January 16, 2025 In his final address to the nation last night, President Joe Biden issued a warning that “an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power, and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms, and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead.” It is not […]
From storms in the Southeast to fires in California; there has to be a growing financial stress on the companies insuring the people and businesses there. A report from The American Prospect. Increasing damage from fires, hurricanes, and floods will destabilize a lightly regulated industry—and spill over into broader financial markets. The Next Financial Crisis: […]
– by New Deal democrat Since I posted earlier about why I follow jobless claims so closely, let me briefly restate why I pay a lot of attention to real retail sales. Retail sales have been tracked for over 75 years. When they are lower YoY, that has historically been a good (not perfect) indicator […]
A Refresher on Why I pay so much attention to them . . . – by New Deal democrat This might be a good time to reiterate why I post each week on jobless claims, and what my system is. Initial jobless claims in particular are a recognized leading indicator. In fact, they are one […]
The Russians are using an amazing approach to drone warfare in Ukraine — fiber optic controlled drones. They are avoiding radio detection and jamming by using drones which play out and communicate through an optical fiber. “Russian forces are using explosive-packed drones connected to their operators by fiber-optic cables to deliver unjammable precision strikes on […]
Why So Much Deficit Spending by the nation? This is here for another reason. The big issue I saw in the last election was the deficit spending by government. Much of it was due to the 2017 Tax Breaks put in place by then President Donald Trump 10 years earlier. This was passed by Republicans […]
The title is a warning to me. The claim that “this time it’s different” is supposed to be typical of bubbles, but I write it meaning it. I think that this huge increase in the relative price of housing is different. In the past such an increase has been a reliable sign of a bubble. […]
– by New Deal democrat December consumer prices indicate that we are leaving the immediate post-covid era and seeing a rebalancing of sectors, as sectors that declined sharply in the past several years rebound. As in November, the only two categories of “hot” numbers showing price increases of 4.0% a year or more are two […]
Producer prices join the parade of yellow flags – by New Deal democrat I generally don’t pay too much attention to producer prices, but there are a couple of exceptions. One exception is that sometimes producer prices lead consumer prices by a number of months. That hasn’t been the case recently. But the other exception […]
There is evidence that a higher minimum wage causes a lower suicide rate. I would not have guessed this: “Suicide is often connected to financial stress, so it makes sense that increasing income might reduce the risk of suicide. A recent study funded by NIMHD found that every $1 increase in the minimum wage of […]