The Economy blog

In 2008, Mason City located in Iowa gained more than 75 million dollars as part of the city’s revenue, thanks to the tourism industry. This is according to Sue Armor who is working for the Mason City Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Ms. Armor is hoping that this year, their city will get more from the same industry. But having a reality check, she knows that it is no longer possible. She is just optimistic that the revenue from the tourism industry will remain within 70 million or more.

Over the 2008 summer, the Clear Lake attracted tons of tourists and they earned more than $300,000. According to the Clear Lake Chamber, the income from tourism industry particularly in their place depends on the events that were offered to them.

There is a wide array of foundations that are established in Utah starting from youth activities up to various medical conditions to support less fortunate patients. These charitable institutions are now feeling the effects of the global economic crisis.

As of today, there are more than $130 million worth of funds given to these foundations every year. These funds are used to touch the lives of the beneficiaries in the state of Utah. But experts said that it can be less than that by 2010. As a matter of fact, it can be cut in half by next year.

The foundations in Utah (there are actually more than 400 foundations based in the state) have collected as much as $2 billion.

Recent reports coming from the NESDB or National Economic and Social Development Board in Thailand reveal that the GDO of the country fell down by as much as 7.1 percent during the Q1 of 2009. The CSI or consumer spending index decreased for the first time. The last year that Thailand experienced such dilemma is way back 1997 when almost all of the countries in Asia had a financial turmoil.

During the Q4 of 2008, Thailand is already having a decrease in GDP as it declines more than 4 percent than the preceding quarter. They were only expecting a drop of 2 to 3 percent for the whole year of 2009. But what worries the government even more is that the decrease in the CSI which is 2.6 percent in the Q1 alone.

Will there be a hope for Thailand?

The economic data of the country of China is clearly showing that there is a decline in the consumption of energy. The authorities stand by the fact that the country is having an economy change rather than economy contraction.

For several years now, the electric consumption in China is being used as the point of reference when it comes to the industrial activities in the country. However, if analysts would still use this as the benchmark, there is a possibility that they can be misguided. The economy of China is currently shifting into rendering services instead of manufacturing which requires intensive use of energy. This is according to the comments made by the National Bureau of Statistics.