What About the Economy?

I was listening to the radio just before my show began today and noted that it was reported that consumer spending was up over the last month. This came as a surprise to the "sky is falling" crowd that dominates the media today.

According to CNNMoney:

Retail sales unexpectedly rose 0.3% last month after a dismal December, the Commerce

Department said Wednesday, easing concerns that the U.S. already has fallen into a recession.
Wall Street cheered the report. The Nasdaq rose 2.3% while the S&P 500 and Dow climbed 1.4%.

Analysts had expected a 0.3% fall following December's 0.4% drop.

Consumer spending, which accounts for 70% of economic activity, is being eyed closely for signs the U.S. is sliding into a recession.

"As the consumer goes, so goes the economy," said Joel Naroff. chief economist at Naroff Economic Advisors. "The good news is that the consumer is not dramatically cutting back on spending, but the bad news is the consumer is not spending at any great pace."

The 1.4 percent increase in the Dow translated into 178.83 points. This is a significant increase for a single day.

The media is now trying to figure out what happened, considering the economy was suppose to be in a total melt down. I have been a contrarian for quite some time. The reality is, last month was the first one in which we actually showed the slightest sign of weakness outside of the subprime crisis. In spite of how great the passion to declare the end of the world, we might be seeing the end of a very short "recession." We will have to wait a while and see.

On a recent Movers and Shakers segment, I interviewed several Advisors from the Houston Business Show about the economy. I found the conversation most informative (click here and then click, Movers and Shakers).

Kevin Price is Host of the Houston Business Show (M-F at 11 AM on CNN 650) and Publisher of the Houston Business Review. Hear the show live and online at HoustonBusinessShow.com. Visit the archive of past shows here.

A Blogging Success Story

Many journalists, talk show hosts, and others in the media subscribe to Google Alerts in order to keep informed on specific issues (this is a great free, tool that I strongly recommend). I have several, including one called "Houston Real Estate" which I use to prepare for the Houston Home Show I host with Mark Jeffrey of UBuildIt (Friday at 1 PM on CNN 650). Recently I received an alert that included a blog post that discussed Houston's booming economy and how that should contribute to continued growth in Real Estate in the future.

That post was written by Rose Stabler (photo at left, a local business broker), who ironically just decided to start a blog in the last few weeks. It was an excellent piece and clearly shows that Houstonians can expect this economy to continue to grow, that unemployment should be well below the national average, and that housing should continue to improve for investment and other purposes. I asked her to be on today's show and she did a fine job pointing to the reasons for continued optimism. Her interview will be available online at the Houston Business Review (I suggest getting a free subscription to it by clicking here so you can be kept up to date on all our media). I encourage sharing that segment of the show with others who wonder about the future of Houston's economy.

I'm not suggesting that if you start a blog you will be on the radio speaking to thousands in a few weeks. I do believe, however, that starting a blog can differentiate you as an expert (something Rose is doing very well in her blog), can attract attention from those who can help your business, and can provide discipline to help you become better at what you do. For those of you who spend hours reading blogs, but debate whether or not you should get in, the water is great.