Those dirty european commies have the number 1 economy now, The US is number 2 thanks

#1
OrangeEmpire

OrangeEmpire

The White Debonair
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#1
The U.S. economy lost the title of "world's biggest" to the euro zone this week as the value of the dollar slumped in currency markets.

Taking the gross domestic product of both economies in 2007, the combined GDP of the 15 countries which use the euro overtook that of the United States when the European currency surged to a record high of more than $1.56 per euro.

"The curious outcome of breaching this latest milestone is that the size of the euro zone's annual output has now exceeded that of the U.S.," the economics department of Goldman Sachs, the Wall Street investment bank, said in a note to clients.

Taking official estimates of 2007 GDP -- $13,843,800 billion for the United States and 8,847,889.1 billion euros for the euro zone -- the economy of the latter passed the United States once converted into dollars, shortly after the euro topped $1.56.

The dollar sank to $1.5688 per euro late in European trading hours on Friday, at which rate the euro zone's 2007 GDP equates to $13,880,568.4 billion.

The 2007 GDP estimates are as published by the U.S. Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis and provided to Reuters on request for the euro zone by Eurostat, the European Union's statistics office.

-source
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Thoughts?
 
#4
#4
It's a by product of a homogenous society where they stick their undersirable immigrant laborers in segregated ghettos and they euthanize old people.
 
#10
#10
I claim very little understanding of the subject, but if the fed would stop cutting interest rates and thus devaluing the US dollar even further, wouldn't our economy improve with a stronger dollar?
 
#11
#11
MG1968 said:
I claim very little understanding of the subject, but if the fed would stop cutting interest rates and thus devaluing the US dollar even further, wouldn't our economy improve with a stronger dollar?
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no. the weak dollar is not the problem all have trumped it up to be. It drives up the pricing of most imported goods, but makes our exports seem relatively inexpensive overseas. It's actually a boon to all of our exporters. Many foreign car mfrs are fortunate to be building cars in the US, or they would be priced out of the market. As it is, they're still taking a profitability beating in terms of their own currencies.

If the fed tightened its policies today, we would be absolutely assured of a pretty deep recession. While we are likely in the midst of a bit of a recession, the loosening will bring big capital spending back into the market. That's the start to ending the credit crunch that has been driving this train toward the cliff.
 
#12
#12
Personally, I'm in favor of raising rates, and taking it on the chin with a recession, rather than delay what is seeming more and more inevitable.

It seems to me that the Fed is plugging toothpicks into holes in the dam, while telling the townspeople that everything will be okay with a few more toothpicks.

Honestly, it seems like a boxer's corner sending him out to fight in the 11th round after he has been battered for the previous 10, with no chance to win. Much like putting your old dog that you loved to sleep, a recession is going to hurt alot more the longer we try to deny the inevitable.
 
#13
#13
JTrainDavis said:
Personally, I'm in favor of raising rates, and taking it on the chin with a recession, rather than delay what is seeming more and more inevitable.

It seems to me that the Fed is plugging toothpicks into holes in the dam, while telling the townspeople that everything will be okay with a few more toothpicks.

Honestly, it seems like a boxer's corner sending him out to fight in the 11th round after he has been battered for the previous 10, with no chance to win. Much like putting your old dog that you loved to sleep, a recession is going to hurt alot more the longer we try to deny the inevitable.
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Don't hold any thing back, tell us how you really feel....
 
#16
#16
The thing is, the bottom of the barrel in America would rather have $10,000 worth 30 cents apiece, than $7,000 valued at a dollar apiece. Cutting rates keeps the ignorant masses happy, while avoiding confronting the problem.
 
#18
#18
I think time more than people will right the ship, we're in tough shape. Problem being, both parties will whore out the dollar to keep the ignorant public happy, until there's nowhere to turn but a full blown depression.
 
#19
#19
I look at it from a micro point of view;

Given that the U.S. economy is driven by consumer spending (I've heard 70%);

1) Over the past decade, high paying factory jobs have left the U.S. for foreign climes
2) Unemployment may be viewed as low but no consideration is given for swapping highing paying jobs for lower paying jobs
3) Corporations have been allowed to negate post retiree medical benefits and defined benefit programs (pensions)
4) Corporations have watered down employee health benefits to the extent that employees pay a much higher portion of their paycheck on medical costs
5) Cost of living is going up
6) The American consumer on average is basically tapped out on credit and in many cases can not service the debt we have incurred

Given all of the above, I think the economic engine is running out of fuel at an exponential rate and we are in for a very rough go.
 
#20
#20
Plano Vol said:
I look at it from a micro point of view;

Given that the U.S. economy is driven by consumer spending (I've heard 70%);

1) Over the past decade, high paying factory jobs have left the U.S. for foreign climes and been converted to higher paying service sector jobs. We cannot afford to keep paying through the nose for semi-skilled factory labor because it is massively cheaper elsewhere and our companies become uncompetitive wastes of investor capital.
2) Unemployment may be viewed as low but no consideration is given for swapping highing paying jobs for lower paying jobs. But that's not the case so no consideration should be given to it. Per capita income has continued rising in the US.
3) Corporations have been allowed to negate post retiree medical benefits and defined benefit programs (pensions). Those employees had no "right" to the pension programs and only those not guaranteed by law have been eliminated, as they should have been.
4) Corporations have watered down employee health benefits to the extent that employees pay a much higher portion of their paycheck on medical costs. Those employees with complaints should go elsewhere, get higher paying jobs or pay for the benefits.
5) Cost of living is going up This has been the case since the advent of trade. It is never going to change, ever. Standard of living is going up too. Incomes are going up. Those who increase income levels faster than cost of living increases get to enjoy higher standard of living.
6) The American consumer on average is basically tapped out on credit and in many cases can not service the debt we have incurred. Absolutely false. Inability to service debt results in a default. Defaults result in bad debt for the lenders. While the media has made the debt defaults, real estate and otherwise, appear to be hitting every other person, the default rates on debt are surprisingly low.

