Free Republic

Equities Update: Consumer Cheer Leads Stocks Higher Midnight Trader December 11, 2009 Stocks pulled out modest gains in Friday's regular session as traders were cheered by a set of economic datapoints that would suggest the beleaguered U.S. consumer is showing some signs of life. The Commerce Department said retail sales were up 1.3% in November, well ahead of Street expectations of a 0.7% rise and an indication that consumers are feeling slightly more comfortable with the economic outlook. Separately, the University of Michigan/Reuters consumer sentiment index notched a solid move higher to 73.4 in December from 67.4 in November. The...

If the holiday shopping sea son gets off to a bad start today, maybe we should blame all the blessings we were thankful for yesterday. It's heresy to say this -- what with retailers looking to sell Americans a lot of stuff this Christmas -- but sometimes people just have enough things. So, as families sat down at their Thanksgiving table yesterday, the decision-makers probably looked around the room and saw gadgets galore that were bought during better times. And since said decision-makers are petrified about the job market -- and are about to be even more scared next week...

Thrift Spoils Everything In A Consumer Economy By Joel Bowman 11/15/09 Taipei, Taiwan – “Those damned consumers and their whiny confidence readings!” the Feds must be cursing. Sentiment dropped to its lowest in three months, according to the Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary index. Apparently the consumers aren’t reading the papers. Don’t they know a recovery is underway? After all, the S&P finished up for a second straight week, higher by around 2.5% since Monday’s open. The markets are 60% above the 12-year low set back in March, and within a whisper of recouping half the losses since they fell from...

Asian Shares Open Mixed, With Japan Down On Consumer Woes REUTERS Published: November 12, 2009 TOKYO — The Nikkei 225 stock average in Tokyo lost 0.5 percent on Friday, weighed down by selling of exporters like the Sony Corporation after concerns about consumer spending hit Wall Street and the yen strengthened slightly against the dollar. Shares in Hong Kong rose, with the Hang Seng opening up about 0.6 percent, while stocks in Shanghai were flat. U.S. stocks fell on Thursday as a stronger dollar weighed on commodity-linked shares and a guarded outlook from Wal-Mart Stores led to worries about consumer...

I am not one to usually post a vanity; however, I thought there should be a voice to the Dr. Pepper/7-Up corporate folks who've recently released 7-Up commercials featuring Brad Garrett, an "actor/comedian" who made untoward remarks about Palin and her family. Garrett said during the '08 election cycle, "Joan Rivers face has been lifted more times than Bristol Palin's prom dress." Moreover, Garrett called Palin and her family "white trash." This is outrageous that a major company like Dr. Pepper/7-Up brands would have this stooge peddle their product on television given his sickening comments.

The first question we should be asking in the healthcare debate is: Why should anyone think that politicians would do a better job redesigning our healthcare than the free market? After all, politicians have helped create the problems (healthcare costs increasing at an unsustainable rate and a growing number of uninsured) that politicians now are in a hurry to try to fix. For example: Tax subsidies for employer-purchased insurance have encouraged the overconsumption of healthcare (because many employers have purchased insurance tantamount to prepaid healthcare), limited employees' choice of insurance plans to whatever the employer offers, and required employees to...

There is just one problem with upbeat predictions that the recession is ending: Americans are still refusing to spend money. Retail spending is still far below that of a year ago in virtually every category, as figures reported yesterday showed. Major clothing chains including Macy's, Nordstrom, Liz Claiborne and Kohl's posted earnings declines this week. Even Walmart Stores, the nation's largest retailer and one of the hardiest survivors of this recession, reported lower sales yesterday. Taken together, the reports made clear that consumers were likely to continue hoarding their dollars into the usually robust back-to-school shopping season, a crucial time...

