luni, 18 ianuarie 2016

Seth's Blog : Volunteer engagement



Volunteer engagement

It's possible that there's a woman who walks around your neighborhood every day, generously straightening up, picking up trash and improving things. Possible but unlikely.

Countless hours of volunteer engagement go untapped, because it's genuinely unlikely that people will contribute what they can, unencouraged.

The key elements are:

  • An agenda
  • Peer support
  • A hierarchy of achievement

The agenda is important, because it frees the volunteer up to do what's next, instead of figuring out what's next. The agenda makes it emotionally and socially safe to contribute. And the agenda lays out the road map of how we (however 'we' is defined) get from here to there.

Peer support is critical. "People like us do things like this." It's difficult enough to find the time and energy to contribute, but harder still to do it when one feels like an outsider.

And a hierarchy of achievement kicks in to amplify and encourage the work of the 10% of people who do 90% of the work. By recognizing those people as well as giving them more authority, the hierarchy creates a self-fueling cycle of impact.

Consider the Crisis Text Line. Or the millions of hours donated to editing Wikipedia. Or the application for TFA. Or umbrella organizations like New York Cares.

Volunteering is a spark that makes society work, but it takes organizations to build the support structures that keep it going.

Better structures lead to better work. People who care can magnify their impact by building structures that bring in more people who care.

       

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duminică, 17 ianuarie 2016

Seth's Blog : Fear is easy, hope is real



Fear is easy, hope is real

Fear shows up unbidden, it almost never goes away if you will it to, and it's rarely a useful tool for your best work.

Hope, on the other hand, can be conjured. It arrives when we ask it to, it's something we can give away to others again and again, and we can use it as fuel to build something bigger than ourselves.

       

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sâmbătă, 16 ianuarie 2016

Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis

Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis


Weekend Entertainment Courtesy of Jim Cramer: "How I Knew to Buy Before the Big Rebound"

Posted: 16 Jan 2016 04:29 PM PST

The "Big" Rebound

Those looking for a laugh this weekend need look no further than this video of Jim Cramer on Thursday, January 14: "How I Knew to Buy Before the Big Rebound".

It took less than a day to wipe out his entire "big rebound".

Click on the link to play the video. How anyone could possibly watch his "Mad Money" show on a regular basis is a mystery.

Cramer's artificial melodrama, insincere hype, and pompous attitude outweigh any entertainment value on days like today.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock

EU's Farcical Plan to "Quasi-Automatically" Redistribute Refugees

Posted: 16 Jan 2016 12:52 PM PST

Last Autumn, the European Commission and Angela Merkel hatched a plan to redistribute 160,000 migrants from overloaded countries to countries less overloaded.

Results so far: 272 refugees relocated. In the meantime, another 400,000 or so refugees have poured in.

Rather than admit they are hopelessly out of touch with reality, and despite no popular backing from citizens, European leaders have decided automation of a failed plan is the way to go.

Quasi-Automatic Redistribution

The Wall Street Journal reports European Commission Plans New Try at Redistributing Migrants.
The European Commission is seeking a sort of automatic mechanism for redistributing asylum seekers across Europe, despite most governments showing little support for the idea.

A plan to reallocate migrants who have already come to Europe was the main response from the European Union's executive arm to the bloc's migration crisis last year—during which more than one million people from the Middle East and North Africa arrived, mainly via Turkey and Greece.

But the EU program to relocate 160,000 asylum seekers out of Italy and Greece to the rest of the bloc has so far managed to move only 272 people, mostly because many have gone on their own to EU states that were more welcoming and gave more generous benefits, particularly Germany and the Nordic countries.

Speaking to EU lawmakers on Thursday, migration commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos said he envisaged a "system under which applicants will be quasi-automatically allocated to member states."

Mr. Avramopoulos gave no details as to how many people would be reallocated under such a plan, and under what circumstances. EU diplomats familiar with the talks say that if a country were faced with an influx it couldn't cope with, a certain share of the burden would be evenly redistributed to other EU states.

