Economic Contraction is theme for 2009 - that means hundreds of thousands of jobs are on the line

Factory orders and pending home sales showed the economy's troubles have intensified since the worst financial crisis in seven decades erupted with fury in the fall.

NVDL: Very few people seem to have realised that we have entered a dire strait, although we have been heading in this direction for some time. Most have an idea, but are wishing, hoping that things 'somehow' improve. It's this sort of delusional self-indulgent idiocy that got us into this mess in the first place.

clipped from biz.yahoo.com The labor market is being slammed by a recession that already has lasted for a year, the longest stretch in a quarter-century. The jobless rate, which jumped to a 15-year high of 6.7 percent in November, is expected to hit 7 percent in December. Many analysts are worried that the jobless rate could top 8 percent later this year before the economy recovers enough to start generating better hiring prospects. Meanwhile, pending home sales fell to their lowest level on record in November, according to a report from the National Association of Realtors. "Plain and simple, the economy is in the dumps," said Joel Naroff, chief economist at Naroff Economic Advisors. "This is not an indicator of recovery," Shepherdson said.