Note: The following text is a quote: THE BRIEFING ROOM THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary ________________________________________________________________ EMBARGOED UNTIL 6:00 AM ET, SATURDAY, June 20, 2009 WEEKLY ADDRESS: President Obama Highlights Tough New Consumer Protections WASHINGTON – In his weekly address, President Barack Obama explained the necessity of his proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency. It is clear that one of the major causes of the current economic crisis was a breakdown of oversight leading to widespread abuses in the financial world. The Consumer Financial Protection Agency will have the sole job of looking out for the financial interests...

The new fuel mileage standards the Obama administration is proposing have set bankrupt Detroit car manufacturers on a war path with the consumers that they need to buy their product. Americans will not buy the expensive hybrid or electric cars that will be needed to meet these stringent new standards unless gas taxes are significantly raised or the government subsidizes every vehicle.

Thinking of having a yard sale this weekend? Before you do, be sure to consult CSPC Publication #254 [PDF]. This handy 28-pager from the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) reminds the American people that, thanks to the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, the government is totally in charge of your yard sale: This handbook will help sellers of used products identify types of potentially hazardous products that could harm children or others. CPSC’s laws and regulations apply to anyone who sells or distributes consumer products. This includes thrift stores, consignment stores, charities, and individuals holding yard sales and flea markets....

For those who depend on taking out a loan in advance of a paycheck, life may soon get harder if Congress passes the Payday Loan Reform Act. The bill's sponsors, which include Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D., Ill.), say they want to clean up abuse in credit markets by clamping down on the prices lenders charge for payday loans. In reality, the legislation will reduce the supply of these loans and make borrowing more expensive. The reform is based on the false premise that consumers take out these loans without realizing how much they are paying. True enough, these loans are...

California Rep. Henry Waxman said Thursday the environment and U.S. economy depend on congressional action to confront the threat of climate change. Waxman, chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, spoke as he opened Congress' first hearing on climate legislation. A group of 14 corporate

See Mr. and Mrs. American Consumer. Mr. and Mrs. Consumer are smart. Mr. and Mrs. Consumer know that business is bad. Mr. and Mrs. Consumer know that jobs are going away. See Mr. and Mrs. Consumer do smart things. See Mr. and Mrs. Consumer save money. See Mr. and Mrs. Consumer pay down debt. (Debt is money they owe other people.) See Mr. and Mrs. Consumer drive less in their big SUVs and not buy overpriced American cars. See Mr. and Mrs. Consumer spend less money at Christmastime on $2,000 big-screen TVs and $400 Coach handbags and $800 Manolo shoes....

Below is a discussion concerning whether or not businesses or organizations suffer any consumer based ramifications from a data breach. Here is my two cents. As the Stillsecure blog alludes to, breaches need to be defined based upon what was lost. There is a huge difference between losing sales based information ie. credit card or debit card account information (further sub-divided by adding checking account routing and account numbers) and actual personal identifying information (PII). One way to think about the loyalty question is to frame it within an understanding of the consequences to the consumer. When credit card or...

NEW YORK – Cash or credit? For more Americans, who have already maxed out their credit cards or are just trying to manage their spending better in the tough economy, the answer is increasingly the old-fashioned one. Retailers like Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Target Corp. and J.C. Penney Co. are noticing a marked shift away from credit cards in favor of cash and debit cards. A big factor is less credit available as major card issuers cut spending limits and raise fees even for customers who pay their bills on time.

Scammers masquerading as debt collectors and law enforcement officials have terrified consumers with threatening phone calls and bilked them out of thousands of dollars, officials with the West Virginia Attorney General's Office say. Prosecutors said that the scammers, who speak with heavy foreign accents, are known for repeatedly calling people at home and at work and threatening them with arrest if they don't repay supposed debts -- debts that, according to West Virginia officials, don't actually exist. The scammers operate under names such as U.S. National Bank, Federal Investigation Bureau and United Legal Processing, said West Virginia Assistant Attorney General...

Wal-Mart Stores Inc on Thursday reported a stronger-than-expected 3.2 percent rise in sales at U.S. stores open at least a year in April. Analysts, on average, were expecting the company's same-store sales to rise 2.1 percent, according to Reuters Estimates, while Wal-Mart forecast a gain of 1 percent to 3 percent. The world's biggest retailer said net sales in the month, ended May 2, rose to $29.18 billion from $26.57 billion.

