There is an undeniable and understandable rush to reopen economies. The coronavirus has taken a measurable toll on American life, with the human cost measured in the anguish of each victim’s family, and the economic cost measured in unemployment claims and the prospect of lower household income. This ... READ MORE >
coronavirus
U.S. April employment report: Prelude to a tragedy
The weight of this sad time we must obey, Speak what we feel, not what we ought to say. The oldest hath borne most: We that are young. Shall never see so much, nor live so long. William Shakespeare, “King Lear” We must remember the gravity of this sad day. Like William Shakespeare, who wrote “King ... READ MORE >
As private equity firms prepare to deploy cash, a backlash looms
As many middle market businesses struggle to stay above water, private equity firms are well-positioned to provide a lifeline. They have been preparing for this moment for years, heeding a lesson from the Great Recession that they need capital to deploy when the valuations are low and struggling companies ... READ MORE >
Jobless claims, state by state: Eight have a million or more since the coronavirus outbreak
Initial filings for unemployment benefits increased by 3.2 million newly unemployed people during the week ending May 2. That means that a cumulative 33.5 million claims of newly unemployed people have been processed by the state agencies in the seven weeks since the economies of most states were shut ... READ MORE >
Initial jobless claims continue to rise to extreme levels
While the pace of first-time jobless claims has slowed over the past five weeks -- about the only good thing one can say about the labor market in the United States -- the increase of 3.2 million in jobless claims for the week ending May 2 brings the cumulative total to 33.5 million during the past seven ... READ MORE >
U.S. April employment report preview: A magnitude complete in itself
It can be unsettling that when human tragedy strikes we tend to talk in the strict, sterile terms of statistics. When the U.S. employment report is released on Friday, we will try to provide context and a framework for understanding the catastrophe occurring throughout the country that is accompanied by a ... READ MORE >
ISM service sector index: More pain ahead
The Institute for Supply Management’s April report on the service sector, like its manufacturing cousin, implies that the domestic economy has not yet troughed. The ISM said on Tuesday that the forward-looking new orders and business activity components of its Non-Manufacturing Index declined to 32.9 ... READ MORE >
More details about the Main Street Lending Program
On April 30, the Federal Reserve released additional guidance on the expanding scope and eligibility for Main Street Lending Program. Much to the credit of firms that submitted comments to the Federal Reserve, the Main Street Lending Program is now eligible for those firms with $5 billion in annual ... READ MORE >
ISM Manufacturing Index points to more damage ahead
The top-line ISM Manufacturing Index declined to 41.5 from 49.1, confirming that the economy sank into recession in March. The forward-looking new orders component declined to 27.1 from 42.2 and the employment sub-index collapsed to 27.5 from 43.8. The production sub-index declined to 27.5 from ... READ MORE >
New data on spread of coronavirus shows need for caution on relaxing restrictions
After a two-week period of fewer cases of the coronavirus, Americans are moving gingerly toward a resumption of normal social and professional activity. The next few weeks will be instructive as to the logic of reopening the economy, new infections and rising deaths. This week, newly reported cases of ... READ MORE >