The Big Picture

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• Succinct Summations of Week’s Events 8.15.14
• Modern Economic History of the United States
• 10 Friday AM Reads
• Flashback: Dark Days On Wall Street . . .
• Help Wanted: Humans Need Not Apply
• Porsche Museum & Its Secret Prototype Warehouse

Succinct Summations of Week’s Events 8.15.14 Posted: 15 Aug 2014 01:00 PM PDT Succinct Summations Week Ending August 15th Positives: 1. The S&P 500 gained 1.4% on the week and is just 1.5% off the all-time highs. 2. NFIB small business optimism rose to 95.7, up from95 previously. 3. U.K. unemployment fell to 6.4%, the lowest level since '08. 4. Consumer confidence in Japan rose to an 8-month high. 5. US industrial production in July rose .4% m/o/m, slightly better than expected. 6. PPI rose 0.1% m/o/m headline while core rose 0.2% with 1.7% and 1.6% y/o/y gains respectively, in line with expectations. Negatives: 1. Retail sales came in flat, vs expectations of a 0.2% gain. 2. Japan GDP fell 6.8%, better than the 7% decline expected, but still not good. 3. MBA mortgage applications fell 3.7% w/o/w. 4. Core retail sales grew by 0.1%, below expectations of a 0.4% gain. 5. Jobless claims rose to 311k, vs 295k expected. 6. NY manufacturing index fell to 14.7, well below the 20 expected.

Modern Economic History of the United States Posted: 15 Aug 2014 10:00 AM PDT Source: Know More

10 Friday AM Reads Posted: 15 Aug 2014 07:00 AM PDT It’s Friday! Wrap up your workweek with our expertly curated morning reads (continues here): • Even Wall Street’s ‘worriers’ are acting like bulls (Marketwatch) • The leverage clock tolls for thee (FT Alphaville) • Europe’s Greater Depression is worse than the 1930s (WonkBlog) see also the rest of us should learn from Europe's experience (NYT) • Libertarian, Liberal Lawmakers Share Concerns About Police Tactics in Ferguson (Washington Wire) see also The Outrageous Police Actions in Ferguson, Missouri, Last Night (Slate) Continues here

Flashback: Dark Days On Wall Street . . . Posted: 15 Aug 2014 05:56 AM PDT On this date 32 years ago, the New York Times included the following paragraph in an article titled, “Dark Days On Wall Street.” In the past two weeks, all the market averages have plunged to new lows as Wall Street, beset by cruel economic news from all sides, has time after time been unable to mount a sustained rally. That is a discouraging omen, an indication that the bottom has not been reached, many securities analysts say, and a sign that even the most steel-willed optimists may be about to throw in their towels. As is their habit, the news media and many investors tend to focus on what has already occurred. In this case, there seemed to be many reasons for pessimism: Collapsing stock prices, down almost 25 percent from 1981′s peak; a second recession in two years; rampant inflation; and erosion of corporate profits. In the political arena. Weaker earnings were leading to dividend cuts. Banks were experiencing loan write-offs, and cutting off tight credit. In the political arena, President Ronald Reagan was forsaking his tax cuts in favor of increases to tame soaring deficits. It might not have occurred to readers that this information was already reflected in stock prices. Indeed, inflation, courtesy of Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, was about to take a two-decade-long tumble. Yields on three-month Treasury bills were falling from 12.5 percent to 9.35 percent. The price-earnings ratio on the Dow Jones Industrial Average was a mere 6.5. The Standard & Poor’s 400 industrials — does this index even exist anymore? — was only 7. The S&P 500 Index was trading at book value, while the Dow was below book. Stock prices were just about at their lows. continues here

Help Wanted: Humans Need Not Apply Posted: 15 Aug 2014 04:30 AM PDT Hat tip econ Future ~~~ Discuss this video: http://www.reddit.com/r/CGPGrey/comme… http://www.CGPGrey.com/ https://twitter.com/cgpgrey

Porsche Museum & Its Secret Prototype Warehouse Posted: 15 Aug 2014 03:00 AM PDT Join CAR magazine on a tour inside Porsche’s secret prototype warehouse in Germany. It’s a treasure trove of secret prototypes, weird mules and mutated Porsche testbeds.

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