Bet you think you spend money pretty sensibly. Well, Dan Ariely would bet you don't. A noted behavioral economist with current posts at MIT and Duke, Ariely has been proving for years that consumers often spend more when they plan to spend less. Now he's put his findings into layman's terms in a new book, "Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions." In it, he explains how marketers exploit our blind spots of logic and how we can see them coming. Today's shaky economy, he argues, is no place to waste money being irrational. Question: What's one of...

CHICAGO (AP) — A new kind of gold rush is unfolding at jewelry store and pawn shop counters — featuring not prospectors, but consumers. White-collar workers, retirees and many others have been digging through jewelry boxes and safety deposit boxes to cash in as gold prices flirt with $1,000 an ounce. Coins, old wedding rings, necklaces given by ex-boyfriends, hand-me-down gold pieces — everything is fair game when it brings this kind of profit. Shop owners across the country are marveling about the phenomenon they say began in the latter part of 2007 and accelerated through the winter, reflecting torrid...

A so-called “NAFTA Superhighway� earned support from the city’s mayor and discussion among residents Monday during a public hearing on the Texas Department of Transportation’s I-69 project. TxDOT held a public hearing at the Brownsville Events Center Monday to explain the progress of the Trans-Texas Corridor, a future segment of Highway I-69, which will link the U.S.-Mexico border to the U.S.-Canada border. After a short presentation, the floor was open for comments. Among the local politicians, college students and retirees at the hearing there was a wide range of opinion on the project. According to Mario Jorge, district engineer for...

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) -- Senator Barack Obama, vying for the Democratic presidential candidacy, vowed to change bankruptcy laws and cap interest rates during his campaign tour in Southern California, the Los Angeles Times reported Thursday. During what his campaign dubbed a "Roundtable on Economic Opportunity" there, Obama called for an exemption in the 2005 bankruptcy bill for people who can persuade a bankruptcy court that they filed for bankruptcy because of debts caused by medical expenses. His proposal also includes extending the 36-percent limit on payday loans to military members to all Americans; encouraging banks, credit unions and...

The energy bill to be signed by the president today is arguably the worst piece of energy legislation ever enacted into law. It will substantially increase the price of automobiles, increase highway fatalities, increase fuel prices, worsen air pollution, and force consumers to buy products (like super-efficient light bulbs) that they manifestly -- and for very good reason -- do not want to buy. It will transfer huge amounts of wealth from the consumer to the farm lobby in the course of promoting a dubious product -- ethanol -- that will make energy supplies less reliable and greenhouse gas emission...

A disappointing October sales report Thursday sent a clear signal to retailers that they’ll have to pull out all the stops to get shoppers into their stores this holiday as declining home values, tighter credit terms and rising gas prices appear to have left consumers feeling spent. The nation’s biggest chain stores posted the second consecutive month of weak sales results, underscoring their concerns that sales growth this holiday season could be the slowest in five years. “Consumers are exerting a lot of caution,” said Mandy Putnam, vice president at TNS Retail Forward Inc., a Columbus, Ohio-based market research and...

The new numbers on consumer confidence are out. They show American consumers very confident that the economy is going down the tubes. Over in Asia and Europe, stocks plunged on fears that Americans may no longer be able to find the second jobs and recklessly borrow the money needed to buy imported stuff. Economists now freely use the "recession" word following the report that American payrolls fell in August, the first monthly decline in four years. American consumers, in other words, are all dried up. And the discussion has begun on what kind of baloney economy kept them lubricated for...

Are consumers better off with a competitive or monopolistic provision of goods and services? Let's apply that question to a few areas of our lives. Prior to deregulation, when there was a monopoly and restricted entry in the provision of telephone services, were consumers better off or worse off than they are with today's ruthless competition to get our business? Anyone over 40 will recognize the differences. Competition has provided consumers with a vast array of choices, lower and lower prices and more courteous customer care than when government had its heavy hand on the provision of telephone services.

