Housing: permits and average starts decline, while construction remains at peak The data on housing construction this month was mixed. While starts rose, their 3 month average, at 1.511 million annualized, was the lowest since September through November 2020. Meanwhile total and single family permits both declined, both to the lowest since June 2020: This […]
August CPI: sharp gains in housing and new cars offset declines in used cars and gas – by New Deal democrat Following up on yesterday’s post, let’s cut to the chase: Total CPI +0.1% Energy -5.0% Used vehicles -0.1% New vehicles +0.8% Owners’ equivalent rent +0.7% (biggest monthly gain since 1990) YoY inflation declined to […]
Previewing CPI No economic news today. Tomorrow the August CPI will be reported. Recall that in July there was no inflation whatsoever. In August last year prices increased 0.3%, so any number lower than that will lower YoY CPI from its July level of 8.5% (June’s 9.0% YoY inflation having been the peak). The big […]
With the Breaking Into series we will explore US agriculture, the least complex, the most complex, the failures, frustrations, sustainability, costs, and future of each topic that makes up modern agricutlure. On this episode we are going to explore one of the more simple ways to get into professional agriculture, Market Gardens. Market Gardens by another name […]
Combat Nativism and Make America the Most Welcoming Country in the World Some findings from the Roosevelt Institute: “New report: Combat Nativism and Make America the Most Welcoming Country in the World” – Roosevelt Institute In 2020, natural disasters forced more than 30 million people to migrate across the globe. by 2050, climate change impacts […]
by New Deal democrat Weekly Indicators for September 5 – 9 at Seeking Alpha My Weekly Indicators post is up at Seeking Alpha. While interest rates continue to rise, gas prices have continued to fall, giving consumers a second wind. As usual, clicking over and reading will bring you up to the virtual moment, and reward […]
“Will The Iran Nuclear Deal Ever Get Reestablished?,” Econospeak It (Iran Nuclear Deal) keeps looking like it might, but then no obstacles have appeared yet. President Biden promised to undo what I have long argued was the worst foreign policy mistake made by Donald Trump. He should have just done it right after he took […]
An update on oil and gas prices – by New Deal democrat After stabilizing in the $87-$94 range for a little over a month, oil prices have declined further in the past several days. As of this morning they were in the $82/barrel range. The YTD graph via CNBC below shows that they have now […]
The spending transition from goods to services – by New Deal democrat Today is the last day for a very light economic week of news. One item worth addressing is the relative state of consumer purchases of goods vs. services in this pandemic recovery, because it appears to be unique. Let’s start with the ISM […]
Another week of good news on jobless claims – by New Deal democrat Initial jobless claims had been in an almost relentless uptrend from the end of March through early August. Since then, they have completely reversed. This week initial claims declined another -6,000 to 222,000, and the 4 week average declined -7,500 to 233,000. […]