A sign of just how shakey this "recovery" is ...

[dud]

http://money.cnn.com/2010/05/20/news/economy/consumer_retail_walmart.fortune/?hpt=P1&iref=NS1



"And then there is Wal-Mart, whose happy yellow face switched to a grimace when it released first quarter sales on Tuesday. Although international growth helped push revenues up 6%, sales at U.S. stores fell 1.4% from the same period last year. And the company had no one to blame but its shoppers. "More than ever, our customers are living paycheck to paycheck," said Tom Schoewe, the chief financial officer.

So who are you supposed to believe? In this case, Bentonville. When Wal-Mart (WMT, Fortune 500), an economic bellwether, notes that customers can't afford the gas to get to the stores and that they're increasingly using food stamps when they get there, things are bad."

 

[IronWing]

Off shore production and then get all bummed when your newly unemployed customers can't afford to buy your cheaper stuff. It's like Henry Ford started spinning counter clockwise in his grave. Protectionism works.

 

[SP33Demon]

I wouldn't be alarmed unless the next quarter is bad as well. Also, while the article says Target said it was better than expected results they still don't have any explanation as to why Target did well and Walmart did not. I know that personally I'll go to Target before Walmart and this could be a shift in buyer patterns but usually the sector either does good/bad as a whole.

 

[alfa147x]

P&N is that way
<---------------

 

[Gibson486]

Ummm....so...you are gonna believe some "analyst" about our economy. The real truth is that no one knows if we are recovering. The "signs" of recovery can be purely coincidence. If you wan to see if for yourself, just look at the job market. Look at the real estate market. They are both down and forclosures are still happening...yet some companies are still posting good numbers on consumer spending.

The current trend is that flat is the new growth and what everyone wants to ignore is that our current state maybe the best it will be for a long time.

 

[DesiPower]

P&N is that way
<---------------

^^^

 

[ViviTheMage]

psssh, politics.

 

[SlitheryDee]

Off shore production and then get all bummed when your newly unemployed customers can't afford to buy your cheaper stuff. It's like Henry Ford started spinning counter clockwise in his grave. Protectionism works.

No one's denying that protectionism works for us, but what about the poor people on the other side of the planet? They're all so sad and hungry!

 

[IronWing]

No one's denying that protectionism works for us, but what about the poor people on the other side of the planet? They're all so sad and hungry!

They'll die off and then we can take their land.

 

[preslove]

I thought the Wal-Mart bellwether was that they do extremely well when the economy does poorly. As in, people would rather shop somewhere else, but will go to Wal-Mart if they're under/un-employed.

I know I'm shopping more at Target now that I have a permanent job. Though this is more on account that I moved and there is a closer Target and the Wal-Marts here are absolutely horrid.

 

[Jeffg010]

Well the market is down 200 in the first 15 min and the goverment thinks we out of this recession and happy days are here ppffftttt.

 

[Wyndru]

What confuses me about the analysis of the economy is the unemployment numbers. They state that unemployment claims are going down, but most of the people I know that are unemployed have been so for a year or two, so they can't claim unemployment anymore since they are beyond their extensions.. Do they count in them in the unemployment numbers? There are not as many NEW unemployed people, but there aren't many new jobs either.

I've never known so many people on unemployment at one time, and just this year school districts have started laying off tons of people due to lack of state funding, so that's a whole new set of people without income. I've been laid off 2 times in the past 3 years, and this year I just barely kept my job, but my boss has notified me that next years school budget is projected to be far worse, so I may want to keep that in mind. Only problem is that if I move, I'm still just as likely being cut being the most recent hire. Given my track record, I'm a little hesitant.

IMO, we are in for a bad next 5-10 years.

 

[SunnyD]

Off shore production and then get all bummed when your newly unemployed customers can't afford to buy your cheaper stuff. It's like Henry Ford started spinning counter clockwise in his grave. Protectionism works.

This.

 

[purbeast0]

well there are no walmarts within like 20 miles of me so i never shop there.

i used to only run in there when i worked near one but i don't work there anymore.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

A recovery takes time. You can't just stay at an inn for 3 seconds and call it fixed.

 

[Gibson486]

What confuses me about the analysis of the economy is the unemployment numbers. They state that unemployment claims are going down, but most of the people I know that are unemployed have been so for a year or two, so they can't claim unemployment anymore since they are beyond their extensions.. Do they count in them in the unemployment numbers? There are not as many NEW unemployed people, but there aren't many new jobs either.

I've never known so many people on unemployment at one time, and just this year school districts have started laying off tons of people due to lack of state funding, so that's a whole new set of people without income. I've been laid off 2 times in the past 3 years, and this year I just barely kept my job, but my boss has notified me that next years school budget is projected to be far worse, so I may want to keep that in mind. Only problem is that if I move, I'm still just as likely being cut being the most recent hire. Given my track record, I'm a little hesitant.

IMO, we are in for a bad next 5-10 years.

The thing that people do not understand about analysts is that you can make your numbers project whatever you want as long as you have the info to back it up. You can omit the info that goes against your analysis and make it look right. With something as big as the economy, you can pretty much just pick and choose info to support your argument.

 

[Flipped Gazelle]

It's all explained in a brief video: http://sendables.jibjab.com/originals/big_box_mart

 

[Gibson486]

A recovery takes time. You can't just stay at an inn for 3 seconds and call it fixed.

Also, you can't really tell we are out of it until after the fact....just like how they didn't know we were in a recession until months after we entered.

 

[Wreckem]

Ummm. Its simple, and its why Wal-Mart lowered its prices. When the economy goes into the crapper/is in the crapper more people shop at Wal-Mart. When the economy starts getting better, those customers who started shopping at Wal-Mart because the economy was in the crapper start shopping at other places.

Wal-Mart even stated this when they lowered prices last month.

 

[PingSpike]

What confuses me about the analysis of the economy is the unemployment numbers. They state that unemployment claims are going down, but most of the people I know that are unemployed have been so for a year or two, so they can't claim unemployment anymore since they are beyond their extensions.. Do they count in them in the unemployment numbers?

I don't believe so. I think at that point the government assumes you have committed seppuku and thus no longer count as unemployed.

 

[mugs]

People can't afford to buy gas to go to Walmart and buy cheap stuff, but they can afford to go to Target and buy more expensive discretionary items: http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20100519-708889.html

 

[child of wonder]

What recovery? We're just improving things temporarily by printing more money so that the next downturn is even worse.

Speaking of which, my wife isn't working right now as she's about to go to college. I think we'll max out the credit cards so we can continue to enjoy a Latte every morning and a steak dinner each night rather than cut back.

 

[IronWing]

Speaking of which, my wife isn't working right now as she's about to go to college. I think we'll max out the credit cards so we can continue to enjoy a Latte every morning and a steak dinner each night rather than cut back.

It's your patriotic duty. If there is one lesson that has been crystal clear since 9/12 it is that the solution to all of our woes is to keep spending.

 

[FeuerFrei]

What recovery? We're just improving things temporarily by printing more money so that the next downturn is even worse.

You got it.


Plus we're trying to set up a health system like the one that bankrupted Greece. Nothing like taking on a massive expense when you're hurting financially.

 

[MJinZ]

They'll die off and then we can take their land.

True True.

But so will the stupid and poor here in the US.

Oh well, such is life.