The Curve, a new model of the BlackBerry device. NEW YORK - BlackBerry maker Research in Motion Ltd. is introducing its third new model in less than a year, a mid-sized device geared toward consumers who might prefer a full keyboard for typing text rather than the abridged one on the popular Pearl. The Curve, named for its smooth edges, will be offered first by AT&T Inc., though no launch date or pricing was disclosed in a news release Thursday. The device has a front trackball below the screen to navigate its menus, a feature that RIM introduced last year...

When Americans voted for George W. Bush in November 2000, they knew they were electing a man with deep ties to Texas oil. But six years later, a greener-sounding Bush is about to depart for a trip to Brazil, where he hopes to forge a biofuels partnership that officials believe could revolutionize America's fuel industry and transform its relations with Latin America. Critics suspect the president's biofuels conversion is only superficial, a late-in-the-day effort to build a less oil-splattered legacy. U.S. officials, though, talk of a new era of "ethanol diplomacy," capable perhaps one day of rivaling the petro-dollars muscle...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Consumers greeted the new year in a much more optimistic frame of mind, with their confidence rising to a nearly one-year high in January. And, their outlook for the economy's prospects and their own financial situations over the next six months turned considerably brighter. This improvement comes after a long, angst-ridden period about future economic activity. (Snip) Against this backdrop, Americans gave President Bush higher marks for his economic stewardship. The president's approval rating on the economy rose to 43 percent in January from 38 percent in December, according to a separate AP-Ipsos poll. Consumers' feelings about...

There's no doubt about it: foreign technology can whet your appetite. Super-lightweight laptops from Japan, feature-packed smartphones from Europe, and shiny, gotta-get-it devices designed in India, South Korea, and Taiwan are but a few of the items that currently reside on tech's cutting edge. But chances are you will never see those gadgets on store shelves here in the U.S. A trip to the typical U.S. electronics store suggests many Americans would gladly shell out some extra cash for high-end lightweight products. Smaller, lighter, and more-expensive laptops are occupying an ever-increasing amount of shelf space. Even if a larger percentage...

Consumer Confidence Rises to Higher-Than-Expected Level in September NEW YORK (AP) -- Falling gasoline prices helped brighten the mood of American consumers in September, sending a barometer of consumer sentiment higher than analysts expected. The New York-based Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index rose to 104.5 from a revised reading of 100.2. in August. Analysts had expected the index to rise to 103. The reading, the highest since July's 107, followed a big dip in August, when employment worries dragged down consumer sentiment. The private research group's Present Situation Index, which measures how shoppers feel now about...

Time to Remove Barriers to Boosting Oil Refining Capacity by Ben LiebermanPosted Jul 27, 2006The high price of oil is the main reason that the price of gasoline has nearly doubled over the last three years, but it is not the only reason. The cost of turning oil into gasoline has also risen, thanks in part to costly federal regulations on refinery operations and expansions. Many in Congress are aware of this problem, and the House recently passed the Refinery Permit Process Schedule Act (H.R. 5254) to address it. This very modest measure would streamline refinery-related regulations and would be...

Some solace for traditional news outlets worried about how to compete with the Internet: A survey finds slowing growth in the number of people who regularly go online for the news. Almost three in 10 adults, or 31 percent, regularly log in for news, a rate roughly the same as two years ago, according to the survey released Sunday by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press. People in their 40s were more likely to go online for news than the younger adults. "The online news audience is maturing and at this point is wider than it...

What can keep Russia from growing? 1. Soviet-era bureaucracy 2. Outdated industry 3. Poor investment climate 4. Retailing is booming, but other businesses lag. 5. Millions of Russians are at risk of being left behind. What will keep Russia growing? 1. Russia will depend on its oil revenues for the forseeable future. Question: Will oil revenues generate enough income that can be equitably distributed to the point that it will overcome the barriers to growth? What do you think?

