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(CNNMoney.com) -- A key measure of consumer confidence fell in June, reversing a three-month gain, as Americans remain nervous about the job market.  The Conference Board, a New York-based research group, said its Consumer Confidence Index dropped to 52.9 in June from 62.7 in May. It was the lowest level since March, when the index stood at 52.3.       
         
         
         
      
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CommentEconomists had expected the index to have fallen to 62 in June, according to consensus estimates from Briefing.com."Increasing uncertainty and apprehension about the future state of the economy and labor market, no doubt a result of the recent slowdown in job growth, are the primary reasons for the sharp reversal in confidence," Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board Consumer Research Center, said in a statement. Consumer confidence had been recovering slowly since the index hit a record low of 25.3 in February 2009, but the gauge is still far from a reading above 90, which indicates the economy is stable, and 100 or above, which indicates strong growth. The index that measures consumers' present level of confidence fell to 25.5 last month from 29.8 in May. The expectations index, which tracks consumers' expectations over the next few months, fell to 71.2 from 84.6.0:00
      /4:02Romer: 'We are adding jobs'Economists pay close attention to measures of consumer confidence as a proxy for consumer spending, which drives the bulk of the U.S. economy. "Today's report on confidence provides little reason to expect a meaningful pickup in consumer spending in the near term," said Jim Baird, partner and chief strategist at Plante Moran Financial Advisors. "Consumers are still exceedingly nervous about the jobs market." The percentage of consumers expecting more jobs in the months ahead fell in June to 16% from 20.2% the month before, according to the report. The percentage of those expecting fewer jobs increased. "Although the economy is growing, consumers recognize that employers remain hesitant to hire and jobs are still hard to come by," Baird said. Economists expect the government's monthly jobs report for June to show a decline of 100,000 jobs after temporary Census hiring led to the biggest monthly job gain in ten years during May. Meanwhile, the government said last week that the economy grew at a slower pace in the first three months of this year than previously estimated. Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of the nation's economic activity, grew at an annual rate of 2.7% in the first three months of 2010, according to the Commerce Department, down from the previous reading of a 3% rise.


    
        
         
      
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Home prices up 3.8% in April - but don't celebrate  Investors grab Tesla Motors IPO



First Published: June 29, 2010: 10:02 AM ET

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(CNNMoney.com) -- States filled an $84 billion gap to balance their 2011 fiscal year budgets, which took effect earlier this month. But they could collectively face a new $12 billion hole if Congress fails to help cover growing Medicaid costs. Without another injection of government money for Medicaid, four states -- California, Texas, North Carolina and New York -- could face new gaps exceeding $1 billion each, while 21 others could see shortfalls over $100 million, according to a quarterly budget report issued by the National Conference of State Legislatures.      
         
         
         
      
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Comment    The Recovery Act initially paid out additional money for the insurance program -- which helps the poor -- through Dec. 31, the halfway point for most states' 2011 budgets. Then, earlier this year the House and the Senate approved measures that extended the payments through June 30, 2011. As a result, many state legislatures became optimistic and planned their budgets around having the additional funding.But the bill has since fallen victim to mounting concerns over the national deficit. Congress blasts Medicaid hole in states' budgetsAnd though state officials say revenue is beginning to pick up and will likely surpass 2010 collections, the growth is still not sufficient to setoff the loss of stimulus funds. "States are in a tenuous fiscal position, teetering between delicate revenue improvement and the end of the federal stimulus funds," said Corina Eckl, National Conference of State Legislatures' fiscal program director. "If Congress decides not to extend enhanced [Medicaid] rates for six months, it will be another blow to the states' fragile recovery," she added. In fact, a majority of states are also worried about budget challenges for fiscal years 2012 and 2013. So far, 33 states anticipate gaps totaling $72 billion for 2012, and 23 states predict shortfalls amounting to $64 billion for 2013. 


    
        
         
      
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No pay cut for California workers - for now  Don't tell California: Virginia has a $220 million surplus   Illinois: Our very own Greece?



First Published: July 27, 2010: 1:50 AM ET

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(CNNMoney.com) -- The U.S. economy lost jobs in June, for the first time this year, as modest hiring by businesses only partly offset the end of Census jobs.The Labor Department on Friday reported a net loss of 125,000 jobs in the month. That was due primarily to the loss of 225,000 Census jobs that had swelled payrolls in May.      
         
