Jul 302013
 
Jobs in Washington: What now?

Beginning in May 2010 and continuing for almost three years, aerospace employers in Washington State added to their payrolls at the rate of nearly 600 a month. Over eight months starting in April 2011, the pace of hiring was almost frantic, averaging about 900 a month, as Boeing scrambled to [continue reading . . . ]

May 282013
 

Things on my mind as I prepare for the business/economy segment on KUOW‘s Weekday program at about 10:40 a.m. Pacific time May 29: 1. The Boeing Boom? So over. The headlines over the past several weeks about layoffs and other cutbacks at Boeing (excellent coverage in the Seattle Times by [continue reading . . . ]

Apr 032013
 
Wealth and recessions

A correspondent who heard me last week on KUOW‘s Weekday program asks if there is research on “a correlation between the wealth lost in a downturn and the length of following recovery.” I told him the book to read is This Time Is Different: Eight Centuries of Financial Folly  By Carmen [continue reading . . . ]

Mar 272013
 

A correspondent who heard my comments on Cyprus on KUOW’s Weekday program today asks: I am puzzled by some of your comments this morning. As I understand it, when a bank in the U.S. fails, the FDIC moves in and closes it. The accounts are protected by insurance up to [continue reading . . . ]

Jan 222013
 

I have four topics lined up for my stint on KUOW‘s Weekday program tomorrow. Sometimes the host sticks to the topics I suggest, some times not. Here are my bullet points: Dreamliner Blues: The grounding of Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner is obviously at the top of everyone’s radar screen. I’m not [continue reading . . . ]

Jan 022013
 
Questions for 2013

Three questions that we’ll know the answers to before 2013 is over: 1. Will Steve Ballmer remain in the driver’s seat at Microsoft? He’s been responsible for day-to-day operations for more than 14 years and CEO for a nice round dozen years. During his tenure, Microsoft has missed the boat [continue reading . . . ]

Oct 312012
 
KUOW: GDP, MSFT, AMZN

Some things I hope to cover on the business-economy segment on KUOW today: U.S. economy: The Bureau of Economic Analysis announced October 26 that the U.S. economy grew at annual rate of 2.0% in the July-September quarter, much better than the 1.3% rate in the summer quarter. In real terms [continue reading . . . ]

Oct 092012
 
Year of Amazon.com?

Amazon.com is on a roll. Last Friday, it announced a blockbuster real-estate deal, the purchase of its South Lake Union campus for more than $1 billion. It unveiled late in summer plans for three high-rise office towers on the edge of downtown Seattle — a quick streetcar ride from its [continue reading . . . ]

Aug 082012
 

Things on my mind as I prepare for my every-third-week appearance on KUOW‘s Weekday program Aug. 8: 1. Knight Capital Group (KCG). All investors ought to be concerned that a highly regarded Wall Street firm either didn’t have or (more likely) failed to hit the “kill switch” on an “algo” [continue reading . . . ]

Jul 122011
 

On KUOW’s Weekday program July 6, I suggested Washington’s tourist industry tax itself to fund tourism promotion now that the state’s puny effort (that spawned such forgettable campaigns as “Say WA”) have dried up (here’s a link to a New York Times piece that appeared in the Seattle Times). I [continue reading . . . ]

Jun 012011
 

On KUOW’s Weekday talk program today, Steve Scher, the host, asked if I had any ideas about the “Lesser Depression” I was talking about. I think I have a decent radio voice, but I’m slow on my feet, not nimble. I stalled for time, then mumbled something about Paul Ryan’s [continue reading . . . ]