Dick Cheney warned President Putin that he has"unfairly and improperly restricted the rights of her people." The Russian people responded by going shopping. Russians are a resilient bunch of people. They are also a pessimistic lot. Most people in Russia still feel they are know better off, though they are consuming more. Inflation is 12% but economic growth is above that. Apartment prices are going up quicker than they are in Shanghai or New York. Of course, once it reaches the $1 million price tag, everything slows down, eh? Putin has a popularity rating of 70%, twice that of the...

A Camry hybrid costs about $5,000 more than it's nonhybrid brother, or is it sister? If a driver goes 15,000 miles a year with an efficiency of 39mpg s/he will save about $500/yr. Easy math. It will take 10 years to get your money back. The good news is a Toyota will last 10 years and 150,000 miles. The bad news is Americans won't drive the same car for that long. But then neither will anybody else in any other country. The Japanese will change cars every 3-5 years. This is one of the reasons why the hybrid market only...

Russia is flooded with cash that comes for high oil prices so high. And the walls of the rich and corrupt are starting to overflow to the little fellow in the distant outposts. For seven years, Russia has seen 6% growth AFTER inflation. There is now a consumer class in Russia and they can't wait to go shopping. For as little as $1000/month a family of four can live somewhat comfortably...and this salary is within reach of about 30% of the population and continues to grow. In 2002, 12% of all Russians had a cell phone. In 2006, 88% of...

Thanksgiving marked the day that some analysts thought global oil production would have reached its peak, ushering in a new era of fuel shortages. These petro-pessimists were using the same formula as the one that accurately predicted the apex of U.S. oil production in 1970. Matthew Simmons, author of "Twilight in the Desert: The Coming Saudi Oil Shock and the World Economy," is one of them. He thinks Saudi Arabia has pumped much of its usable reserves and will start to experience production declines. Even analysts who are more optimistic warn that chronically high prices and occasional supply crunches...

Consumer Prices Up; Retail Sales Rise By MARTIN CRUTSINGER, AP Economics Writer 18 minutes ago WASHINGTON - Consumer prices surged in September by the largest amount in more than 25 years as Hurricanes Katrina and Rita sent energy prices soaring at the fastest pace on record. ADVERTISEMENT The Labor Department reported Friday that inflation jumped 1.2 percent last month. It said that 90 percent of that increase came from a record-setting 12 percent surge in energy prices which reflected gasoline prices that briefly topped $3 per gallon last month after widespread shutdowns of refineries and oil and natural gas platforms...

New research from the University of Alberta reveals just how self-conscious and easily influenced consumers can be. Through a series of carefully controlled experiments at a campus bookstore, researchers learned that consumers will, in every case studied, spend more money to buy a brand name item when someone they don't know is standing near them at the time they choose their purchase. Consumers also tend to spend more money when a group of people is standing near them but are more inclined to buy cheaper items when no one is near.

Both Democrats and Republicans on the [Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee] panel expressed concern that fuel prices are choking U.S. consumers. [. . .] Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said $100 a barrel oil is "not so far out of the realm of possibility," and asked "is that something this country can sustain?" [. . .] Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., said he anticipates "we're going to find many instances of manipulation and fraud." Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., the chairman of the committee, said the panel is prepared to call on oil-company executives to explain rising fuel costs if there is...

WASHINGTON - Getting President Bush from here to there consumes an enormous amount of fuel, whether he's aboard Air Force One, riding in a helicopter or on the ground in a heavily armored limousine. The bill gets steeper every day as the White House is rocked by the same energy prices as regular drivers. Taxpayers still foot the bill. Almost every vehicle Bush uses is custom-made to add security and communications capabilities, and the heavier weight of these guzzlers further drives up gas and jet fuel costs. The White House declines to discuss travel costs related to the presidential entourage,...