         
         
      
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CommentBusiness hiring rebounded to 83,000, which was still a bit weaker than hoped. While it's up from the jobs private sector employers added in May, it was well below hiring levels in March and April."It's job growth, but it's a kind of growth that doesn't please anybody," said John Silvia, chief economist of Wells Fargo Securities. "We're not creating the jobs at a pace to help people who are looking for jobs. Jobs are going to remain hard to find."Silvia and some other economists said the fact that businesses are still adding jobs should lessen fears that the economy is about to topple into another downturn, a so-called double-dip recession."Though disappointing, employment gains are substantially ahead of the 2002 recovery," said Kurt Karl, chief U.S. economist at Swiss Re.But others suggested that the weak labor market raises the risk the economy could fall back into recession later this year.0:00
      /2:26I've been out of work since..."It is a Catch-22 situation," said Sung Won Sohn, economics professor at Cal State University-Channel Islands. "Businesses are reluctant to hire for fear of a double-dip recession. But without jobs, the economy can't grow."Businesses have now added 593,000 jobs since the start of 2010, after cutting 8.5 million in 2008 and 2009 combined. President Obama pointed to the continued private sector job growth in his remarks Friday, but acknowledged more needs to be done."We are headed in the right direction," he said when announcing a government program to bring broadband Internet services to rural areas. "But ...we're not headed there fast enough for a lot of Americans. We're not headed there fast enough for me, either."Republicans charged the report is proof the Obama administration's policy of trying to stimulate the economy and hiring through government spending has been a failure."Every Washington power grab is creating more uncertainty for investors and job creators, and leaving more families without a paycheck," said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas.The construction sector lost another 22,000 jobs as the pace of building fell sharply with the end of a tax credit for homebuyers. And retailers, hit by softer consumer purchases, trimmed nearly 7,000 jobs.But manufacturers added 9,000 jobs, and transportation companies and warehouses added nearly 15,000 jobs, showing some continued strength in the goods-producing sector. Leisure and hospitality was the leading sector with a gain of 37,000 jobs.There also was a gain of 20,500 temporary workers by business, which could be a sign of future hiring, since employers often bring on temporary workers before they commit to permanent jobs.There are still 339,000 Census workers on the job heading into July, many of whose jobs will be ending. That suggest that July could be another month with an overall loss in jobs.State and local governments cut an additional 10,000 jobs in June. That, was countered by the gain of 27,000 non-Census jobs by the federal government.Unemployment rate dropsThe unemployment rate fell to 9.5% from 9.7% in May. Economists had forecast it would climb to 9.8%. But the improvement was due mostly to many discouraged job seekers not bothering to look for work and no longer being counted as part of the labor force.Joseph LaVorgna, chief U.S. economist for Deutsche Bank, said that many of those people stopped looking for work because they lost extended unemployment benefits. To receive the benefits, they needed to be actively looking for work."The decline in the unemployment rate is not a reflection of strength, but rather a sign of discouragement among the ranks of the unemployed," he wrote in a note to clients Friday.Congress has failed to pass an extension of benefits, which resulted in nearly half-million people losing their benefits by the middle of June when the unemployment numbers were compiled. Another 1.25 million have lost their benefits since mid-June, and nearly 800,000 more could lose benefits by the time July numbers are compiled.The 14.6 million people still counted as unemployed have been out of work an average of 35 weeks, a record duration in the 62 years the government has tracked that figure.


    
        
         
      
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Hiring expected to be weak going forward  Jobs blues for gray-haired workers  Endangered species: Government workers



First Published: July 2, 2010: 8:45 AM ET

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(CNNMoney.com) -- Would making the rich pay higher taxes next year hurt the economy?That question underlines one of the trickiest fiscal questions facing Washington policymakers: What to do about the 2001 and 2003 Bush tax cuts, which are set to expire at the end of the year.      
         
