– by New Deal democrat Let me start to update this week’s data with jobless claims. Initial claims fell another -2,000 to 213,000, the lowest since last May. The four-week moving average declined -1,250 to 217,000, also a six-month low. With the usual one-week lag, continuing claims rose 9,000 to 1.907 million: As with one […]

Consumer Price Index as taken from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. I have done “nothing” to alter this report. This was not a bad report. People are reacting to past issues with pricing and costs. Unless Trump is bluffing with his tariff’s threats, I would expect some major increases in prices and costs as countries […]

Made in America returns! Consumer-goods supplier Reckitt Benckiser is looking to respond faster to shifts in demand for over-the-counter pharmaceuticals by moving more of its manufacturing to the U.S., its largest market. Reckitt is investing $200 million into a factory in Wilson, N.C., that it acquired last month, part of an effort to rewire its supply chain […]

Brief commentary by Dr. Kahn who is in the thick of the discussion on Medicare Advantage Costs. Health Justice Monitor, Medicare Advantage Overpayment >$100 Billion, Jim (James G.) Kahn, MD, MPH Summary: Physicians for a National Health Program released a valuable summary of Medicare Advantage overpayments. The scope and scale is breathtaking: $100 billion annual payoff […]

November 25, 2024 By Heather Cox Richardson Letters from an American Today, President Joe Biden laid out very clearly the argument behind the economic policies his administration has put into place. He writes . . . “When I took office, the pandemic was raging and the economy was reeling. From Day One, I was determined […]

Monthly Full Report on Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, & Orders – Press Release, Census.Gov, November 4, 2025. Briefly – New orders for manufactured goods in September, down four of the last five months, decreased $2.8 billion or 0.5 percent to $584.2 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today. This followed a 0.8 percent August decrease. – […]

Manufacturing and Trade Inventories and Sales: September 2024, Census.Gov Friday, November 15, 2024 Sales The combined value of distributive trade sales and manufacturers’ shipments for September is adjusted for seasonal and trading day differences but not for price changes. It was estimated at $1,881.2 billion, up 0.3 percent (±0.2 percent) from August 2024 and was […]

I believe it is more than just GM sticking it to Labor. Increasing food prices. Each major automotive company laid off thousands. Some examples of sticking to the population. Eggs in particular saw an increase. Packaging was made smaller. Some examples: – Fritos Scoops: “Party Size” bags used to be 18 ounces, but are now 15.5 […]

Trumps 2017 Tax Break Extension chart and explanation . . . Sources: CBO (for most provisions), *JCT( R&E provision), **CRFB (Interest provision) New estimates from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) put a price tag of nearly $5 trillion on extending all the Trump-GOP tax law, which is mostly scheduled to expire at the end of 2025. That is more […]

Dean Baker: “Story telling attracts attention and sells newspapers.” I was reading at another site which was making the argument of Medicare Advantage plans being less costly than Traditional Medicare. It cites a truism that Medicare Advantage offers Part D and Supplemental in its package while Traditional Medicare does not. That is true. However, Medicare […]