...A podcast, as anyone under 25 can tell you, is an audio recording posted online, much like a short radio show. ("Podcasting" is a pun on "broadcasting," implying, of course, that you listen to it on your iPod or another music player.) The beauty of a podcast is that it's free and you listen to it whenever you like. And there are more than 7,000 podcasts "on the air" right now, on every conceivable topic. Their quantity and variety already dwarf what you can find on regular radio. What makes podcasting a national dinnertime conversation these days, though, is...

Consumer confidence index rises to 105.8 in June. Details coming.

     ISLANDIA, N.Y., June 7 /PRNewswire/ -- The vast majority of Americans (88%) say that rising gasoline prices are a concern for them and their household budgets, according to the Cambridge Consumer Credit Index. Over half of Americans (54%) say that high energy prices are a major concern, 34% say high gas prices are a minor concern, and 10% are not concerned about the level of gas prices.      A year ago, the overall level of concern was the same, but slightly more Americans thought high gas prices were a major concern than think so today. Here is a comparison of the...

McDonald’s pays $10m damages Silicon Valley (PTI): Fast food giant McDonald’s will pay $10 million to 24 groups, including the International American Gita Society, as part of a settlement of lawsuits. McDonald’s has been charged with misleading Hindus and vegetarian consumers by “wrongly describing” its French fries, containing beef additive for flavouring, as vegetarian. McDonald’s recently informed the Gita society that it is among the groups receiving the settlement money, the US-based non-profit organisation’s spokesperson, Ramananda Prasad, said. “We are such a small organisation, and nobody supports us, the temples are busy with their own activities,” Prasad, who founded the...

I hope I've posted this correctly, and in the correct forum, I'd rather it didn't get pulled :) Dear Fellow Freepers, First of all, I'd like to say thanks for the great job you guys do for us. I, for one, do appreciate your genuine concern for our Country. As a Republican, I have worked hard to help elect concerned, responsible, Republicans to office...and our industry needs your opinion and help. This issue is gathering steam from some very powerful forces and needs to be (IMO) stopped. Being in the transportation industry and being that I am just a small...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - California's new greenhouse gas emission standards can be met largely by using existing auto technologies and will generate consumer savings by improving gas mileage, a state regulator said Monday. "We're not talking about exotic technologies here," said Chuck Shulock, manager of the state Air Resources Board's greenhouse gas reduction program. "Significant reductions can be achieved simply by taking existing technologies and applying them very broadly across the (vehicle) fleet." Shulock testified at a hearing held by the Assembly Transportation Committee to determine if regulations approved by the ARB last September comply with 2002 legislation that made California...

elieve it or not, I often think about the US economy, and where it is headed. The US has proven that we can design, manufacture, and market the best products in the world, but lately we are designing and marketing, and sending the manufacturing overseas. I am not a Michael Moore type who believes that every American is entitled to a union job and a big pension, but I do believe that we are selling ourselves short by letting the Chinese manufacture such a high percentage of our consumer products. Free markets are a great idea, but the problem is...

Blog and bloggers have made a huge mark in 2004, and this should give every major marketer and advertiser pause for deep reflection. Bloggers gave Howard Dean's campaign early, unexpected momentum. They fanned the flames of the Iraqi prison crisis with rapid distribution of photos, especially the most controversial ones. They catapulted into the mainstream Burger King's "Viral Chicken" campaign, as well as the controversial "Swift Boat Veteran for Truth" anti-Kerry video. More recently, blogs have showcased new and promising ways for brands like Microsoft, Nike, Nokia, Sun, and HP to reach out to consumers and other stakeholders. But let...

Worries about the job market sent consumer confidence tumbling in August, a research group said Tuesday, in a report that could spell more trouble for the economy ahead. The Conference Board, a business research group, said its index of consumer confidence sank to 98.2 from a reading of 105.7 in July. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast that the index would slip, but just a bit to 103.4. The August reading was the lowest since May and showed the biggest drop since February. Confidence is an important indicator of consumer willingness to spend, especially on big-ticket items. About two-thirds of...