         
         
      
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CommentPresident Obama wants to let the cuts lapse for joint tax filers who make at least $250,000 ($200,000 for individuals) but extend them for everyone else. That means the top two tax rates would revert to where they were in the late 1990s: The 35% rate would go to 39.6% and the 33% rate would go to 36%.The highest-income filers would also see their tax rates on capital gains and dividends go up. And, if they're in line for an inheritance, they will see the reinstatement of the estate tax, although Obama's proposed estate tax is a less onerous version than the one scheduled to be in place under current law. The debate over what Congress should do, which has been playing out for months in policy circles, is now receiving more prominent attention.The stakes are high: On the one hand, there are fresh concerns that the economic recovery might be faltering; higher taxes on the rich could dampen spending and investment. At the same time, the nation's fiscal hole is deep, and the tax cuts cost the federal coffers badly needed revenue.The deficit concerns were amplified last week by former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. Once a big supporter of the tax cuts, he now believes they should be allowed to expire not only for the rich but for everyone. He said the cost of extending them -- which could run as high as $3 trillion over 10 years -- will make the economy worse by adding to U.S. debt.On the side of Obama's proposalBut few policymakers are talking about phasing out the tax cuts entirely. The debate is more focused on Obama's proposal to eliminate the cuts for high-earners.0:00
      /5:18Higher taxes loom for the richAnd doing so won't harm the economy, says Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and many Democrats in Congress."What we're allowing to expire is the tax cuts that President Bush put in place for the most fortunate, the richest 2 to 3 percent of Americans," Geithner said last week on Charlie Rose. "And we think letting those expire is a prudent, sensible act because it allows us to make a contribution now to starting to reduce our long-term deficits."Geithner added: "We don't want to solve those future deficit problems by raising the relative burden on working Americans, middle-class families."Both Geithner and tax expert William Gale, co-director of the Tax Policy Center, note that the late 1990s were marked by a strong economy even though the top two rates at the time were 36% and 39.6%."If anything that shows that raising even the top rate is not utterly anathema to economic growth," Gale said at a Brookings Institution seminar last week.Higher taxes would hurtOn the other side are many Republicans -- and even a few Democrats on Capitol Hill -- who are concerned that higher taxes on the wealthiest Americans would hurt the economy at the present time.Senate Budget Chairman Kent Conrad, D-N.D., who is a fierce deficit hawk, nevertheless allowed last week that he would be reluctant to let anyone's tax cuts expire just yet."In a perfect world, I would not be cutting spending or raising taxes for the next 18 months to two years" Conrad told reporters. "This downturn is still very much with us unfortunately."Since households and governments are tapped out, nothing should be allowed to impede the chances for business spending, which is the best hope for generating future economic growth, according to Douglas Holtz-Eakin, a former Congressional Budget Office director who now runs a Republican think tank.Holtz-Eakin believes that imposing higher taxes on those in the upper-income brackets would be bad for many job-creating small businesses, which often pay taxes under the individual income tax code.He calculates that an increase in the top rate could reduce small business hiring by 18%.Not everyone thinks small business would get hit so hard, however. Tax expert Len Burman says that only 3% of small businesses are subject to the top two individual tax rates. He also notes that much of the income from those businesses comes from private partnerships such as law and accounting firms and investment firms, and not from traditional mom-and-pop ventures.One option to mitigate the impact of allowing the top tax rates to go up: Phase in the increases over a few years."Allowing the tax cuts to expire for high-income filers all at once next year would be taking too large a risk with the fragile recovery," said economist Mark Zandi, who has served as a consultant to members of both parties. "At the very least, the tax increases for these groups should be phased in over two years -- half in 2011, the other half in 2012."


    
        
         
      
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Super rich: Tax my estate, please  Obama's debt panel: Hints of an endgame  U.S. debt: When is it safe to start cutting?



First Published: July 26, 2010: 3:15 AM ET

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(CNNMoney.com) -- The U.S. economy lost jobs in June, for the first time this year, as modest hiring by businesses only partly offset the end of Census jobs.The Labor Department on Friday reported a net loss of 125,000 jobs in the month. That was due primarily to the loss of 225,000 Census jobs that had swelled payrolls in May.      
         
