China passes Japan.

Can the Chinese keep this up, or will we see a bubble in China?

Bribery is a serious problem in China, but BusinessWeek reports that U.S. prosecutors, along with their Chinese counterparts, are stepping up enforcement.

U.S. prosecutors, empowered by the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (FCPA) to investigate allegations of bribery anywhere in the world, have been stepping up their activities in China, where a tradition of gift-giving in business often degenerates into serious graft. The FCPA bans U.S. companies from bribing foreign officials. It also applies to foreign companies like Siemens that list their securities on U.S. exchanges. Companies that violate the FCPA face millions in fines, and executives can go to prison. U.S. authorities have upped the number of bribery cases they pursued to a resolution around the world, from 11 in 2005 to 34 last year, according to Trace International, a nonprofit anti-bribery group based in Annapolis, Md. In a report released June 17, Trace pointed out that China, with 25 cases completed since enactment of the FCPA, fell behind only Iraq and Nigeria for the most international corruption prosecutions. Citing a World Bank estimate that more than $1 trillion in bribes are paid each year, U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. on May 31 called “combating corruption one of the highest priorities of the Department of Justice.”

Chinese prosecutors, meanwhile, are getting more aggressive under their own antibribery laws, says Patrick M. Norton, a partner with Steptoe & Johnson who focuses on international mediation.

Slowly but surely, the game is changing.

If you look at the number of unemployed people across the nation, it’s no wonder why there are so many auto loan refinance applications. Few states have seen the ugly underbelly of the uncertain economy like Oregon has. According to officials in the state, the unemployment rate is at 10.6 percent for July 2010. That’s more than one percentage point higher than the national average, which was at 9.5 percent. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like Oregon’s job market is going to turn around any time soon. If you want to count the number of Oregon residents working part-time jobs until they can find full-time positions or those who have given up job hunting altogether, the unemployment rate skyrockets to 20.6 percent. That’s more than four percentage points higher than the national average. According to reports, Oregon lost more than 3,000 jobs in July.

Some officials say there could be hope for unemployed workers in Oregon, though. In June, initial reports showed the state lost 3,600 payroll jobs. However, the state actually gained 1,800 jobs in June when seasonally adjusted. That means there was a net increase of 5,400 jobs throughout the state. According to David Cooke, an Oregon state labor economist, the numbers often get skewed because many companies pay their employees once a month rather than once a week. As a result, they often miss the reporting deadlines for payroll, which means those jobs don’t show up in the monthly survey.

Some experts are putting their faith in the exports industry to bring the state of Oregon back to a decent level of unemployment. Mark McMullen who runs an economic website from Oregon, said the rate of unemployment throughout the state could get as high as 11 percent before it starts making improvements. However, he also said recovery could take about two years after that to see better numbers.

Many financial experts have been worried about China for quite a while. Specifically, many have been concerned that a real estate bubble has emerged in China, as local governments have spent like mad as they pushed for more economic development for their region.

Concerns are also growing in the Chinese government, and Bloomberg reports that Chinese banks will now be subjected to even more rigorous stress tests.

China’s stress tests of banks will assess the risk that a possible slump in property prices may strain developers’ finances and cause homebuyers to default, a person with knowledge of the matter said.

The banking regulator told lenders to include worst-case scenarios of prices dropping 50 percent to 60 percent in cities where they have risen excessively, the person said, declining to be identified because the regulator’s requirement hasn’t been publicly announced. Previous stress tests carried out in the past year assumed home-price declines of as much as 30 percent.

That’s a staggering assumption, but when you read about what’s been going on in China, this shouldn’t be a surprise.

Short-seller Jim Chanos was sounding the alarm back in April.

CHARLIE ROSE

It’s going to be that bad for China?

JAMES CHANOS

I think it’s going to be that bad for the property market in China. Let’s be clear: What we’re talking about is a world-class—if not the world-class—property bubble.

What makes it a bubble?

What we define as a bubble is any kind of debt-fueled asset inflation where the cash flow generated by the asset itself—a rental property, office building, condo—does not cover the debt incurred to buy the asset. So you depend on a greater fool, if you will, to come in and buy at a higher price. We’re seeing behavior [we saw] in 2005 in Miami or ‘06 or ‘07 in Dubai.

You have said it’s a thousand times worse than Dubai.

Well, we said that [with tongue] firmly planted in cheek. But then again, according to a news report this week, there’s a developer that’s going to put in a new Times Square in suburban Beijing, replete with 32 Broadway theaters. You’re beginning to hear about these bizarre developments in China, indoor ski resorts similar to what we saw in Dubai.