Given all of the above, I think the economic engine is running out of fuel at an exponential rate and we are in for a very rough go.
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See above for response.

Your last statement has been the commentary of the political party out of power since the inception of the two party system.

Could we have a recession - absolutely. Are we in one - likely. Will it end - absolutely. Is the sky falling - not where I live.
 
#22
#22
BigPapaVol said:
See above for response.

Your last statement has been the commentary of the political party out of power since the inception of the two party system.

Could we have a recession - absolutely. Are we in one - likely. Will it end - absolutely. Is the sky falling - not where I live.
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So the countries that do all of the above, social entitlements, job protection, cradle to grave health care now have the #1 economy and a strong currency to boot.

I'm glad you're doing well and haven't seen gas or groceries go up in price. I don't think everyone's salary increases are matching the price increases.

You have a mass of people called the baby boomers hitting retirement with less of a safety net than prior generations that are already consuming retirement nest eggs to make ends meet. I guess we could do like the Eskimos and stick the underserving ones on an ice flow.
 
#24
#24
Plano Vol said:
So the countries that do all of the above, social entitlements, job protection, cradle to grave health care now have the #1 economy and a strong currency to boot. They don't have the #1 economy, just a contrived highest GDP. They falsely cobble together a slew of countries in the EU to pretend they have an economy comparable to ours. That is not the case. All of the nation of the world have a combined GDP higher than ours as well, but that's just not a very good measure for calling the world economy #1. As to the strong currency, it's only a relative measure except that it drives gas pricing to some degree. The value of our currency will be best reflected in the BOP, which an undervalued dollar only helps.

I'm glad you're doing well and haven't seen gas or groceries go up in price. I don't think everyone's salary increases are matching the price increases. I understand that the price of gas has impacted disposable income, but that is as much a function of worldwide demand as it is anything to do with our economy. It is effective inflation and will ripple through the economy as a whole. Do you have any good arguments for gas actually being cheaper than it is today?

You have a mass of people called the baby boomers hitting retirement with less of a safety net than prior generations that are already consuming retirement nest eggs to make ends meet. I guess we could do like the Eskimos and stick the underserving ones on an ice flow. I just don't agree. Americans are retiring with more personal wealth than any previous generations ever even considered and the mythical safety net is performing its function just fine. The bottom line is that education and transition totally away from agriculture has dwindled the family size. Eventually, the ration of retirees to working folks will trend downward because of the reduced number of young. That's just reality of the demographics of our country, not because we have a weak economy. By the by, retirement nest were built for the purpose of being consumed.
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See the bolded portions above for my response. As to the Eskimos, they have the survival of the fittest thing about right.
 
#25
#25
So the countries that do all of the above, social entitlements, job protection, cradle to grave health care now have the #1 economy and a strong currency to boot. They don't have the #1 economy, just a contrived highest GDP. They falsely cobble together a slew of countries in the EU to pretend they have an economy comparable to ours. That is not the case. All of the nation of the world have a combined GDP higher than ours as well, but that's just not a very good measure for calling the world economy #1. As to the strong currency, it's only a relative measure except that it drives gas pricing to some degree. The value of our currency will be best reflected in the BOP, which an undervalued dollar only helps.
I'll be the first to agree the the Europeans aren't past skewing the numbers but they have managed to conserve wealth and run their countries on a paying basis and by most accounts have a better quality of life. ( I wouldn't to live anywhere but the good ol' U.S. of A but they may be on to something). Personally, I'm tired of us being the world's policeman and those guys doing squat and laughing at us...point is we can't afford to do it anymore.

I'm glad you're doing well and haven't seen gas or groceries go up in price. I don't think everyone's salary increases are matching the price increases. I understand that the price of gas has impacted disposable income, but that is as much a function of worldwide demand as it is anything to do with our economy. It is effective inflation and will ripple through the economy as a whole. Do you have any good arguments for gas actually being cheaper than it is today? Nope, we've done it to ourselves on gas either by driving Suburbans or by outsourcing jobs so the Indians and Chinese can by cars. I do blame the current administration for allowing windfall profits by the oil companies and not taxing them. I also blame the current administration for using ethanol which has caused grocery prices to rise and is more harmful to the enviroment.

You have a mass of people called the baby boomers hitting retirement with less of a safety net than prior generations that are already consuming retirement nest eggs to make ends meet. I guess we could do like the Eskimos and stick the underserving ones on an ice flow. I just don't agree. Americans are retiring with more personal wealth than any previous generations ever even considered and the mythical safety net is performing its function just fine. The bottom line is that education and transition totally away from agriculture has dwindled the family size. Eventually, the ration of retirees to working folks will trend downward because of the reduced number of young. That's just reality of the demographics of our country, not because we have a weak economy. By the by, retirement nest were built for the purpose of being consumed. It's probably more desirable to consume a retirement nest egg at retirement age than years before retirement commences.

Bottom line is that we continue to increase our national debt (what, by threefold since George W took office) and the cost of living is beginning to increase across the board.

Don't know if you were around for the Carter years but I'm concerned we are going to get another taste of it.

As to the Eskimos, they have the survival of the fittest thing about right.

bold talk...you won't whack your parents and your children won't whack you
 
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