         
         
      
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CommentBusiness hiring rebounded to 83,000, which was still a bit weaker than hoped. While it's up from the jobs private sector employers added in May, it was well below hiring levels in March and April."It's job growth, but it's a kind of growth that doesn't please anybody," said John Silvia, chief economist of Wells Fargo Securities. "We're not creating the jobs at a pace to help people who are looking for jobs. Jobs are going to remain hard to find."Silvia and some other economists said the fact that businesses are still adding jobs should lessen fears that the economy is about to topple into another downturn, a so-called double-dip recession."Though disappointing, employment gains are substantially ahead of the 2002 recovery," said Kurt Karl, chief U.S. economist at Swiss Re.But others suggested that the weak labor market raises the risk the economy could fall back into recession later this year.0:00
      /2:26I've been out of work since..."It is a Catch-22 situation," said Sung Won Sohn, economics professor at Cal State University-Channel Islands. "Businesses are reluctant to hire for fear of a double-dip recession. But without jobs, the economy can't grow."Businesses have now added 593,000 jobs since the start of 2010, after cutting 8.5 million in 2008 and 2009 combined. President Obama pointed to the continued private sector job growth in his remarks Friday, but acknowledged more needs to be done."We are headed in the right direction," he said when announcing a government program to bring broadband Internet services to rural areas. "But ...we're not headed there fast enough for a lot of Americans. We're not headed there fast enough for me, either."Republicans charged the report is proof the Obama administration's policy of trying to stimulate the economy and hiring through government spending has been a failure."Every Washington power grab is creating more uncertainty for investors and job creators, and leaving more families without a paycheck," said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas.The construction sector lost another 22,000 jobs as the pace of building fell sharply with the end of a tax credit for homebuyers. And retailers, hit by softer consumer purchases, trimmed nearly 7,000 jobs.But manufacturers added 9,000 jobs, and transportation companies and warehouses added nearly 15,000 jobs, showing some continued strength in the goods-producing sector. Leisure and hospitality was the leading sector with a gain of 37,000 jobs.There also was a gain of 20,500 temporary workers by business, which could be a sign of future hiring, since employers often bring on temporary workers before they commit to permanent jobs.There are still 339,000 Census workers on the job heading into July, many of whose jobs will be ending. That suggest that July could be another month with an overall loss in jobs.State and local governments cut an additional 10,000 jobs in June. That, was countered by the gain of 27,000 non-Census jobs by the federal government.Unemployment rate dropsThe unemployment rate fell to 9.5% from 9.7% in May. Economists had forecast it would climb to 9.8%. But the improvement was due mostly to many discouraged job seekers not bothering to look for work and no longer being counted as part of the labor force.Joseph LaVorgna, chief U.S. economist for Deutsche Bank, said that many of those people stopped looking for work because they lost extended unemployment benefits. To receive the benefits, they needed to be actively looking for work."The decline in the unemployment rate is not a reflection of strength, but rather a sign of discouragement among the ranks of the unemployed," he wrote in a note to clients Friday.Congress has failed to pass an extension of benefits, which resulted in nearly half-million people losing their benefits by the middle of June when the unemployment numbers were compiled. Another 1.25 million have lost their benefits since mid-June, and nearly 800,000 more could lose benefits by the time July numbers are compiled.The 14.6 million people still counted as unemployed have been out of work an average of 35 weeks, a record duration in the 62 years the government has tracked that figure.


    
        
         
      
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Hiring expected to be weak going forward  Jobs blues for gray-haired workers  Endangered species: Government workers



First Published: July 2, 2010: 8:45 AM ET

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(CNNMoney.com) -- The economy grew at a slower pace in the first three months of this year than previously estimated, according to a government report Friday. Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of the nation's economic activity, grew at an annual rate of 2.7% in the first three months of 2010, according to the Commerce Department, down from the previous reading of a 3% rise.      
         
         
         
      
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CommentEconomists expected the third reading of GDP during the first quarter to hold unrevised at 3%, according to a consensus of economist opinion from Briefing.com.The Commerce Department said increased personal spending continued to stimulate the economy, but those advances were partly offset by "a larger decrease in state and local government spending."The downward revision "leaves the current economic recovery looking even less impressive compared with previous ones," said Paul Dales of Capital Economics in a research note.While Dales expects growth in the second quarter to pick up to an annual rate between 3% and 4%, he said that will not be sustainable. "Growth will soon slow as the rebound in world trade fades, inventory rebuilding slows and the size of fiscal injection shrinks," he said. "Overall, the U.S. economy may be performing much better than those in Europe, but this is still the weakest and longest economic recovery in U.S. post-war history."  During the last three months of 2009, economic activity grew at an annual pace of 5.6%. 


