What We Read Today 27 July 2014

Econintersect: Every day our editors collect the most interesting things they find from around the internet and present a summary “reading list” which will include very brief summaries (and sometimes longer ones) of why each item has gotten our attention. Suggestions from readers for “reading list” items are gratefully reviewed, although sometimes space limits the number included.

• Gold Set to Post Second Straight Weekly Loss (James Hyerczyk, FX Empire) Looks like gold has established another leg down. As Hyerczyk suggests, there may be a counter trend rally for a few days but playing it as a longer move could be dangerous.

• Disregard Durable Goods Data (Steven Hansen, Seeking Alpha) This highlights very negative aspects to the durable goods data announced for June, factors that are missing in the mainstream media reports. This post was made as a summary of the detailed report at GEI Analysis.

• Drought drains critical US water supply (Pilita Clark, Financial Times) This has been discussed here this past week. The FT article is a good summary of the situation. See also the following two articles, previously seen ‘behind the wall’.

• Study: Groundwater in Colorado River Basin disappears at shocking rate (Staci Matlock, Sante Fe New Mexican) Hat tip to Sig Silber. Repeated from yesterday (‘behind the wall’). Severe drought and over-pumping have depleted groundwater in the southwest. Lake Mead is half empty and river flows are but a trickle. But new technology using satellites is able to monitor water level changes in real time for a large area. Just how it is done is a fascinating story. The satellites don’t look toward the ground; they look at each other!

• Email communication from John Fleck, Albuquerque Journal, via Sig Silber. Repeated from yesterday ‘behind the wall’. The southwest and California are not the only areas of the U.S. suffering from water depletion. The following map shows data obtained over several years from the paired satellites for the entire lower 48 states. The title Grace is the acronym for Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment. You will be seeing this map again in Sig Silber’s future weekly weather and climate update reports.

• Deadly ‘superbug’ is spreading in US hospitals (Mark Koba, CNBC) Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) is one of a growing group of newly recognized strains of bacteria which are mostly resistant to antibiotics. Because of the resistance these are called “superbugs“. CRE is most commonly found in healthcare facilities, infects around 9,300 a year, killing about 600. Another superbug has been found at firehouses in Washington state. Known as MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), it causes a range of illnesses, from skin and wound infections to pneumonia and bloodstream infections that can cause sepsis and death. No deaths have been reported for the 33 firehouses in Washington that have reported one or more cases of infection. At least 2 million illnesses are reported each year from various superbugs, resulting in more than 23,000 deaths, according to the CDC. New antibiotics would help (fewer and fewer are being developed – see graph) but the effects would be only temporary as bacteria will adapt to tolerate new challenges. Perhaps bacteria have some evolutionary lessons for humans?

There are 10 articles discussed today ‘behind the wall’.

The final five articles are discussion of various Obamacare issues in the news this week.

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