• Why are Movie Theatre Revenues Declining?
Earlier this week, I looked into why theaters were having such a rough go of it. Turns out to have nothing to do with piracy. (There is a robust discussion — about 50 comments — at the end)
• The WSJ’s wrap up of the Yuan depegging was terrific (as usual). I’m a fan of the online WSJ version, and in a related, fascinating tidbit, Dow Jones now derives more profit from online than dead tree version of the WSJ — on only half the revenue.
• Overlooked in all the fuss this week were some startling figures as to the costs of the Iraq War. For more details, take a gander at "Will the US Economy Become a Victim of the Iraq War?"
• My take on the Yuan revaluation, Federal Reserve Responsibilities Outsourced to China, was only partially tongue-in-cheek. But don’t overlook the much more significant factor: Vulnerable Mortgages and the Depegging of the Chinese Yuan
• On a related topic, Barron’s Alan Abelson looks at the impact of the Housing sector on the Economy, via Merrill Lynch’s David Rosenberg. (If you still don’t have a Barrons subscription, go here)
• A recent NBER Working Paper looks at the issue of U.S. losing lead in science and engineering-study
• How Atypical is the present Business Cycle Recovery? Let’s go to the Federal Reserve Regional Banks:
∞ See this chart from the Cleveland Fed;
∞ See this study from the Boston Fed;
∞ See this study from the Chicago Fed;
Incidentally, Greenspan distanced himself from the Boston study.
• Poker Is Flush With Insight for Traders
Doug Kass usually publishes at the not
inexpensive Street Insight. Whenever a column of his rolls over to the
free site, its a must read, and this one is no exception.
• Finally, have a look at Clive Thompson. Thompson was a Knight science-journalism fellow at MIT, and is a writer on politics, technology, and culture. His blog, collision detection, is an interesting read.
The WSJ.com is great, and the fact that it includes Barron’s makes it one of the best bargains out there.