Thursday, May 8, 2014

Friday May 9 Housing and Economic stories


Eight EU states in deflation as calls grow for QE in Sweden - (www.telegraph.co.uk) Sweden’s Riksbank admitted in its latest monetary report that something unexpected had gone wrong. Sweden has become the first country in northern Europe to slide into serious deflation, prompting a blistering attack on the Riksbank’s monetary policies by the world’s leading deflation expert. Swedish consumer prices fell 0.4pc in March from a year earlier, catching the authorities by surprise and leading to calls for immediate action to avert a Japanese-style trap. Lars Svensson, the Riksbank’s former deputy governor, said the slide into deflation had been caused by a “very dramatic tightening of monetary policy” over the past four years. He called for rates to be slashed from 0.75pc to -0.25pc to drive down the krona, and advised the bank to prepare for quantitative easing on a “large scale”.

Watch Out! Global deflation Looms - (www.cnbc.com)  The recent weak economic data from China "significantly increases" the risk of global deflation according to Societe Generale's uber-bearish strategist Albert Edwards, who argued that investors were ignoring the warning signs. Edwards – who is known for his gloomy predictions about the global economy – said that China's first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) data had been "virtually overlooked" by investors, but included important signs that declining prices were looming…. Economists are concerned by deflation because it can push down demand, with people holding off purchases in the hope of more price declines. This, in turn, can lead to lower production and an economic slump – or even a depression.

How The Oil Boom Changed North Dakota In One Chart - (www.businessinsider.com) The oil rich Bakken shale formation has helped reshape North Dakota. The USGS  says the Bakken formation has estimated mean oil resource of 3.65 billion barrels of oil. This has helped get the U.S. well on its way to energy independence. Naturally, as the economy continues to recover, many have flocked to North Dakota for jobs — the state is said to have a 3% unemployment rate. What's more these are high paying jobs.  Mark Perry, professor of economics at the Flint campus of The University of Michigan, tweeted this chart that shows that North and South Dakota had about the same per-capita income for 80 years. But the oil boom pushed North Dakota's per capita income by $11,500.

US oil crumbles as stockpiles threaten record highs - (www.cnbc.com)  U.S. crude futures fell on Tuesday ahead of data expected to show that inventories in the world's top oil consuming nation are close to exceeding record-highs. Brent also fell but was cushioned by continued geopolitical concerns of an escalation of the standoff in Eastern Ukraine. Sanctions against Russia could stymie supplies from one of the world's biggest producers. The sell-off increased the discount of the U.S. benchmark to its international counterpart by more than $6. Brent crude was down nearly $1, clawing back above $109 a barrel after reaching a six-week high of $110.36 last week. U.S. crude plunged by $2.24 to settle at $102.13 a barrel, its largest one day drop since January 2.

Northwestern's blitz to keep players from unionizing NYT   - (www.cnbc.com) A National Labor Relations Board official took a historic step last month in ruling that Northwestern's scholarship football players should be considered employees of the university and therefore had the right to unionize like other workers. And then, almost immediately, Northwestern began a wide-ranging campaign to defeat a unionization vote, which is scheduled for Friday. The president emeritus publicly said that a vote for the union could mean the end of Division I sports at Northwestern. A former quarterback visited the team to encourage players to vote no. Coach Pat Fitzgerald, a former football star who is revered on campus, has framed a vote for the union as a personal betrayal. "Understand that by voting to have a union, you would be transferring your trust from those you know — me, your coaches and the administrators here — to what you don't know — a third party who may or may not have the team's best interests in mind," Fitzgerald wrote to the team in an email.





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