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Home » Blogs » Economy » Waiting on a Sign
Lindsay Young Konzak

Waiting on a Sign

By    Lindsay  Konzak 
September 29, 2009
More about:  Economy,  MDM Blog
Recent article suggests we are in limbo, an uneasy phase of the 'Great Recession.'
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A recent article on my hometown in the New York Times highlights the uncertain place we are at with the economy. Columbus, NE, a town of 21,000, has the highest per-capita rate of manufacturing in Nebraska. As such, the town – about an hour and a half from Omaha, NE – has a number of manufacturers waiting for signs on when things will look up again.

For Katana Summit, a wind-tower manufacturer, that sign was a call from the developers of a project that, due to the credit crisis, had to suspend its order. (Read about the impact of government initiatives on the credit markets for alternative energy companies.)
 
Another company in the area, Behlen Manufacturing, watches "hobby farmers" closely as a leading indicator that things are starting to turn around. One of Behlen's key customers is Tractor Supply, a retailer to professional and amateur farmers. Because the "hobby farmers" are "fairly wealthy," according to the NY Times, the first "sign of a pulse" will come from them.
 
According to the article, we're in limbo. The author aptly puts it this way:

"That limbo is arguably the quintessential American experience of the moment. When the Great Recession is dissected into its component parts, this might be remembered as the Waiting Phase. It's not as scary as the Plummeting Phase of last year, or as event-filled as the To-the-Ramparts Phase of several months ago, but that doesn't make it any easier."

Read the full article here.

 

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