Empirically, the US economy has entered a recession every time US national spending on oil has crossed the line of 4% of GDP. 4% of US GDP is equivalent to about $80 dollars a barrel. That means that if oil prices remain above $80, the US will enter a recession by year’s end.”
Thanks to Jon Medved for the original post: Ed
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According to “advance” estimates of the Bureau of Economic Analysis released last week, the U.S. economy grew by +3.2% last quarter (seasonally adjusted annual rate or SAAR). This marked the sixth consecutive quarterly increase since the recession ended in mid 2009. Furthermore, the level of economic activity has finally overtaken that recorded in the last quarter of 2007 (the recession officially began in December 2007).
Progress was evident in many sectors of the economy during the fourth quarter:
Continue reading “Fourth Quarter 2010 Economic Report Card | Nancy D. Sidhu”
Many times when people think about getting into business for themselves, they cherish the idea of the freedom and control it would bring, but are often stifled by fear. ‘How will I find customers?’, ‘How do I find the money I need?’, ‘Will anyone really buy what I’m selling?’ are typical of the questions we run through our minds just before a wave of fear spills over us and we suddenly feel grateful for the job we loathe.
We tell ourselves that having a business is for people that come from money, yet many of the greatest success stories are people that had little or no money at the beginning of their journey. We are convinced that we need ever increasing amounts of education, but Bill Gates, one of the world’s richest people, didn’t complete college, Sir Richard Branson never went.
So what is it? What makes some people successful and others not? It boils down to three primary traits:
The major kink in the housing market’s recovery, and for the macro economy overall, is the work left to be done on homes currently in the foreclosure process, those about to enter it and the amount of repossessed homes the banks must shed. Striking a proper balance on how to mange this shadow inventory of foreclosures is vital for the banks to show a healthy balance sheet while not dumping too many distressed properties onto the market, further dragging down home prices and values.
Thanks to Victoria Kuo for bringing this article to our attention- Ed.
SMALL BUSINESS ADVOCATE’S ADVISORY GROUP
MEETING NOTES
West Sacramento, California
January 25, 2011
2011 Small Business Priorities.
After a very useful and spirited discussion, those in attendance decided on the following priorities for the Small Business Advocate and the Small Business network to work on in the coming year. They are divided into those issues which have or will have specific legislation, and those that are general and involve many different initiatives. I also include those issues put forward by the group that received lower consideration, but that the group still believed were important.
1. Legislative Priorities:
Continue reading “SMALL BUSINESS ADVOCATE’S ADVISORY GROUP MEETING NOTES | Marty Keller”
Mark Lobb is an attorney with Lobb and Cliff, a law firm specializing in tax and estate planning who is also a part of the Inland Empire Business Doctors, a group which we are a member of. The Lobb Report has been so informative, we got permission to reprint it here. Enjoy. – Ed.
The Lobb Report
Lobb & Cliff, LLP
Volume 5, January 3, 2011
Happy 2011! As you know, a lot happened in Washington D.C. during the last three weeks of last year. Below is a brief analysis of laws and extended laws which concern you and your business.
President Obama signed the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 (referred to in this e-mail as the “Band-Aid”) into law on December 17. The Band-Aid includes the all important extension of the 2001/2003 Bush administration tax cuts for two years. Our government gave Band-Aids to everyone in every tax bracket. We also have a new two year Band-Aid as it concerns estate tax provisions. The Band-Aid includes not only an extension of some current laws, but also contains some new laws, so don’t look at the Band-Aid as business as usual.
If my math is correct, there will be an election in November of 2012. The timing may cause more Band-Aid legislation and last minute deals. However, I predict the Band-Aid legislation will lapse and we will revert back to the 2001 rates going into 2013. I say this because I do not see Congress and the President coming to terms in order to ink a new deal in the next election year. If the Democrats believe they will be able to take back the House and hold onto the Senate and the Executive office as 2012 comes to a close, they will have no incentive to negotiate with the Republican controlled House. If the Republicans believe they will take the Senate and Executive office, they will have no incentive to deal with the Democrats in 2012. It may be that early in 2013, a new tax bill is negotiated and signed into law with an effective date retroactive to January 1, 2013. This gives us a lot to think about in regards to selling capital assets, estate planning, succession planning, etc. as we move through the next two years.
TAX:
For the next two years, we will have the following rate provisions:
Individual Tax Rates: The individual income tax rate brackets will be at 10%, 25%, 28%, 33% and 35%. The threatened highest rate approaching 40% has been avoided.
Continue reading “The Lobb Report, Volume 5 | Mark Lobb”
Having been thought the wars on how hard it can be to pick a name, we thought this article would be helpful.
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What if detecting urban pollution was as easy as looking down at your neighbor’s chest? It is–if your neighbor is wearing one of the high-tech sweatshirts designed by NYU grad students Sue Ngo and Nien Lam.
Facebook wasn’t initially interested in raising the $2 billion, these people said, partly because the company generates enough cash to fund itself for more than a year. Hiring Goldman as an adviser tilted the odds in favor of a sky-high valuation when Facebook goes public.
Dispatches From The Front 