It’s The Economy Dude

Urban Onramps cites a news report on better than expected results in the US Economy (replete with unfortunate sports analogies).

It has been an odd year for the US economy, and in fact for the world economy. Things began with very negative fundamentals and then seemed to get worse. Rudy is reading this story as being a very optimistic sign that maybe the doomsayers are wrong. I hope he is right. However, when I read things like “cheap borrowing” and “rising housing” it makes me nervous. Excessive debt and housing boom are core issues that have led the world economy into where it is now and a house price fall is something that seems inevitable for the US, given the the housing market in every other developed economy. I read the article and all it said to me was ‘a good quarter but no fundamental change.

My point is not to critique Rudy, may have this all wrong. Rather, it was interesting to note the way two people can read a news source and see it differently. For me, it was the presence of certain key words and the theoretical implications they carry. Nothing in the article made me change my view that in ’06 house prices will fall in the US and consumer spending will be squashed by debt issues (though I hope I’m wrong on those).

Technorati Tags: Economics, Hermeneutics