News: Market Update On Long Island
(Long Island, N.Y.) Since Monday’s stock market plunge many Long Islanders have been tuning into financial reports for status updates on the current economic condition. It’s been reported that the Dow Jones Industrial Average has dropped roughly three-hundred points, which is an estimated three percent. Some sources claimed that it was down over four-hundred points by late morning.
In contrast to the declining trends, yesterday’s report concluded that the Dow Jones Industrial average increased over four-hundred points. Some analysts and financial experts have claimed that the increase was in response to a statement made by the United States’ Federal Reserve. The Federal Reserve, also known as the Fed, serves as the country’s central banking system.
Reports stated that the Federal Reserve claimed that they have planned to keep interest rates very low over the course of the next two years. The estimated time period was the first the Federal Reserve gave during the current financial crisis. Some sources claimed that it is possible that the lowered-interest time frame will extend longer.
Nonetheless, dismal news still lurks in the future for the national and local economies. According to reports, the Federal Reserve expects the markets to remain weak over the next couple of years. Reflecting this viewpoint, the Standard and Poors 500 dropped over four percent, showing the biggest decline of the ten industries that compose the index.
During the course of the economic and fiscal crisis, many Long Islanders are beginning to examine the terms “recession,” “depression,” and “slowdown.” It has been difficult to classify what local residents and national citizens have been experiencing in recent weeks. Part of the issue is that there is not a universally agreed upon definition of any of the terms.
Reports stated that the most commonly accepted definition of a recession is a decline in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for two or more consecutive quarters. Prior to the 1930s, however, the dips in financial prosperity were more commonly referred to as depressions. The severe economic collapse of the 1930s caused financial analysts to label the time period as the Great Depression and lesser declines to be thereon known as recessions.
Nonetheless, sources claimed that the National Bureau of Economic Research has maintained that the current dips in the economy are not qualified to be collectively labeled as a recession. Many corporations and expansive companies have experienced growth or little change in their incomes even amidst the recent downturn. Companies like Capital One Financial Corp., Macy’s Inc., Polo Ralph Lauren Corp., Cree Inc., and Walt Disney Co. are among those examples.
