America has typically relied on its domestic market for economic growth, with consumer spending accounting for some 70 percent of annual GDP growth. Given the strong likelihood that US consumers will remain weak for years to come, America’s growth agenda needs to focus on getting more out of the other 30 percent. But can this be done?
American athletes who win any medals at the ongoing Summer Olympics in London may have to pay hefty taxes upon their return, reported Bloomberg News on Thursday, with the cost of a single gold medal believed to be worth $8,986 in taxes.
Though many optimists now believe that a combination of lower oil prices, rising auto sales, recovering house prices, and a resurgence of U.S. manufacturing can refuel America’s economic recovery, the reality is the opposite: For five key reasons, the U.S.’s economic growth will slow further in the second half of 2012 and be even lower in 2013 – close to stall speed.
China National Offshore Oil Corporation’s (CNOOC) $15.1 billion takeover of Canadian oil company Nexen may be under threat, reported Reuters on Thursday, after a top U.S. senator urged his government to block the deal until the Chinese government made “tangible, enforceable commitments” for U.S. companies investing in China.
China’s direct investment in the United States is expected to reach a new high of at least $8 billion this year, mostly on the back of large-scale investments in the energy and banking sectors.
According to a report from research firm, Rhodium Group, which tracks all acquisitions and investments by foreign companies in the United States valued at $1 million or higher, 2012 could be the richest year on record, eclipsing the previous record of $5.7 billion set in 2010.
On the one-year anniversary since passing the historic Marriage Equality Act, which granted same-sex couples the right to marry, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced on Tuesday that the new law had generated over $259 million for the city’s economy, with at least 8,200 same-sex marriage licenses issued in the first year alone.
Since its creation on December 23, 1913, the U.S Federal Reserve has played a key role in shaping U.S. monetary policy, as well as developing appropriate responses in times of financial crises.
But despite its key function to prevent bank runs and public panic, the Fed has often been criticised for its attempts (or lack of) when dealing with financial crises. Additionally, the Fed is infamous for its secrecy and lack of transparency, with critics calling for The Fed to be held more accountable for its actions.
The U.S.-China rivalry took an unfashionable sporting twist on Thursday after a report by ABC News revealed that American athletes were being decked out in made-in-China uniforms for the upcoming Olympics’ opening and closing ceremonies.
The United States is experiencing an oil and natural gas boom, one that has created thousands of jobs and at the same time provided a much needed boost to the national economy. With this new optimism, is US energy independence finally within reach?
The United States has for decades been a voracious energy consumer, but the last time the nation was truly energy independent was in 1952. However, during his 2012 State of the Union address, President Barack Obama announced that the US relied on less foreign oil that it has in any of the last 16 years.
With US unemployment still above 8 percent, jobs have become a major focus in the presidential campaign. But, while President Barack Obama’s proposals are convincing, none of Mitt Romney’s would do much in the near term – and some could prove counterproductive.