"We have to be realistic and honest," he said. "The situation is getting worse. This year we had no winter break: There were 3,000-4,000 arrivals a day over Christmas and New Year."
Time to be Realistic

By all means, let's be realistic. And honest.

    • Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Romania have refused to go along with relocation plans despite being obliged to do so.
    •  
    • 2,000 to 4,000 refugees arrive every day. Assuming the lower bounds, that's 60,000 every month, 180,000 or so every three months.
    •  
    • Assuming quasi-automatic redistribution will achieve a 100% success rate, up from zero (0.17% to be precise), within three to four months, new refugees arriving will exceed those relocated.

      And how is this quasi-automatic redistribution supposed to work?

      No one has stepped up to the plate to explain how, or what happens when various countries refuse to participate.

      It's magic.

      Mike "Mish" Shedlock

      Seth's Blog : The first fifteen minutes

      

      The first fifteen minutes

      Learning something new is frustrating. It involves being dumb on the way to being smart.

      Once we get good enough (at our tools, at our work) it's easier and easier to skip learning how to do the next thing, because, hey, those fifteen minutes are a hassle.

      Learning to use the new fax machine, or a different interface on the voice mail or even, yikes, a new version of Photoshop. (I confess that I dropped off the Photoshop train a half dozen versions ago, much to my chagrin.)

      And so we get in the habit of giving a half effort, not really reading the instructions, shrugging our shoulders and moving on. The professional in us that was always eager to find tools that added leverage becomes the complacent coaster, defending what's on the table as 'good enough'. 

      The problem with evaluating the first fifteen minutes of frustration is that we easily forget about the 5,000 minutes of leverage that frustration earns us if we stick it out.

      Yes, Isaac Asimov typed all 400 of his books on a manual typewriter. But I'm glad Cory Doctorow has a laptop.

             

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      vineri, 15 ianuarie 2016

      Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis

      Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis


      4th Quarter GDPNow Forecast Sinks to +0.6 Percent; Fed Futures Target 1 Hike in 2016; Disastrous Data Recap

      Posted: 15 Jan 2016 03:30 PM PST

      I have never seen the Atlanta Fed take as long to post a scheduled update to their GDP Forecast as they did today. Their forecast came out late this afternoon, but it did beat the market close.



      Latest forecast — January 15, 2016

      The GDPNow model forecast for real GDP growth (seasonally adjusted annual rate) in the fourth quarter of 2015 is 0.6 percent on January 15, down from 0.8 percent on January 8. The forecast for fourth quarter real consumer spending growth fell from 2.0 percent to 1.7 percent after this morning's retail sales report from the U.S. Census Bureau and the industrial production release from the Federal Reserve.

      5 Disastrous Economic Reports From Today

      1. Inventory to Sales: Manufacturing Inventories Decline But Inventory-to-Sales Ratio Doesn't Budge; Another Recessionary Looking Chart
      2.  
      3. Producer Prices: Producer Prices Decline More Than Expected, Services Disappoint; Oil Approaches $29
      4.  
      5. Industrial Production: Industrial Production Numbers and Revisions Shockingly Bad; Autos Have Peaked
      6.  
      7. Empire State Manufacturing: Empire State Manufacturing Index Posts Horrific -19.37, Lowest Reading Since April 2009
      8.  
      9. Retail Sales: December Retail Sales Negative; Other Economic Data Horrid

      That's likely the worst set of economic reports since the last recession.

      Fed Futures Target 1 Hike in 2016

      Following today's set of horrific reports, odds of rate hikes in 2016 dropped substantially. Fed Fund Futures analysis show the March hike odds shrank all the way to 31% from 55% last month.



      The first hike is now expected in July, but barely. And looking all the way out to December, the futures still suggest only one hike.



      Note the significant 33.9% chance of no more hikes for the entire year!

      Nonetheless, a parade of Fed governors attempted to talk up the strength of the economy over the past few days, even today.

