The general suspicion that something just ain’t right with the economy has become an obvious reality.  Hope and optimism that somehow things will muddle along, or improve, are fading.  You can see it, feel it, and even smell it.

For example, several new data points were revealed Friday.  Each offered further confirmation that the economy’s not progressing.  Rather, it’s regressing.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, producer prices dropped 0.4 percent last month and 1.6 percent on an annualized basis.  Naturally, wholesale prices go down when the dollar goes up.  They also go down when there’s weakening demand.

One would think that a strong dollar would encourage greater demand in the U.S. for imported goods.  Yet that’s not what’s happening at all.  “For the first time in at least a decade,” reports the Wall Street Journal, “imports fell in both September and October at each of the three busiest U.S. seaports.”

Reduced demand for doodads from China and other exporters likely translates into weaker U.S. retail sales.  Currently, this appears to be happening. Continue reading →