There’s plenty more projects like that one. Let’s see if the government can create a soft landing here.

As the midterm elections draw near, President Obama’s focus remains on the downturn in the economy. However, more than a year after taking office in January of 2009, the economy has picked up less than many had hoped.

Since entering into office, Obama funneled millions of dollars into infrastructure and research through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Many opposed to the act said the it was a waste of money spent on special interests.

The dirty economic word in Washington remains “bailout.” To many, that word signified the Government failing the American people and giving away their hard earned tax dollars to companies that had not bothered to take care of themselves.

In late July of 2010, however, Obama proclaimed the auto industry bailout a success as the auto companies added 55,000 new jobs. There was even some talk that the tax payers had a small chance of seeing profit on their bailout investment.

However, come August, even the President had to admit that the housing market was still a “big drag” on the economy.

As the economy fails to pick up at the speed many Americans – especially out of work Americans – would like to see, many are turning to less traditional methods of making money, like using information in sportsbook reviews to try their luck at betting.

Former President Bill Clinton is famous for saying in an election, “It’s the economy, stupid.” During times of economic downfall, the economy tends to overshadow every other political issue as Americans fight to find jobs and keep themselves afloat. It’s not surprising, then, that the Obama administration continues to place the economy as a top priority, and with the current economic trends, it can be expected that President Obama and his administration will do so for months to come.

Since the economy woes began over one year ago, the employment rates have remained high and people have modified their purchases accordingly. In order for the economy to grow, people need to spend money but since things are uncertain, many people are not spending as much money. People are making adjustments to spending habits because of the economic instability.

This reluctance in spending is evident in the quarterly results for both Wal-Mart and Home Depot. Both companies recorded second quarter profits that were better than expected; however, it appears that these increases were not due to increased sales but lower prices. This is indicative that people are still being very cautious with their money.

People are also deciding that items that were once considered a necessity like microwaves or high speed internet may be less of a necessity in these cash-strapped times. This depends on the age group being questioned — older people feel that landline phones are important while younger people find them unnecessary. Consumers are determining which things can be discarded to save money while keeping up quality of life in this economy.

The revenue crush applies to states as well; many states have increased cigarette taxes. In New York State, the excise tax for cigarettes is the highest in the country but people who smoke are now travelling to other states to purchase cigarettes. While the customers are out of state, they are also making other purchases which hurt the convenience stores that typically sell cigarettes. These taxes may not apply to smokeless cigarettes at this time so this phenomenon is not happening with the sale of these items. Cost consciousness is causing significant alterations in behavior to save money in this instance.

While the economy is in flux, people are evaluating current purchases and selecting the best way to get their money’s worth. Once the economy improves, people will change their behavior.

There’s plenty of good news and bad news in this post. The good news is that Chinese officials are taking global warming seriously. The bad news is they might be fighting a losing battle as more Chinese consumers gobble up more and more energy.

After months of subtle pressure from the United States and other nations, China has signaled a willingness to adjust its currency policies.

China’s central bank announced on Saturday evening that it would allow greater flexibility in the value of the country’s currency, in the clearest sign yet that China will allow the renminbi to appreciate gradually against the dollar.

The People’s Bank of China said that the Chinese economy was strengthening after the global financial crisis and that it was “desirable to proceed further with reform” of the currency, known as the renminbi or yuan. The announcement comes a week before world leaders gather in Canada for the Group of 20 and Group of 8 summit meetings. A growing number of countries have been calling for China to let the renminbi appreciate, including not just the United States and European nations, but India, Brazil and Singapore in recent weeks.

This is big news. For years China has kept its currency artificially low vs the dollar. Now we might see an adjustment that let’s the market have more of an impact on the value of the currency, which can help with the China/US trade deficit.

The market for men’s grooming products is growing around the world. It’s been a big trend in the United States, and now we see evidence that it is growing in Taiwan as well.

The largest Online shopping site in Taiwan officially launched a men’s care section to satisfy growing demand in the men’s grooming market in Taiwan, an official from Yahoo!Shopping Mall said in a press conference Monday.

Men’s cosmetics sales in Taiwan grew 73 percent in the first quarter of 2010 compared to the same period of last year, according to sales performance statistics released by the online shopping company.

Sales of facial mask products showed fast growth, while other ranges, such as skin care and anti-acne creams, have also seen sales increase significantly in the first quarter of 2010, said Hsu Chen-fei, the company’s product director.

Men’s grooming products are selling well in China as well.

It will be interesting to see if the trends overseas also extend to the barbershop resurgence we’re seeing in the U.S.