      The market laughed in their face.

      Mike "Mish" Shedlock

      More Fed Confessionals; Funny Oil Videos; In Search of Bullard; Inflation Expectations

      Posted: 15 Jan 2016 12:48 PM PST

      Another Fed Confessional

      In reference to statements made by Fed officials that the decline in the price of oil was good for the economy, San Francisco Fed president John Williams now admits "We Got It Wrong".

      Click on the link for a video submitted by Zero Hedge on January 10.

      On January 9, Forex Live provided some quotes ...

      The Fed's Williams was asked about the impact of oil on the US economy. "The Fed got it wrong when it predicted a drop in oil prices would be a big boon for the economy," he said. "It turned out the world had changed; the US has a lot of jobs connected to the oil industry."

      More accurately, Williams said "We got this wrong". The above statements attributed to Williams are not quotes but they are a close paraphrase. I spent quite a while looking for "Fed got it wrong" before finding the above video.

      Forex Live also stated "At this time last year the Fed's Bullard was saying: The 'oil price drop is very unambiguously positive for US.'"

      In Search of Bullard

      I searched high and low but could find no such statement by Bullard.

      Purportedly that statement comes from a Bloomberg TV interview on January 30, 2015: Bullard Says Rates at Zero Not Right for U.S. Economy.

      I played the interview. Bullard made no such statement then, or at any other time, at least that I can find.

      Instead, you will find a mess of total nonsense about inflation expectations as well as some statements that are far more reasonable. Bullard did state normal interest rates are close to 4%.

      The video conclusion was interesting.

      Bloomberg: How confident are you in your forecasts given all the cross-currents out there?
      Bullard: Very confident. (laughing). I think forecasting is always a hazardous thing. I think one of the things is you always have to keep in mind is, no matter who you are, you put out a forecast and you know you're gonna be wrong, because that's the way the macro economy works. And you have to learn, which direction were we wrong, and how should we shade our forecast next time to try to accommodate that. And that's the best you can do because it's a wild bucking bronco to try to forecast the US economy.
      Bloomberg: You hope to be less wrong when you put out these forecasts.
      Bullard: Yes, less wrong.

      Better Idea

      Instead of attempting to ride a "wild bucking bronco" with predictions known in advance to be wrong, why should the Fed forecast at all?

      Why not let the market sort this out instead of a bunch of purported wizards who essentially admit they don't know what they are doing?

      Could a free market in interest rates possibly have done worse than the dotcom bubble, followed by the housing bubble, followed by the equity and junk bond bubbles we are in now?

      Funny Oil Videos

      The statement attributed to Bullard may or may not have been made by Bullard, but Larry Kudlow did make that exact statement.

      In a CNBC video in November of 2104, Kudlow stated emphatically Drop in Oil Prices is Unambiguously Good.

      Here is a second Kudlow interview discussing oil. Both videos are downright funny in retrospect.



      Crude Weekly Chart



      Inflation Expectations

      Inquiring minds may be asking "What about those inflation expectations?"

      Fear not, I just happen to have the answer from yesterday: Bullard Warns on Weak Inflation Expectations.



      By the way, I left out a key snip from the Bloomberg-Bullard interview from last year.

      On January 30, 2015, Jim Bullard said "I would expect them [inflation expectations] to gradually come back up. We'll see. If that doesn't happen, then I would start to get very concerned that our credibility was eroding and markets were starting to doubt our ability to hit 2% inflation. [pointing a finger in the air, laughing] Which they should not do, because we will hit 2% inflation".

      Emphasis on "will" was Bullard's.

      Today, Bullard is concerned.

      I leave you with this question: Is the falling oil price still "unambiguously good" or does it reflect a rapidly sinking US economy?

      First Fed Confessional

      For a stunning video confessional and transcript, please see former Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher Goes to Squawk Box Confessional: "We Frontloaded a Tremendous Market Rally"

      That rally is blowing up now.

      Mike "Mish" Shedlock

      Manufacturing Inventories Decline But Inventory-to-Sales Ratio Doesn't Budge; Another Recessionary Looking Chart

      Posted: 15 Jan 2016 10:58 AM PST

      GDP estimates for fourth quarter will undoubtedly decline after today's series of miserable economic reports.

      Icing on the miserable cake comes from the commerce department report on Manufacturing and Trade Inventories and Sales for November 2015. Both sales and inventories declined.

      Sales

      Down 0.2 percent from October 2015
      Down 2.8 percent from November 2014

      Inventories

      Down 0.2 percent from October 2015
      Up 1.6 percent from November 2014.

      Inventories/Sales Ratio

      The total business inventories/sales ratio based on seasonally adjusted data at the end of November was 1.38. The November 2014 ratio was 1.32.



      Synopsis

      Inventories are up 1.6% from a year ago. Sales are down 2.8% from a year ago.

      That inventory build was unwarranted, and no doubt inspired by a lot of cheerleading by the Fed about the strength of the US economy.

      So here we are once again with another recessionary looking inventory-to-sales ratio. The chart reflects November.

      Earlier today we learned December Retail Sales were Negative.

      Expect another bad looking chart next month.

      Mike "Mish" Shedlock

      Producer Prices Decline More Than Expected, Services Disappoint; Oil Approaches $29

      Posted: 15 Jan 2016 09:54 AM PST

      Producer prices are down again this month followed by an unexpected rise last month. If oil prices stick, expect more of the same next month.

      Crude Weekly Chart



      Crude is down $1.80 today, another 5.77%, to a new interim low of $29.28. The session is not over yet so it remains to be seen if today is the first close below $30 since 2003.

      Producer Prices Decline More Than Expected

      The Econoday Consensus Estimate was -0.1%, and the actual headline number -0.2%.
      The producer price-final demand headline in December fell 0.2 percent, nearly reversing November's 0.3 percent increase which now, regrettably, looks like an upside outlier. Year-on-year, the headline is down 1.0 percent. The ex-gas ex-food core rate did rise, but only 0.1 percent while the year-on-year rate is down 2 tenths in the month to only plus 0.3 percent. The ex-gas ex-food ex-services headline is up 0.2 percent with the year-on-year rate unchanged, also at plus 0.3 percent.

      Services are the disappointment in this report, unchanged in the month following November's 0.5 percent bounce back that followed, however, two prior months of decline. Lack of price traction in services is a blow to Federal Reserve policy makers who are counting on improvement in domestic prices to offset ongoing contraction in fuel and commodity prices. Year-on-year, service prices are up only 0.4 percent.

      Energy prices fell 3.4 percent in the month with the year-on-year rate at minus 16.2 percent. Food prices, which have been another source of weakness, fell 1.3 percent with the year-on-year rate at minus 5.2 percent. Two other areas of weakness are export prices, down 0.1 percent and 3.4 percent year-on-year, and also, in bad news for manufacturers, finished goods prices which fell 0.7 percent and are down 2.7 percent on the year. Construction prices, which have been a source of strength, were unchanged though up 1.8 percent on the year.

      This report for November did show promise but not in December and it isn't a source of optimism going into the January price collapse for oil which, for WTI, is struggling to stay over $30 this morning. This along with yesterday's import & export price report will not boost confidence that inflation expectations are well anchored and that inflation itself moving higher. Watch next Wednesday for the consumer price report.
      Services Disappointment

      Bloomberg reports "Services are the disappointment in this report, unchanged in the month following November's 0.5 percent bounce..."

      Bloomberg has an error. The services component rose 0.1%. Let's dive into the BLS PPI Report to verify.
      Final Demand Goods: The index for final demand goods moved down 0.7 percent in December, the sixth consecutive decrease. Over three-quarters of the December decline can be traced to prices for final demand energy, which fell 3.4 percent. The index for final demand foods decreased 1.3 percent. Conversely, prices for final demand goods less foods and energy inched up 0.1 percent.

