Dear Friends,

The following article speaks directly to comments made yesterday about unemployed and underemployed workers and their effect on the US consumer driven economy.

It also confirms the results of a Gallup poll released this AM which shows the effects of underemployment on national spending.

Click here to view the Gallup poll… ^[1]

That is why the phrase, “jobless recovery,” is nothing but an oxymoron created by the spinmeisters. It is also the reason I am so concerned about the federal budget deficits. Think in terms of reduced tax revenues…

Dan

Sears Sales Drop as Consumers Defer Buying Appliances (Update1)
By Lauren Coleman-Lochner

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) — Sears Holdings Corp., the largest U.S. department-store company, said comparable-store sales in the fourth quarter declined 2.5 percent as consumers limited purchases for the home.

Domestic comparable-store sales at Sears’s namesake locations fell 6.1 percent in the three months ended Jan. 30, the Hoffman Estates, Illinois-based company said today in a statement. Sales at established Kmart stores climbed 1.7 percent.

Demand for the large appliances and home-and-garden products offered at Sears stores has declined during the housing slowdown, forcing the retailer to close locations and cut inventory. To buoy revenue, Sears is offering some of its brands at other retailers, including Craftsman tools, which start selling at Ace hardware stores later this year.

Sears climbed 62 cents to $95.66 yesterday in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. The shares more than doubled last year.

For the year, comparable-store sales at the Sears chain fell 8.7 percent domestically; Kmart’s fell less than 1 percent. Sears said it will record a $7 million charge for store closings in the first half of this year. Yesterday it announced the closing of 21 Sears and Kmart stores in April and May.

Net income in the quarter climbed to $430 million, or $3.74 a share, from $190 million, or $1.55, a year earlier, when the company recorded a goodwill impairment, Sears said today. Total revenue declined less than 1 percent to $13.2 billion.

More… ^[2]

Trader Dan’s Commentary

More signs that the “jobless recovery” is alive and well…

Florida bankers move to dramatically speed up the foreclosure process
By James Thorner, Times Staff Writer
Friday, January 29, 2010

If bankers get their way, Floridians facing foreclosure could be kicked out of their homes in as little as three months.

The Florida Bankers Association, the 400-member-strong lenders’ lobby, has presented state legislators with a bill to upend decades of Florida law and establish "non-judicial" foreclosures in Florida by July 1.

What’s a non-judicial foreclosure? Banks would accelerate foreclosures against defaulting homeowners by bypassing the courts. Judges would no longer rule on foreclosure cases.

Some states — 37 in fact — already grant that fast-track foreclosure authority, including California, Georgia, Alabama and Texas. But Florida, with its plethora of vacation and retiree homes, has always been big on homeowner rights.

If you’re a financially strapped Florida homeowner — 62,719 Tampa Bay properties got foreclosure notices last year — the 53-page bill contains worrisome signs:

More… ^[3]