    
        
         
      
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Wall Street reform ready for final votes  What the U.S. can learn from Canada at the G20  The housing head fake, part 362



First Published: June 25, 2010: 8:36 AM ET

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(CNNMoney.com)  -- What do pancakes, tapeworms, old soda and the stock market have in common? They're all flat.With nearly seven months of 2010 in the can, stocks are trading right about where they began the year. The Dow closed at 10,428.05 on December 31, 2009. It opened on Monday at 10,424.17.      
         
         
         
      
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Comment    Of course, this long journey back to where we started has hardly been boring. Stocks have been on a wild roller coaster ride. They surged on economic recovery hopes in the first quarter -- only to plunge in the second quarter thanks to renewed fears of a global double-dip recession. Now investors are digesting the latest results from big corporations and analyzing their guidance for the remainder of the year. So we must ask, in the immortal words of Axl Rose, "Where do we go? Where do we go now? Where do we go?"It's not an easy question to answer. Sure, some companies are growing increasingly optimistic. 3M (MMM, Fortune 500), Eli Lilly (LLY, Fortune 500) and Whirlpool (WHR, Fortune 500), for example, all boosted their outlooks last week. And FedEx (FDX, Fortune 500) raised its full-year profit target on Monday, citing a "continued moderate recovery in the global economy."  But many economists are still wary. Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke rattled investors' nerves last week by saying in front of Congress that the recovery was "unusually uncertain."This shouldn't be a surprise. It's overly simplistic to think that the economy is either going to roar back to life or is doomed to slip back into another recession -- especially when you consider just how painful the last downturn was.For every strong earnings report, there seems to be an equally gloomy piece of economic data. Even good news, like the 24% jump in new home sales in June, is tempered by the fact that the rise is merely coming off a record low in May."This is a half-speed, half-hearted recovery. It's taking its time to unfold and is painfully slow," said Stuart Hoffman, chief economist with The PNC Financial Services Group in Pittsburgh. "We may move two steps forward and one step back for awhile." 0:00
      /1:18Bernanke testifies before CongressYes, it's frustrating to investors and consumers who want clarity about the economy and markets. We have to get used to it though. Questions about the strength of the economy are likely to persist for some time. Yanick Desnoyers, assistant chief economist with National Bank Financial in Montreal titled a report about the U.S. economy last week "Recovery or relapse?"In that report, Desnoyers indicated that rising profits for big companies in the United States is a positive, but that the chances of a double-dip "are not yet nil." With that in mind, other experts said that people should expect the cloud of uncertainty to linger ... and for a long time to boot. "The market is going to bounce around a lot. One day, we'll get excited about corporate earnings but then there may be overarching economic data that points to the recovery being a tough go," said Paul Nolte, managing director with Dearborn Partners, an investment firm based in Chicago.Hey, corporate misers. Stop hoarding cash and start hiring!Nolte said that the recovery from the Great Recession is likely to be muddled and take years. As the effects of stimulus from Washington starts to fade, the onus will be more on businesses and individuals to start spending again."What we're looking at now is a transition from a government supported economy to a recovery that hopefully will be sustained by consumers and corporations," Nolte said. "But we're getting a mixed picture and a lot of it has to do with debt. Companies have strong balance sheets but consumers still have a lot of debt." Hoffman agreed, adding that until companies truly become more confident about the economy, they are unlikely to make a big push to hire people. He said he thinks the unemployment rate will slowly slip this year from its current level of 9.5% but that it is only likely to fall to just below 9% by the end of 2011. That's obviously not welcome news to those looking for a job. Keep in mind that even though there was a long jobless recovery following the last recession in 2001, the peak unemployment rate after that downturn was just 6.3%.That's why even though some economists think the economy hit bottom sometime in the summer of 2009, many consumers don't feel like that's the case."I think the recovery has been going on for a year but we're still debating whether or not it's a recovery. That speaks to the frailty of it," Hoffman said.- The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Paul R. La Monica. Other than Time Warner, the parent of CNNMoney.com, La Monica does not own positions in any individual stocks. 


