Tom Hanna's Lifestream

Asian stock markets rose sharply Monday, with the Nikkei up 5.48% and the Hang Seng up 7.52% at 1 AM Eastern. US stock market futures are also up nearly 2%. The dollar is down slightly against the yen and the Canadian dollar, down more than half a percent against the euro and pound. Oil prices have rebounded nearly 5% from Friday's close on news that major consumer China is likely to lower fuel prices spurring use and OPEC is likely to cut production. Financial Roadmap: The Week Ahead December 8 to 12, 2008Two of the biggest news events this week will happen Tuesday, with theBank of Canada widely expected to cut interest rates and the NationalAssociation of Realtors set to report on Pending Home Sales forOctober. After the Mortgage Bankers Association reported a recordbreaking increase in mortgage applications last Wednesday, theyreported a record increase in foreclosures and delinquencies on Friday.The market actually took the Wednesday report seriously, a first forpositive housing indicators in several months, and took the bad newsFriday in stride. Signs of a bottom or at least a short termimprovement in mood? Good news on Pending Home Sales and mortgageapplications this week could help a rebound; bad news could triggeranother attempt to find a new bottom.Friday's Economic ReportsEmployment Situation Report - November 2008 Monthly Change: Nonfarm Jobs Down 533,000 Unemployed Persons: 10,331 million Unemployment Rate: 6.7% Change: Up 0.2%What I'm ReadingObama Says Economy Will Worsen, Not Concerned About Short-Term Budget Gap President-elect Barack Obama said theU.S. recession will worsen before a recovery takes hold and thathe will offer an economic stimulus plan “equal to the task”without worrying about a short-term widening of the budgetdeficit. India Rate Cuts, Stimulus May Fail to Shore Up Growth as Investment Slumps Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh'sspending plan and interest rate cuts unveiled over the weekendmay not be enough to prevent economic growth slowing to theweakest pace in six years, economists say. Shirakawa May Need to Get Bolder to Save Japan Companies From Fund Drought Bank of Japan Governor MasaakiShirakawa may be forced to adopt more aggressive measures to easea credit shortage for companies, economists say. U.S. in Danger of Worst Recession Since World War II as Job Losses Deepen The U.S. economy may be headed forits deepest and longest recession since World War II as mountingjob losses take their toll on consumer confidence and spending. IMF's Bailout Plan for Latvia Calls for Keeping Currency's Link With Euro Latvia’s International Monetary Fund-led bailout package will involve loans from other Europeangovernments and will maintain the country’s currency peg to theeuro, the IMF said. Pakistan May Miss Growth Target, Inflation May Be 22%, Central Bank Says Pakistan’s central bank said thenation’s economy may miss growth targets and inflation may riseas high as 22 percent. Japanese Companies Can Manage With Yen Around 92 vs Dollar, Sakurai Says Japanese companies can remainprofitable if the yen trades around 92 yen per dollar, saidMasamitsu Sakurai, head of the nation’s second-largest businesslobby. South Korea's Producer Prices Plunge Most in 45 Years as Oil Costs Decline South Korea’s producer prices fell inNovember by the most in 45 years as global commodity pricesplunged, giving the central bank room to reduce borrowing costsfurther this week. Kashkari Defends TARP Program After Congressmen Threaten to Withhold Funds Neel Kashkari, who oversees the U.S.Treasury’s $700 billion financial-rescue plan, defended theprogram today after congressional leaders threatened to withholdthe remaining half of the funding. Employers in U.S. Cut 533,000 Jobs, Most in 34 Years: Table of the Day Following is a summary of theNovember employment situation from the Labor Department. Job Losses Are Worst Since '74The U.S. lost half a million jobs in November, the largestmonthly drop in 34 years, pushing the unemployment rate to 6.7%, a15-year high.China Stimulus Slights Human CapitalChina plans to spend $581 billion on a stimulus package,but just 1% of that is going to social services. That balance needs tobe corrected, many scholars say, if China is to keep growing rapidlyand improving living standards.Thanks for reading. This content is originally from EconoIndicators or The Economic Indicators Blogger blog. Click through for more.