In Divided Market, the Bigger the Companies, the Better They Fare – NYTimes.com

Big seems to be better for the biggest companies, at least for the moment, but not for the rest:

“Big companies have found a way not just to survive but to prosper despite the broader economy and all the uncertainty,” said Howard Silverblatt, a senior index analyst at Standard & Poor’s. “There’s a disconnect between them and the rest of the world.” Investors are also looking farther ahead, discounting what economists are calling a spring swoon, and focusing on prospects for healthier growth late this year and into 2014.

After finally achieving what experts estimate was a healthy 3 percent annual growth rate in the first quarter of 2013, the American economy is expected to slow to half that pace in the next two quarters as higher payroll taxes and automatic government spending cuts begin to bite.

And:

“It’s a bifurcated economy,” said William C. Dunkelberg, chief economist at the National Federation of Independent Business, which represents small-business owners. “Corporate profits are at a record, but all the data we have say small business is dead in the water.” Last week, the group reported that its Small Business Optimism index declined in Marchafter rising for the previous three months.

Sounds to me like the Big Boys are vampires sucking the life out of the economy.

via In Divided Market, the Bigger the Companies, the Better They Fare – NYTimes.com.