Mortgage delinquencies move higher…Euro pushed higher by European data…Economist predicts Norway will be first to raise…Mexico to leave rates unchanged…And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

Renewable energy — certainly electricity from windmills — has to compete against energy from other sources. The typical base line price competition for electricity is the price for a kilowatt generated in a coal-fired plant. Lately, with the price of natural gas down so low, even gas-fired electricity is competitive with coal. So where does that leave windmills?

Oh woe! Oh woe! O! Bama! Where is thy recovery? Yesterday, the world’s stock markets took a hit. The Dow lost 186 points… following a very bad showing in China. Is this the end of the rally?

Several key second-quarter earnings reports could either validate or undercut assertions that the U.S. economy is poised for recovery.

Is this leg of the Great Recession over? Or has the government duped us yet again?

How do you like this recovery? Pretty good, huh? Except for the jobs, of course. And except for the retail sales. And except for the foreclosures… and house prices. And incomes. And consumer prices. And business profits. It’s like a female impersonator… just like a real woman in every way, except for the essential ones.

Currencies trade in a tight range again…U.S. Retail Sales are a clunker! RBA’s Stevens is upbeat! Thoughts on Brazil…And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

Briggs & Stratton (NYSE:BGG) is an American icon. But even a long history of success has not spared many companies from the pain of a nasty recession. Did the legendary engine builder live up to its name?

It’s official: Our government ran a record $180.7 billion over budget in July, the Treasury Department said today. That’s just a bit over Wall Street expectations and just under the Congressional Budget Office estimate we reported Monday. Thus the government tab so far this fiscal year is a record $1.27 trillion, not the record $1.3 trillion the CBO guessed earlier this week. Phew… what a relief.

Hey… how ‘bout this rally!