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Statistics From An Economy On The Brink Of Failure

Published 07/29/08 Jeff Bennett - Print Article
E-mail - editor@economyincisis.org

Bad news continues to emerge from the economy as the US Labor Department announced consumer prices rose 1.1 percent, the most in a one month period in 26 years. The Fed next reported that inflation rates are holding steady at 5 percent and will go higher, according to The Real News Network.

These problems are harming citizen’s lives as home values eroded, falling 17 percent in the past year, and foreclosures rose to 252,363 filings in June. The shrinking economy is now witness to the highest jobless rate in 20 years, at 5.5 percent. If these drastic problems are not reversed, America may witness the worst recession since the Great Depression.

Source The Real News Network:

The US Labor Department reported Wednesday that consumer prices rose 1.1 percent in June—the highest one-month rise in 26 years. And the 12-month inflation rate is at 5 percent—the highest since May 1991. Testifying before Congress, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke suggested that inflation would go higher.

…

The Fed last month broke a string of reductions by leaving interest rates unchanged—a recognition that lower rates had weighed on the US dollar and led to increases in commodities such as oil and food. The so-called downturn is also being fueled by the turmoil and bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the collapse of IndyBank.

The troubled economy is having direct effects on people's everyday lives. US home prices have fallen 17 percent over the past year. Foreclosure filings surged 53 percent in June with 252,363 homes receiving at least one foreclosure-related notice, and more than 71,000 properties were repossessed by lenders nationwide in June.

In addition, access to health care is increasingly out of reach. In 2007, more than 75 million, or 42 percent, of all working-age Americans either had no health insurance during the year or were under-insured, up 35 percent from 2003. And almost 16 percent of Americans, or 47 million people, have no heath insurance at all. The jobless rate stayed at 5.5 percent in June after soaring in May to the highest rate in 20 years and is expected to reach 6 percent next year. Meanwhile, consumers are taking drastic steps in changing their eating habits to adjust to rising food prices.

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