Economy is showing signs of modest improvement

[WI_DEM]

NGTON—The economy is showing signs of modest improvement -- not enough to reduce high unemployment but enough to ease fears that another recession might be near.

Fewer people applied for unemployment benefits last week, though some of the drop was due to technical factors. And the economy expanded slightly more in the second quarter than previously estimated. The pace of economic growth is also expected to pick up in the coming months.

The stock market drew some hope from the latest data, as well as from news that Germany's government approved a plan to bolster Europe's response to its debt crisis. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 144 points in mid-day trading.

Other reports released Thursday were less encouraging. Chief executives at the nation's largest companies are more pessimistic than they were just three months ago, according to a survey by a trade group, the Business Roundtable.

Only about one-third plan to hire or boost spending in the next six months. That's down from about one-half in June.

And fewer Americans signed contracts to buy homes in August, the second straight month of decline. The National Association of Realtors said its index of sales agreements fell 1.2 percent to 88.6. A reading of 100 is considered healthy.

The economy expanded at an annual rate of 1.3 percent in the April-June quarter, up from an estimate of 1 percent made a month ago, the Commerce Department said. The improvement reflected modestly higher consumer spending and a bigger boost from trade.

Even with the upward revision, the economy grew at an annual rate of just 0.9 percent in the first six months of the year. That's the weakest six-month performance since the recession ended more than two years ago.

Most economists don't expect another recession, but they also don't see growth accelerating much. Many predict a rebound to between 2 percent and 2.5 percent growth in the current quarter.

"Growth remains sluggish and insufficient to reduce the unemployment rate," Ryan Sweet, an economist at Moody's Analytics, said in a note to clients.

http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2011/09/29/economy_is_showing_signs_of_modest_improvement/

[Newest Reality]

1. Improvement for some

The rest are written-off as the new Underclass.

I simply find this kind of news to be vacuous and even meaningless when it comes to our common wealth.

[ixion]

2. yep. "Improvement" for the monied-class, crap for the rest of us.

Welcome to the Neo-Feudal Age.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

3. is anybody buying this crap?

[NNN0LHI]

4. Recommended

[Scurrilous]

5. K & R

:thumbsup:

[coalition_unwilling]

6. Key stat is buried in the article: economy grew by only .9% in the

first six months of the year. That's not improvment, that's stagnation at best and certainly suggests a high probability of double-dip recession. The bond markets are pricing in probability of a double-dip recession. Look at the rates on the 10-Year Treasuries at about 2%. Q.E.D.