      Product Detail: About half of the December drop in the index for final demand goods is attributable to prices for gasoline, which fell 8.3 percent. The indexes for meats, diesel fuel, chicken eggs, jet fuel, and fresh fruits and melons also moved lower. In contrast, prices for pharmaceutical preparations rose 1.1 percent. The indexes for fresh and dry vegetables and for home heating oil also increased.

      Final Demand Services:

      The index for final demand services inched up 0.1 percent in December following a 0.5-percent advance in November. The December increase can be traced to prices for final demand services less trade, transportation, and warehousing, which climbed 0.4 percent. Conversely, the indexes for final demand trade services and for final demand transportation and warehousing services both declined 0.4 percent. (Trade indexes measure changes in margins received by wholesalers and retailers.)

      Product Detail: Leading the December advance in the index for final demand services, prices for services related to securities brokerage and dealing jumped 30.3 percent. The indexes for machinery, equipment, parts, and supplies wholesaling; physician care; food retailing; and hospital inpatient care also moved higher. In contrast, margins for apparel, jewelry, footwear, and accessories retailing fell 3.4 percent. The indexes for loan services (partial); TV, video, and photographic equipment and supplies retailing; and airline passenger services also fell.
      Prices for services related to securities brokerage and dealing jumped 30.3 percent. How inspiring.

      Mike "Mish" Shedlock

      Industrial Production Numbers and Revisions Shockingly Bad; Autos Have Peaked

      Posted: 15 Jan 2016 08:53 AM PST

      Not only was December industrial production an awful -0.4%, November was revised lower from -0.6% to -0.9%.

      Not to fear, economists blame the weather for much of the decline.

      The Econoday Consensus Estimates for industrial production and manufacturing were -0.2% and +0.0% respectively. The actual results were -0.4% and -0.1%.
      December was not a good month for the industrial economy as industrial production fell a sharper-than-expected 0.4 percent. Utility output, down 2.0 percent, declined for a third straight month reflecting unseasonably warm temperatures. Mining, reflecting low commodity prices and contraction in energy extraction, has also been week, down 0.8 percent for a fourth straight decline. Turning to manufacturing, which is the most important component in this report, production fell 0.1 percent for a second straight month (November revised downward from an initial no-change reading).

      Details on manufacturing include a second straight contraction for vehicles, down 1.7 percent following November's 1.5 percent decline. Weakness here, along with weakness in the motor vehicle component of this morning's retail sales report, will raise talk that the auto sector, which had been one of the highlights of the 2015 economy, may slow down in 2016, at least the early part of the year. Construction supplies are a positive, up 0.6 percent for the second strong showing in three months and confirming strength underway in data for construction spending.

      Capacity utilization fell 4 tenths from a downwardly revised November to 76.5 percent. A low utilization rate, which is running roughly 4 percentage points below its long-term average, holds down the cost of goods.

      Year-on-year rates confirm weakness, down 1.8 percent overall with utilities down 6.9 percent and mining down 11.2 percent. Manufacturing is in the plus column but it's nothing spectacular, at plus 0.8 percent.

      Making matters worse is a downward revision to November, now at minus 0.9 percent vs an initial decline of 0.6 percent. Looking at the annualized rate for the fourth quarter, industrial production fell 3.4 percent though manufacturing did increase but not much, up 0.5 percent. Weather factors are skewing utility output but otherwise, readings are fundamentally soft and reflect the downturn in global demand made more severe for U.S. producers by strength in the dollar.
      Index of Industrial Production



      It appears the weather has been bad for 10 out of the last 12 months.

      Industrial Production Numbers



      Above table from the Federal Reserve Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization Report.

      Spotlight on Auto Sector

      For most of 2015, I had been saying that auto sales were not sustainable. Over the past two months we started to see solid evidence of that viewpoint.

      I commented on varying auto reports, some good, some bad, on January 5, in December US New Car Sales "Down, Exceptionally Weak" Says Bloomberg; WSJ Says Up and Strong.

