Relevant and even prescient commentary on news, politics and the economy.

When “tariffs work,” they work at a cost

One story that drew attention last week was the sharp divergence between US aluminum prices and prices elsewhere in the world. The US premium passed $1 per pound for the first time ever, reflecting the higher costs US aluminum users now face relative to their foreign counterparts.   Some commentators characterized the development as a sign that tariffs are working, pointing to announcements that the US may see its first new aluminum smelting plant since 1980.  In fact, what is playing […]

Automotive Manufacturing in Mexico

Since I worked in Mexico for about 26 weeks, I learned quite a bit about what was going on in automotive manufacturing. Some things to understand. The pay is less in Mexico. However, there are benefits for Labor which are covered by government programs.1 “Employee Benefits in Mexico: All You Need To Know.” It is […]

ISM manufacturing for January breaks out to the expansionary upside, with a sidecar of stagflation

 – by New Deal democrat Although it ended almost three months ago, there are still many economic series that have not caught up, including construction spending, which would normally have been reported this morning for December. As of now, it is only updated through October, and November and December are not expected to be reported for […]

Healthcare Cost Variance Across the Population

Just a portion of a much larger KFF article on the affordability of healthcare. This portion of the report looks at severity of needed healthcare and what percentages of the population can afford it. The report splits its findings based upon age, severity, access to insurance, affordability, etc. Age is a large factor with those […]

Buh-bye Bitcoin?

Apart from their utility in criminal finances, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies (other than stablecoin) are manifestations of The Greater Fool Theory of Investing. So how is the Bitcoin investment performing for ya? “The world’s largest cryptocurrency slipped below $76,000 in thin weekend trading, dropping about 40% from its 2025 peak and revisiting levels last seen […]

Some Potentially Interesting Sunday Articles

In the past I would list articles for Sunday reads which I thought might be interesting for Angry Bear readers. I believe these might be such. Just supplying a sentence or two for each article to pique your interest. Angry Bear gets no monetary reward for doing this. We just try to interest our readers. […]

New Deal democrats Weekly Indicators for January 26-30

My “Weekly Indicators” post is up at Seeking Alpha – by New Deal democrat The trends in the high frequency data that became apparent after last summer have continued, and if anything are intensifying. In particular, a real surge in commodity prices and somewhat in a mirror image, the US$ decline which is beginning to […]

A lot of BS Before You Get to the Actual Lie

John Amato at Crooks and Liars The “18 Trillion Dollar Lie Should Have Trump Kicked Out of Office” During Pres. Biden’s administration, any mispronunciation or slip up was cause for a meltdown in the right-wing media that transitioned and bubbled up into the mainstream media on almost a weekly basis. However, President Biden never exaggerated, […]

“ICE in My Latte, Not in Our Communities”

What is happening down in Arizona? These businesses will be giving up Friday’s revenue by shutting down a day in protest of the government’s actions and the killing of Alex Pretti and Renee Good by Federal authorities. ~~~~~~~ “Local businesses closing Friday (January 31, 2026) to protest ICE raids,” The Copper Courier Fair Trade Cafe in […]