Labor

Of all the indicators that the Fed has presented to justify its rate hike mentality and to validate that the US economy remains on a growth path despite clear recessionary signals from both the manufacturing sector and the dramatic tightening in financial conditions in recent months, Yellen's preferred metric also happens to be the most lagging one: nonfarm payrolls and the unemployment rate, both of which supposedly signal the collapsing slack in the labor market and a jump in wages that has been "just around the corner" for years.

In what could be the biggest blow yet for her campaign, the leader of the America's largest federation of unions (counting 12 million active and retired "everyday Americans") has chosen not to endorse Hillary Clinton over Bernie Sanders.

Clinton has racked up endorsements from 18 unions, according to The Hill, including the Service Employees International Union and the National Education Association, while Sanders has garnered just three union endorsements.

 

The US Economy Has Not Recovered And Will Not Recover

Paul Craig Roberts

The US economy died when middle class jobs were offshored and when the financial system was deregulated.

Jobs offshoring benefitted corporate executives and shareholders, because lower labor and compliance costs resulted in higher profits. These profits flowed through to shareholders in the form of capital gains and to executives in the form of “performance bonuses.” Wall Street benefitted from the bull market generated by higher profits.

If you were looking for signs that US trade may be collapsing on itself, a good place to start would be Class 8 truck orders which, as we first documented in early December, have posted sharp y/y declines of late.

In November for instance, orders collapsed 59% y/y. In December, the drop was 37%, and in January, Class 8 orders dove 48% from the year ago period.

Submitted by Simon Black via SovereignMan.com,

According to financial research firm ICI, total retirement assets in the Land of the Free now exceed $23 trillion.

$7.3 trillion of that is held in Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs).

That’s an appetizing figure, especially for a government that just passed $19 trillion in debt and is in pressing need of new funding sources.