We are happy to release the beta version of a new section: tax revenues by state and tax type since 1994. Take a look and let us know if you find any issues.
Monthly Archives: November 2010
Official US Holidays 2011
Federal law (5 U.S.C. 6103) establishes the following public holidays for Federal employees. Please note that most Federal employees work on a Monday through Friday schedule. For these employees, when a holiday falls on a non-workday — Saturday or Sunday — the holiday usually is observed on Monday (if the holiday falls on Sunday) or Friday (if the holiday falls on Saturday).
| Friday, December 31, 2010* | New Year’s Day |
| Monday, January 17 | Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. |
| Monday, February 21** | Washington’s Birthday |
| Monday, May 30 | Memorial Day |
| Monday, July 4 | Independence Day |
| Monday, September 5 | Labor Day |
| Monday, October 10 | Columbus Day |
| Friday, November 11 | Veterans Day |
| Thursday, November 24 | Thanksgiving Day |
| Monday, December 26*** | Christmas Day |
* January 1, 2011 (the legal public holiday for New Year’s Day), falls on a Saturday. For most Federal employees, Friday, December 31, 2010, will be treated as a holiday for pay and leave purposes. (See 5 U.S.C. 6103(b).)
** This holiday is designated as "Washington’s Birthday" in section 6103(a) of title 5 of the United States Code, which is the law that specifies holidays for Federal employees. Though other institutions such as state and local governments and private businesses may use other names, it is our policy to always refer to holidays by the names designated in the law.
*** December 25, 2011 (the legal public holiday for Christmas Day), falls on a Sunday. For most Federal employees, Monday, December 26, will be treated as a holiday for pay and leave purposes. (See section 3(a) of Executive order 11582, February 11, 1971.)
Source: United States Office of Personnel Management
Updated Production of Minerals by Country
Mineral production charts and other mineral statistics refreshed with the latest USGS numbers.
A New Bubble in Commodity Prices
A quick glance at the commodity price index in our historical commodity prices section strongly suggests that a new bubble is forming. The graph below shows the price index for the past 15 years. The value for October 2010 is about the same as the value for December 2007. Note though that the index reached a similar high in April 2010, so it is also possible that commodity prices may fluctuate up and down for a while.
A clearer picture emerges if we look at the price of cotton over the past 25 years.
Cotton price is at an all-time high, at a level higher than the one it reached in May 1995.