      Those saying December sales were strong failed to take into consideration the number of selling days.

      Looking ahead, manufacturers have spoken: December vehicle production was down 1.7 percent following November's 1.5 percent decline.

      The last five months for motor vehicles and parts production look like this: -5.1 August, +0.5% September, +1.1% October, -1.5% November, -1.7% December.

      Autos have peaked.

      Mike "Mish" Shedlock

      Empire State Manufacturing Index Posts Horrific -19.37, Lowest Reading Since April 2009

      Posted: 15 Jan 2016 07:59 AM PST

      Economic data today was awful, at best. Retail Sales Were Negative, and that was arguably the best report. Let's now take a look at the other reports starting with Empire State Manufacturing.

      The Econoday Consensus estimate was for a slight improvement to -4 from a November reading of -4.59. The actual result was -19.37 with the lowest economic estimate -7.50.
      The contraction in factory activity in the New York manufacturing region, which began way back in August, unfortunately is picking up a lot of steam this month, at minus 19.37 for the January headline which is the lowest reading since April 2009. New orders, at minus 23.54, are contracting for an eighth straight month and at the sharpest pace since March 2009. Unfilled orders, at minus 11.00, are in an even deeper string of contraction. Employment, at minus 13.00, is down for a sixth straight month as is the workweek, at minus 6.00. And there's a crumbling going on in the 6-month outlook which, at 9.51 is still in the positive column but shows the least optimism since way back in March 2009. This report is grim and offers an initial look at January's factory activity which, based on these results, appears to be getting hit by global concerns.
      Empire State Manufacturing Index



      Mike "Mish" Shedlock

      December Retail Sales Negative; Other Economic Data Horrid

      Posted: 15 Jan 2016 07:42 AM PST

      Despite glowing reports of last minute Christmas sales, none of which I believed, December retail sales are best described as awful.

      Apparel was a standout, down 0.9%. The surprise here is that nobody blamed the weather.

      The Econoday Consensus Estimate was flat, and the result was not that far off at -0.1%, but the details were awful.
      Retail sales proved disappointing in December, down 0.1 percent in a headline that is not skewed by vehicles or even that much by gasoline. Ex-auto sales also fell 0.1 percent while the core ex-auto ex-gas reading came in unchanged which is well below both expectations as well as low-end expectations. The Beige Book yesterday warned us about weak apparel sales which in this report fell a very steep 0.9 percent, in a decline that likely reflects more than just import-price contraction. The general merchandise category, which is very large, fell 1.0 percent in the month. Electronics & appliances also show contraction.

      December winds up what was a not-so-great year for the nation's retailers. Total sales rose only 2.1 percent in the year, the smallest gain since 2009 and well down from 3.9 percent in 2014. Excluding motor vehicles, sales rose 0.9 percent, far lower than 2014's 3.1 percent.

      There are, however, some positives in the report including another strong gain for restaurants, up 0.8 percent, and also another gain for furniture & home furnishings, up 0.9 percent in strength that confirms ongoing improvement in the housing sector. But sales at non-store retailers rose only 0.3 percent for a second straight month which are moderate gains that do not confirm anecdotal reports of unusual holiday strength for online shopping.

      Upward revisions do take some of the sting out of the December report but not much. November total sales are revised 2 tenths higher to plus 0.4 percent and reflects a sharp upward revision to vehicle sales to plus 0.5 percent. But vehicle sales couldn't muster any strength in December, coming in unchanged. And sales at gasoline stations extended their long run of contraction that reflects falling oil prices, down 1.1 percent in December.

      There's plenty of jobs for consumers and gas prices are low -- but so are wages. The consumer started to slow down at year end and that was before the new trouble in China. Today's data will pull down expectations for fourth-quarter growth.
      There was a slew of economic reports today. This was arguably the best one! Empire State Manufacturing was shockingly bad as was industrial production. Details coming up.

      Mike "Mish" Shedlock