Morning Journal--Why has the economy remained stagnant while profits soared?

Economics

   This Week’s Data

            The August Markit US manufacturing PMI came in at 57.9 versus expectations of 57.8.

            The August ISM manufacturing index was reported at 59.0 versus estimates of 56.8.

            http://www.calculatedriskblog.com/2014/09/ism-manufacturing-index-increases-to.html

            July construction spending was up 1.8% versus forecasts of up 0.9%.

            http://www.calculatedriskblog.com/2014/09/construction-spending-increased-18-in.html

            Weekly mortgage applications rose 0.2% but purchase applications dropped 2.0%.

   Other

            China’s choices (short):

            http://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2014/09/soft-landing-vs-hard-landing.html

            Tracking Chinese commodity prices (medium):

            http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-09-02/chinese-commodity-crash-continues-pigs-are-flying

            Why the economy has remained stagnant in the face of soaring corporate profits (medium and today’s must read):

            http://scottgrannis.blogspot.com/2014/08/what-happened-to-all-profits.html

            The risk of inflation is not dead (medium):

            http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/kenneth-rogoff-debunks-rumors-of-the-demise-of-threats-to-price-stability#SlpXyZStkrBQy4Jk.99

            Update on real median household income (medium):

            http://www.advisorperspectives.com/dshort/updates/Median-Household-Income-Update.php

            Demography is having an impact of inflation (short):

            http://blog.yardeni.com/2014/09/demography-having-impact-on-inflation.html

Politics

  Domestic

Why the customer gets treated differently by private versus public enterprises (short):

http://www.coyoteblog.com/coyote_blog/2014/08/so-in-the-end-the-va-was-rewarded-not-punished.html

  International

            US troops headed for Ukraine? (short):

            http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-09-02/us-troops-are-heading-ukraine

            ISIS beheads second journalist (short):

            http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-09-02/isis-allegedly-decapitates-second-american-journalist

                Stockman on Iraq (medium and today’s must read):

            http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-09-02/memo-washington-iraq-not-nation-and-you-can%E2%80%99t-build-one-there-bombs

                Quote of the day (short):

            http://cafehayek.com/2014/09/quotation-of-the-day-1100.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+CafeHayek+%28Cafe+Hayek%29