Anecdotal: Recession

dopester

Tassotti wrote: »

You have the opportunity to do something great...rather than just moan about it....Do it, and show us all!!

I like the pic

Tass

Yes Tass, but to "do something great" at the moment requires having some patience.

As a businessman you must surely have heard of "buy-low and sell-high".

For me property will never be a business. I am just looking to buy a house I like for a home. Yet that doesn't include buying such a home when we're still at near peak prices of what some commentators are saying is a property bubble of magnitude only second to the Japanese real estate bubble.

Generali

Tassotti wrote: »

The only thing that caused the house correction is the credit crunch. Are you saying this has also affected the economy?

Yes. If you can't borrow to buy a house you also can't borrow to invest in your company (and thus increase employment) and you can't borrow to consume.

Debt levels are still rising but at a fraction of the average pace over the last 15 years or so.

WTF?_2

Tassotti wrote: »

Is that tongue-in cheek?

What are the new price bubbles? Please educate me as I am not a world economist (just a mere businessman)

So you haven't noticed the massive spike in oil/gas then? How about soft commodities (ie food)? None of those were justified by simple supply/demand and they've all hit in the last year. They are classic asset class bubbles which you find when there is monetary inflation about.

There is a 'wall of money' out there, created during the boom years. It's looking for a home but lending against property is out, so the cash goes somewhere where it can turn a profit. This is exacerbated by all the money that the central banks are throwing at the major financial institutions. That bailout cash isn't finding its way into credit to the general public......

neas

personal anecdotal evidence.

Two seperate friends of my wife.

Friend 1: Works in a training company that serves large corporations to train people in people skills, presentation skills, management, etc etc.

They just reduced their workforce by 16... luckily her friend hasn't got the chop... this time... but is now worried she will be in the next cut. The first thing large corporations cut in times of recessions are training and HR budgets. Theres plenty of well trained people available... because of job pool increasing (Redudancies in the industries)

Friend 2: Works for a company suppliny timber frames to building companies.

Result: No orders going through her at the moment... and has just been informed has been made redundant...

Green shoots of recovery ahead i think.

wymondham

Anecdotal evidence from sunny Norfolk:

Several people have gone on reduced hours and two made redundant at my works.

Hold on all training at work, even essential training.

Customer orders have dried up, with many reports of problems at customers having spoken with some - especially solicitors (residential departments) reducing their workforce.

Orders we have got are after many months of negotiation, rather than the usual week or two, with little or no profit margin.

Other bits:

Most developments around here seem quiet, with no obvious building work going on.

The local car sales yards are fixing far more balloons to the cars than normal to attract attention (maybe the house builders should take note?!)

Our cat's now have biscuits instead of meat for one of their meals.

With the cost of petrol I'm cycling much more than i did - this is a good thing!!

mewbie_2

wymondham wrote: »

Our cat's now have biscuits instead of meat for one of their meals.

Yeah - always the cats first to suffer isn't it? Never the dogs - as they lay in their baskets chewing expensive treats. And what about the guinea (mod: off topic, nonsense and slightly perverted rubbish about household pets has been removed)

harbinger13

napoleon wrote: »

We're all doomed!

Welcome to the party.

fimonkey

Doesn't a good all out war get us out of recession nicely? Has done in the past.. but oh wait... no one to go to war with cos we're busy 'peacekeeping' in certain area's. .... Iran should start watching their backs then!

BettiePage

!!!!!!? wrote: »

I was looking for a job after leaving university as the recession really kicked in - not nice. So I went back and did a postgrad. But it would have been an excellent time to start at uni (student loan thing apart) as when you are there, all this economy stuff matters not a jot.

Sprog is 15, I've already told him to make sure he stays in education until he's at least 21 as things may be over the worst by then.

SingleSue

In the last recession I had left school a couple of years but it didn't seem to really hit my area of work too hard although there were numourous hauliers and Forwarders going to the wall (slightly different section in the same area of work)

I was made redundant from one of those Forwarding agents in 1988 after the pre Christmas rush didn't last into January but I secured employment within 2 days (I made a right nuisance of myself at the job centre and applied for everything!).

I also got made redundant in 1991 (company relocation rather than reducing) but walked straight into another job at higher pay without even trying as a dock runner heard I was being made redundant and knew of a job opening at another Shipping Line which hadn't even been advertised at that point and put a word in... one phone call later from that company and I was employed again!

This time around, I can see myself having more problems as I have been out of the work scene for a few years and I will be up against all those who have degrees plus companies seem ever so slightly scared by the term 'mum'. :rotfl: