U.S. Numbers on Welfare See Sharp Increase

U.S. Numbers on Welfare See Sharp Increase

(Source Wall Street Journal)
Welfare rolls, which were slow to rise and actually fell in many states early in the recession, now are climbing across the country for the first time since President Bill Clinton signed legislation pledging "to end welfare as we know it" more than a decade ago.
Twenty-three of the 30 largest states, which account for more than 88% of the nation's total population, see welfare caseloads above year-ago levels, according to a survey conducted by The Wall Street Journal and the National Conference of State Legislatures. As more people run out of unemployment compensation, many are turning to welfare as a stopgap.

The biggest increases are in states with some of the worst jobless rates. Oregon's count was up 27% in May from a year earlier; South Carolina's climbed 23% and California's 10% between March 2009 and March 2008. A few big states that had seen declining welfare caseloads just a few months ago now are seeing increases: New York is up 1.2%, Illinois 3% and Wisconsin 3.9%. Welfare rolls in a few big states, Michigan and New Jersey among them, still are declining.

The recent rise in welfare families across the county is a sign that the welfare system is expanding at a time of added need, assuaging fears of some critics of Mr. Clinton's welfare overhaul who said the truly needy would be turned away. Read more... http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124562449457235503.html

Obama Poll Sees Doubt on Budget and Health Care

U.S. / Politics
Obama Poll Sees Doubt on Budget and Health Care (New York Times Permalink)
By JEFF ZELENY and DALIA SUSSMAN Published: June 18, 2009
The latest New York Times/CBS News poll found a distinct gulf between President Obama’s overall standing and how some of his key initiative are viewed.

Blue Chips Linger in the Red for '09

Blue Chips Linger in the Red for '09
Dow Industrials Come Up Short in Push to Erase Year-to-Date Losses

(Source Wall Street Journal)
Blue chips came tantalizingly close to turning positive for the year on Friday, but ultimately fell short amid volatile trading after a mixed employment report.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 12.89 points, or 0.2%, to 8763.13, leaving the 30-stock benchmark down just 0.2% for 2009. Boeing shares leapt 4% and Hewlett-Packard rose 3.5%, but more Dow components fell than rose. DuPont, which suffered an analyst downgrade, fell 6%, and Merck, which said it's shelving plans to seek approval for a heart-failure drug this year, sank 1.9%.
The S&P 500-stock index slipped 2.37 points, or 0.3%, to 940.09. Its energy and basic-materials sectors were weak, tumbling 0.8% and 1.4%, respectively. The broad stock measure is up 4.1% for the year to date.

For the week, the Dow jumped 3.1%. It has gained in 11 of the last 13 weeks and gained 32% in that span -- the best 13-week period since November 1982, when it soared 34%. The S&P 500 rose 2.3% this week. It also has risen in 11 of the last 13 weeks, and climbed 38% during that stretch.

Energy stocks played a major role in stocks' gains this week, as crude-oil futures rose 3.2% on the week. But crude pulled back somewhat on Friday, settling down 37 cents at $68.44 a barrel in New York and throwing a little cold water on stocks.

"I think it's a little premature to get excited about the run in commodities as it's kind of a relief rally," said Stephen Lieber, chief investment officer for Alpine Dynamic Balance Fund. "There are people hopped up on the notion China and emerging markets will reinflate the world economy."

The Nasdaq Composite Index slipped 0.60 point, or 0.03%, to 1849.42. It has climbed 17% this year, and was up 4.2% this week. It has risen in 12 of the last 13 weeks and jumped 43% in that time. The Nasdaq has surged 46% since it hit a six-and-a-half year closing low of 1268.64 hit on March 9. Read Article... http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124419863671788589.html

Analysts Turning Bearish on S&P 500 After 14% Rally

Analysts Turning Bearish on S&P 500 After 14% Rally

May 11 (Bloomberg) -- The biggest earnings-season rally since 2002 has pushed 34 percent of the companies in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index above analysts’ price targets for the next year, raising concerns about the pace of the recovery.
The S&P 500 is within 5 percent of the combined price projections of more than 1,700 securities analysts after gaining 14 percent since Alcoa Inc. reported first-quarter results on April 7. Caterpillar Inc., the largest maker of excavators, and Citigroup Inc., the bank rescued by $45 billion in U.S. taxpayer funds, are among 170 companies that trade above their average price estimates, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
So far, analysts have resisted lifting price and earnings targets after the S&P 500 surged 37 percent from a 12-year low in March. The combination of falling profit predictions, rising valuations and higher costs for options that insure against losses are raising investor concerns that the rally may have come too far, too fast.
“To expect this to continue to move onward and upward from here would be unrealistic,” said Leo Grohowski, chief investment officer at Bank of New York Mellon Wealth Management, which oversees $132 billion in New York. “It would be healthy for the market to take a breather and allow some of the fundamentals to catch up.” Read Article...
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aVxRKebyGa5o&refer=home

Stores court shoppers on Black Friday

Stores court shoppers on Black Friday

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Shoppers turned up early for holiday sales at stores on Friday, but the annual pilgrimage appeared thinner this year and many consumers vowed to spend less due to a shrinking economy.
Retailers from Wal-Mart Stores Inc to Macy's Inc, Kohl's Corp and Best Buy Co Inc opened their doors in the early hours of "Black Friday," offering steep discounts to scores of shoppers who waited in line.
In the New York City suburb of Valley Stream, a man working at a Wal-Mart died as a throng of shoppers broke down the doors trying to enter a store, police said. Four others were injured and taken to the hospital in what the company called a "tragic" incident.
Most stores offer major discounts on Black Friday, the day after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, hoping to ring in billions of dollars through year's end. Some chains opened during the holiday on Thursday to capture business even earlier.
Marshal Cohen, chief retail analyst with NPD Group, said that early store traffic appeared about 25 percent lighter than a year ago. People seemed to be more selective about the shops they visited and weren't staying inside stores as long.

CNBC Video-Black Friday Retail Outlook
An outlook on the holiday shopping season, with Gerald Storch, Toys R Us chairman/CEO and Dana Telsey, Telsey Advisory Group

Mari Yamagiwa Solo Show in Monkdogz Urban Art Gallery (New York)

Mari Yamagiwa In Monkdogz Urban Art Gallery in Chelsea (New York) from Dec 17th 2008 - Jan 18th 2009.
While you are in New York this Christmas Season and walk around in the Chelsea district don't forget to visit the Solo Exhibition "INSTINCT" of the promising young Japanese Artist Mari Yamagiwa at the Monkdogz Urban Art Gallery. Her works (paintings and mixed media) are very original and a great investment in original and Contemporary Art.
The Show is from December 18th 2008 untill January 17th 2009,in the Aperture Building on West 27th St in Chelsea.
You are invited for the Opening Reception on Decenber 6th from 6 to 8 pm, to see the paintings, have a drink and talk about all the marvellous things to happen in 2009.

A collection of Mari Yamagiwa's Works can also be found at:
Kunstjaar: http://www.kunstjaar.nl/html/specials.html
Art-Represent:http://www.art-represent.com/html/mari_yamagiwa.html
VirtualGalleries-World: http://www.virtualgalleries-world.com/html/mari_yamagiwa.html