    
        
         
      
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Watch video editions of The Buzz  Market will 'drift for the rest of summer'  Bernanke: Recovery 'unusually uncertain'  White House: Unemployment at 9% until 2012



First Published: July 26, 2010: 12:23 PM ET

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(CNNMoney.com) -- The economy grew at a slower pace in the first three months of this year than previously estimated, according to a government report Friday. Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of the nation's economic activity, grew at an annual rate of 2.7% in the first three months of 2010, according to the Commerce Department, down from the previous reading of a 3% rise.      
         
         
         
      
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CommentEconomists expected the third reading of GDP during the first quarter to hold unrevised at 3%, according to a consensus of economist opinion from Briefing.com.The Commerce Department said increased personal spending continued to stimulate the economy, but those advances were partly offset by "a larger decrease in state and local government spending."The downward revision "leaves the current economic recovery looking even less impressive compared with previous ones," said Paul Dales of Capital Economics in a research note.While Dales expects growth in the second quarter to pick up to an annual rate between 3% and 4%, he said that will not be sustainable. "Growth will soon slow as the rebound in world trade fades, inventory rebuilding slows and the size of fiscal injection shrinks," he said. "Overall, the U.S. economy may be performing much better than those in Europe, but this is still the weakest and longest economic recovery in U.S. post-war history."  During the last three months of 2009, economic activity grew at an annual pace of 5.6%. 


    
        
         
      
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Wall Street reform ready for final votes  What the U.S. can learn from Canada at the G20  The housing head fake, part 362



First Published: June 25, 2010: 8:36 AM ET

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(CNNMoney.com) -- Manufacturing activity expanded for the 11th straight month in June, according to a purchasing managers' survey released Thursday, but the rate of expansion slowed more than economists expected. The Institute for Supply Management's (ISM) index of U.S. manufacturing dropped to 56.2 in June from 59.7 in May. The reading came in much lower than the slight decrease to 59 economists had expected, according to a Briefing.com consensus survey.      
         
         
         
      
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CommentDespite the slowdown in growth, levels higher than 50 signal manufacturing growth, while readings below 50 indicate contraction. "We are now 11 months into the manufacturing recovery, and given the robust nature of recent growth, it is not surprising that we would see a slower rate of growth at this time," said Norbert Ore, chair of the Institute for Supply Management Manufacturing Business Survey Committee. "Comments from the respondents remain generally positive, but expectations have been that the second half of the year will not be as strong in terms of the rate of growth, and June appears to validate that forecast," he added.The decline in manufacturing growth in June was largely due to a slowdown in new orders and production, the report showed.ISM's new orders index dropped to 58.5 in June from 65.7 in April, driven by contraction in the machinery and wood products industries. The institute's production index fell to 61.4 from 66.6, led by declines in the wood products and apparel industries.Overall, only three of the 18 manufacturing industries surveyed reported slower growth in June, while thirteen reported accelerated in growth.Apparel and leather products, wood products and machinery all posted slower gains. Activity expanded most in the plastics and rubber products, transportation equipment, printing activities and computer and electronic industries.


    
        
         
      
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If you thought the 1st half was bad...  Auto sales rebound is a myth  Huge June jobs miss



First Published: July 1, 2010: 10:13 AM ET

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(CNNMoney.com) -- Manufacturing activity expanded for the 11th straight month in June, according to a purchasing managers' survey released Thursday, but the rate of expansion slowed more than economists expected. The Institute for Supply Management's (ISM) index of U.S. manufacturing dropped to 56.2 in June from 59.7 in May. The reading came in much lower than the slight decrease to 59 economists had expected, according to a Briefing.com consensus survey.      
         
         
         
      
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CommentDespite the slowdown in growth, levels higher than 50 signal manufacturing growth, while readings below 50 indicate contraction. "We are now 11 months into the manufacturing recovery, and given the robust nature of recent growth, it is not surprising that we would see a slower rate of growth at this time," said Norbert Ore, chair of the Institute for Supply Management Manufacturing Business Survey Committee. "Comments from the respondents remain generally positive, but expectations have been that the second half of the year will not be as strong in terms of the rate of growth, and June appears to validate that forecast," he added.The decline in manufacturing growth in June was largely due to a slowdown in new orders and production, the report showed.ISM's new orders index dropped to 58.5 in June from 65.7 in April, driven by contraction in the machinery and wood products industries. The institute's production index fell to 61.4 from 66.6, led by declines in the wood products and apparel industries.Overall, only three of the 18 manufacturing industries surveyed reported slower growth in June, while thirteen reported accelerated in growth.Apparel and leather products, wood products and machinery all posted slower gains. Activity expanded most in the plastics and rubber products, transportation equipment, printing activities and computer and electronic industries.


