Economic Overviews

U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Bernanke addressed the Joint Economic Committee of the U.S. Congress on The Economic Outlook [saying in a nutshell] "We clearly understand the game we are playing, but we are boxed in and have to stay with our current strategy. We hope for the best because we are out of options

More economic fallacies than I have ever seen in my investing career are being passed off (and accepted) as profound, and more misbehavior is being tolerated - if not encouraged. Though I don't believe an apocalypse is imminent, below are a few extenuating factors that could lead to one if they [were all to] continue along the same ominous trajectory.

Below are 6 suggestions as to what the U.S. government could do to turn America's bloated failing economy around instead of just printing ever more money which time has shown does not work. Words: 360

Almost everywhere you look, there are signs that a financial avalanche has begun [and,] in many ways...[it] all is extremely reminiscent of 2008...so does that mean that a horrible stock market crash is coming as well? [Let's review] the 11 economic crashes that are happening RIGHT NOW [and query what might] happen for the rest of the year.

People have spent decades stealthly shifting money into the tax havens of European principalities, Caribbean archipelogos and Pacific islands. Unravel the mystery of how they do it in this exclusive interactive

Changes in economic indicators, copper and other commodity prices and stock market trends are covered in this month's market intelligence infographic.

Water resources face many pressures, including: population growth, increased urbanization and overconsumption, lack of proper management, and the looming threat of climate change. [This article looks at each area of water stress and offers suggestions on how they can be alleviated to a certain degree.] Words: 917; Charts: 4

Three indexes of the Federal Reserve...calculate and report statistical measures of financial stress in the U.S. economy on a regular basis...[and] all three have returned to their pre-recession levels last seen in May 2007. [What does that mean for stock market valuations? Let's take a look.]

In 1975, 8% of all Americans were on the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). That percentage is 15% today. Enrollment soared to 47.8 million participants in recent months, an increase of 70%. Below is an interactive graphic showing the number of SNAP recipients in each of the 50 U.S. states.

Freedom is a relative concept. Compared to other states in the U.S., how does your state rank in terms of these 40 aspects of freedom?