After steady increases since the bottom dropped out of the U.S. economy in 2008, exports have been on the upswing.

FORBES: For American Exporters, Mexico Is The China Next Door

Those deals were before the bottom dropped out of oil prices.

FORBES: Total Kicks Up A Sands Storm

"Stuyvesant was not necessarily a reflection of the bad real estate market, but rather over-ambitious assumptions, lack of risk controls and poor contingency planning, " explains Burt White, managing director of research and chief investment officer of LPL Financial, further asserting that the bottom dropped out of the market months ago.

FORBES: Magazine Article

So far in the third quarter, the bottom has dropped out of housing again.

FORBES: August Home Sales Were Actually Terrible

So, the bottom has dropped out of cooperation on this issue.

WHITEHOUSE: A Conversation on Rebuilding the Economy at the US Hispanic Chamber of Commerce��s Annual Convention | The White House

And we learned that February may not have been any better, since the Conference Board reported the bottom has dropped out of consumer confidence, its Consumer Confidence Index plunging from 56.5 in January to 46.0 in February. (The norm for the index is 100, based on its level in 1985).

FORBES: Housing data is more important than jobs data!