    
        
         
      
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If you thought the 1st half was bad...  Auto sales rebound is a myth  Huge June jobs miss



First Published: July 1, 2010: 10:13 AM ET

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(CNNMoney.com) -- Cash-strapped cities and counties have been cutting jobs to cope with massive budget shortfalls -- and that tally could edge up to nearly 500,000 if Congress doesn't step up to help.Local governments are looking to eliminate 8.6% of their total full-time equivalent positions by 2012, according to a new survey released Tuesday by the National League of Cities, the National Association of Counties and United States Conference of Mayors.       
         
         
         
      
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Comment"Local governments across the country are now facing the combined impact of decreased tax revenues, a falloff in state and federal aid and increased demand for social services," the report said. "In this current climate of fiscal distress, local governments are forced to eliminate both jobs and services." The depth of the recession has pushed cities to make reductions in departments that are typically shielded from cuts because they provide core services to residents, including public safety, public works, public health, social services and parks and recreation. Endangered species: Government workerIn fact, 63% of cities and nearly 40% of counties reported cuts in police and fire safety personnel, the survey showed.The report called on Congress to pass the Local Jobs for America Act, which would provide $75 billion in federal funds over two years to city and county governments and community-based organizations to save and create jobs. 0:00
      /5:02Digging Illinois out of debt"Federal investment that helps save local jobs and preserve local services will help stabilize communities across the country and ensure that all of America's families are able to participate in the economic recovery," the report said. But the bill's fate is uncertain as mounting concerns over the national deficit hinder the passage of new stimulus measures. 


    
        
         
      
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Newark mayor: No toilet paper for city offices  Maywood, Calif., to city cops and employees: You're fired  Wall Street to cities: wanna sell that bridge?

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(CNNMoney.com) -- Cash-strapped cities and counties have been cutting jobs to cope with massive budget shortfalls -- and that tally could edge up to nearly 500,000 if Congress doesn't step up to help.Local governments are looking to eliminate 8.6% of their total full-time equivalent positions by 2012, according to a new survey released Tuesday by the National League of Cities, the National Association of Counties and United States Conference of Mayors.       
         
         
         
      
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Comment"Local governments across the country are now facing the combined impact of decreased tax revenues, a falloff in state and federal aid and increased demand for social services," the report said. "In this current climate of fiscal distress, local governments are forced to eliminate both jobs and services." The depth of the recession has pushed cities to make reductions in departments that are typically shielded from cuts because they provide core services to residents, including public safety, public works, public health, social services and parks and recreation. Endangered species: Government workerIn fact, 63% of cities and nearly 40% of counties reported cuts in police and fire safety personnel, the survey showed.The report called on Congress to pass the Local Jobs for America Act, which would provide $75 billion in federal funds over two years to city and county governments and community-based organizations to save and create jobs. 0:00
      /5:02Digging Illinois out of debt"Federal investment that helps save local jobs and preserve local services will help stabilize communities across the country and ensure that all of America's families are able to participate in the economic recovery," the report said. But the bill's fate is uncertain as mounting concerns over the national deficit hinder the passage of new stimulus measures. 


    
        
         
      
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Newark mayor: No toilet paper for city offices  Maywood, Calif., to city cops and employees: You're fired  Wall Street to cities: wanna sell that bridge?

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(CNNMoney.com) -- The number of Americans who own homes fell in the second quarter of the year to the lowest level since 1999, said a government survey released Tuesday.The Census Bureau said the home ownership rate fell to 66.9% in the second quarter of 2010, down half a percentage point from the previous year. The home ownership rate was 67.1% in the first quarter of the year.      
         
