{"id":2681,"date":"2008-03-14T09:49:26","date_gmt":"2008-03-14T09:49:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/business-news\/fears-mount-over-us-economy\/2681\/"},"modified":"2008-03-14T09:49:26","modified_gmt":"2008-03-14T09:49:26","slug":"fears-mount-over-us-economy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/business-news\/fears-mount-over-us-economy\/","title":{"rendered":"Fears mount over US economy"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span id=\"Htmlphcontrol1\" class=\"DetaildSuammary\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height: 1.2\">\n<p style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\">The US economy has been hit by more bleak news, with a series of announcements adding to an already gloomy picture.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\">A slump in consumer spending, another drop in the dollar, and oil prices at new highs pushed the White House to admit that the next few months would be &#8220;difficult and challenging&#8221;.<\/p>\n<table border=\"0\">\n<tr>\n<td><input name=\"Htmlphcontrol1:btnCheckLength\" type=\"submit\" onclick=\"return getSelectedText('_KtuluBody1');\" style=\"display: none\" id=\"Htmlphcontrol1_btnCheckLength\" \/><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<table border=\"0\" style=\"display: none\">\n<tr>\n<td><script language=\"javascript\">  bodyVariable350=\"Htmlphcontrol1_lblError\";<\/script><\/td>\n<td><span id=\"Htmlphcontrol1_lblError\"><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<table height=\"10\">\n<tr>\n<td><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<p><span id=\"Htmlphcontrol2\" class=\"DetaildSuammary\"><\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height: 1.2\">\n<p style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\">First came the news of weaker than expected February retail sales figures, reflecting a lack of consumer confidence that could prove fatal for an economy where consumer spending accounts for two-thirds of total activity.<\/p>\n<table border=\"0\">\n<tr>\n<td><input name=\"Htmlphcontrol2:btnCheckLength\" type=\"submit\" onclick=\"return getSelectedText('_KtuluBody2');\" style=\"display: none\" id=\"Htmlphcontrol2_btnCheckLength\" \/><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<table border=\"0\" style=\"display: none\">\n<tr>\n<td><script language=\"javascript\">  bodyVariable300=\"Htmlphcontrol2_lblError\";<\/script><\/td>\n<td><span id=\"Htmlphcontrol2_lblError\"><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<table height=\"10\">\n<tr>\n<td><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<table border=\"0\" align=\"right\" cellPadding=\"0\" cellSpacing=\"0\" style=\"display: inline\" id=\"ServicesList\">\n<tr>\n<td align=\"center\"><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td align=\"center\" id=\"tdRelated\"><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td height=\"5\"><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<p><span id=\"Htmlplaceholdercontrol1\" class=\"DetaildSuammary\"><\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height: 1.2\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">The commerce department reported that consumers, battered by falling home values, job losses, soaring energy costs and a severe credit squeeze, held back on spending in February.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">The 0.6 per cent drop was the second big drop in retail sales in the past three months, a pattern consistent with the onset of a recession, and many economists believe the country is in recession or will be soon.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><strong>&#8216;Difficult and challenging&#8217;<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">The Bush administration rushed out new proposals to avoid a repeat of various problems that have led to a severe crisis in credit markets.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">Tony Fratto, the White House deputy press secretary, said the government expected a &#8220;difficult and challenging&#8221; period but predicted an economic rebound once the impact of the Federal Reserve&#8217;s credit cuts and the recently passed economic stimulus package began to be felt.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">But private analysts were not as confident, worrying that the economy is being hit by multiple blows and noting that some of the problems, such as plunging home sales and mortgage defaults, are showing no signs of abating.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">&#8220;We&#8217;re in the belly of the recession beast right now and all we really can do is take defensive action,&#8221; Bernard Baumohl, managing director of the Economic Outlook Group, told the Associated Press.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">George Bush, the <country-region w:st=\"on\">US<\/country-region> president, is expected in <state w:st=\"on\">\n<place w:st=\"on\">New York<\/place><\/state> on Friday to deliver a speech on the economy.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">&#8220;I think it&#8217;s important for the president to get out and talk about how he sees the economy, and why he sees the economy improving as the year goes on,&#8221; Fratto said. <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">But Fratto conceded that surging energy prices were acting as a drag and &#8220;higher oil prices and higher gasoline prices are not going to go away overnight&#8221;.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">Crude oil prices hit all-time highs on Thursday with crude closing at $110.33 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><strong>Dipping dollar<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><\/p>\n<table border=\"0\" align=\"right\" cellPadding=\"0\" cellSpacing=\"0\" borderColor=\"#c0c0c0\">\n<tr>\n<td><img decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" src=\"http:\/\/english.aljazeera.net\/mritems\/images\/2008\/3\/14\/1_243049_1_3.jpg\" \/><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td align=\"center\" style=\"font-weight: bold; font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Verdana\"><font size=\"1\">February&#8217;s retail sales was weaker<br \/>\nthan expected [AFP]<\/font><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<p>The dollar, meanwhile, dropped anew, dipping briefly below 100 yen for the first time in 12 years and falling to a new low against the euro.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">Gold prices\u00a0topped $1,000 an ounce on Thursday for the first time after the dollar&#8217;s plunge.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><br \/>\nGold, which is priced in dollars, becomes cheaper for buyers using other currencies when the US unit falls in value.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">There was also the troubling news that Chrysler, the country&#8217;s third largest car manufacturer, announced it was shutting down operations for two weeks in July to boost productivity and efficiency.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><strong>&#8216;End in sight&#8217;<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">On Wall Street, stocks slid more than 200 points but then rebounded to close up more than 30 points as traders grew hopeful about a Federal Reserve rate cut next Tuesday of up to three-quarters of a point.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">Investors&#8217; moods were also bolstered after the Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s predicted that financial companies were nearing the end of the massive write-downs in the value of sub-prime mortgages and other assets.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">&#8220;The end of write-downs is now in sight for large financial institutions,&#8221; it said.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">The president&#8217;s Working Group on Financial Markets, led by Henry Paulson, the treasury secretary, put forward a broad blueprint of changes on Thursday aimed at correcting a variety of abuses such as mortgage brokers who pushed prospective buyers into loans they could not afford.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">While the recommendations could help prevent a repeat of the current crisis, critics said the administration still needed to go much further to stave off an expected tidal wave of foreclosures in coming months.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">Nearly 60 per cent more <country-region w:st=\"on\">\n<place w:st=\"on\">US<\/place><\/country-region> homes faced foreclosure in February than in the same month a year ago, according to a report on Thursday from California-based RealtyTrac.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana\" lang=\"EN-GB\">Agencies<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00a0 The US economy has been hit by more bleak news, with a series of announcements adding to an already gloomy picture. A slump in consumer spending, another drop in the dollar, and oil prices at new highs pushed the White House to admit that the next few months would be &#8220;difficult and challenging&#8221;. First [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[5624],"class_list":{"0":"post-2681","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-business-news","7":"tag-money"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2681","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2681"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2681\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2681"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2681"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2681"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}