners and expand the role of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in curbing Read the rest of this entry »

• For the week ending Feb. 13, 2009
  
  
• U.S. government aid plans get tepid reception
• Companies forecast future slowdown, announce job cuts
• Consumer confidence falls as job losses mount
• Cisco sells bonds as credit markets begin thaw
• Eurozone economy contracts

Stocks lost ground this week as investors reacted with skepticism to the U.S. government’s $789.5 billion stimulus package and the U.S. Treasury’s bank rescue plan. Markets seemed to conclude that the stimulus plan would be insufficient to turn the U.S. economy around and the bank rescue plan lacked details. Reports that the U.S. government may subsidize mortgage payments helped stocks recover some lost ground late in the week. Read the rest of this entry »

For the week ended January 23, 2009, compiled by MFS:

• Dow suffers its worst Inauguration Day decline
• State Street losses spark banking rout
• Microsoft stuns with report of loss
• U.K. economy officially in recession
• Slowing China growth hits region’s export markets
• Central banks in Brazil and Canada cut rates

Stocks took a dive this week amid disappointing earnings and economic news. Corporate heavyweights, including Microsoft, General Electric, and Advanced Micro Devices, reported lower earnings, and economic data continued to point to a worsening global recession. As Barack Obama took office as the 44th president of the United States, the Dow Jones Industrial Average posted its worst Inauguration Day performance as worries mounted about the fate of the nation’s financial services sector. The Dow lost 332.13 points, or 4%. The decline was led by a 20% drop in bank shares as concern increased that financial institutions would need to be nationalized. Read the rest of this entry »

Stocks hit by news of mounting economic woes

For the week ended January 16, 2009

• Bank of America gets $138B bailout
• Data suggest worsening recession
• U.S. cost of living falls
• Citigroup will split its operations
• JPMorgan’s profits fall 76%
• Central banks in eurozone, Mexico, and Turkey cut rates

Stocks staged a bounce Friday morning after the U.S. government agreed to a $138 billion bailout of Bank of America. However that upbeat news was not enough to reverse the week’s selloff, which was sparked by a steady stream of data signaling and even deeper recession. Read the rest of this entry »