         
         
      
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CommentIn the second quarter rates were highest in the Midwest, where 70.8% of people are homeowners, and lowest in the West, where 61.4% of people own. Rates in the South and West were lower than a year ago, while the Northeast and Midwest stayed the same.Vacancies: The vacancy rate in non-rental units also fell in the second quarter, to 2.5%. Meanwhile, the vacancy rate in rental homes stayed steady at 10.6%.Almost 86% of U.S. homes were occupied in the second quarter, with owner-occupied housing comprising 57.3% of all housing units. Renter-occupied homes were 28.3% of all units.A separate report released Tuesday, the Case-Shiller index, showed home prices rose 1.3% in May compared with the previous month.


    
        
         
      
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For sale: Lair of the Lizard King   America's most overvalued cities
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First Published: July 27, 2010: 4:52 PM ET

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(CNNMoney.com) -- Cash-strapped cities and counties have been cutting jobs to cope with massive budget shortfalls -- and that tally could edge up to nearly 500,000 if Congress doesn't step up to help.Local governments are looking to eliminate 8.6% of their total full-time equivalent positions by 2012, according to a new survey released Tuesday by the National League of Cities, the National Association of Counties and United States Conference of Mayors.       
         
         
         
      
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Comment"Local governments across the country are now facing the combined impact of decreased tax revenues, a falloff in state and federal aid and increased demand for social services," the report said. "In this current climate of fiscal distress, local governments are forced to eliminate both jobs and services." The depth of the recession has pushed cities to make reductions in departments that are typically shielded from cuts because they provide core services to residents, including public safety, public works, public health, social services and parks and recreation. Endangered species: Government workerIn fact, 63% of cities and nearly 40% of counties reported cuts in police and fire safety personnel, the survey showed.The report called on Congress to pass the Local Jobs for America Act, which would provide $75 billion in federal funds over two years to city and county governments and community-based organizations to save and create jobs. 0:00
      /5:02Digging Illinois out of debt"Federal investment that helps save local jobs and preserve local services will help stabilize communities across the country and ensure that all of America's families are able to participate in the economic recovery," the report said. But the bill's fate is uncertain as mounting concerns over the national deficit hinder the passage of new stimulus measures. 


    
        
         
      
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Newark mayor: No toilet paper for city offices  Maywood, Calif., to city cops and employees: You're fired  Wall Street to cities: wanna sell that bridge?

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(CNNMoney.com) -- The economy showed continued signs of modest improvement in recent months, the Federal Reserve said Wednesday in its latest snapshot of regional economic conditions. Economic activity increased or held steady in 10 of the central bank's 12 districts, according to the July edition of the Fed's so-called Beige Book report. The exceptions were Atlanta and Chicago, which reported slowdowns.      
         
         
         
      
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Comment"The stabilization of the economy continues," said Doug Roberts, chief investment strategist for Channel Capital Research. "But there's nothing major in terms of improvement, especially if you look at the underlying structural problems in the labor market and housing."  Districts noted better conditions in the services sector, with increases in the freight transportation industry and at consulting firms. The Fed said most of the districts also welcomed a rise in manufacturing activity, though the pace slowed or leveled off in half of the districts.Retail sales were a bright spot, suggesting a continued rise in consumer spending. Several districts said that necessities like clothes and food continued to be strong sellers, while big-ticket items moved more slowly. The report showed auto sales fell during the period since the last report in early June. Housing slump: The Fed said the housing market lost steam following the April 30 expiration of the homebuyer tax credit, and most districts expect construction and home sales to remain limited. The commercial real estate market also remained weak across country.  While the government incentive helped drive down the housing market's excess supply, Roberts said it wasn't enough to spur a real recovery."The tax credit was like a painkiller for the housing market, but we'll have to go into surgery to deal with the underlying problems," Roberts said. Temporary jobs on the rise: Most districts said the overall labor market gradually improved during the early summer months, citing an increase in temporary hiring.Boston and Dallas, however, said the job market held steady. Gains in Dallas were offset by significant layoffs in the energy sector due to the deepwater drilling moratorium following the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. "Temporary hiring doesn't set the basis for a more robust recovery," Roberts said. "It allows the conditions to stabilize a bit, and as long as there's some stimulus, you'll get a muted recovery, but there might not be much after that." 


    
        
         
      
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Hidden signs of life in the economy  Consumer confidence continues to sink  The fear economy



First Published: July 28, 2010: 2:23 PM ET