Category Archives: Consumers

Financial FAQs The current headlines would have us believe the bipartisan $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan and $1.2 trillion American Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act approved overwhelmingly by both Democrats and Republicans in 2021 will cause prolonged inflation and perhaps lead … Continue reading →

Popular Economics Weekly MarketWatch.com “U.S. stocks fell Friday after better-than-expected May payrolls data reinforced expectations for a series of interest rate rises by the Federal Reserve in coming months,” was MarketWatch’s headline re May’s unemployment report. The employment report showed … Continue reading →

The Mortgage Corner Calculated Risk The financial markets will be watching tomorrow’s unemployment report closely to see if job growth remains strong, or weakens in the face of the many uncertainties plaguing markets, such as soaring inflation and rising interest … Continue reading →

Financial FAQs FREDpersonalconsumption The Federal Reserve’s Personal Consumption Expenditures Index (PCE), its preferred inflation indicator, rose just 0.2 percent in April to mark the smallest increase in a year and a half, aided by a decline in gas prices. The … Continue reading →

Popular Economics Weekly The panic selling in financial markets of late is in part because first quarter 2022 GDP growth contracted after last year’s huge 5.6 percent growth surge, triggering worries of an imminent recession. The U.S. economy shrank by … Continue reading →

Financial FAQs FREDretailsales The St Louis Federal Reserve graph of April retail sales tells us more than a thousand words that there is no imminent recession. Maybe not even next year either, because consumers continue to shop, with auto sales … Continue reading →

Popular Economics Weekly FREDcpiindex The St Louis Federal Reserve graph tells us what is going on with April’s plunge in the Consumer Price Index. It’s due to a moderation of soaring gas prices. But food, shelter, and supply shortages haven’t … Continue reading →

Popular Economics Weekly NBER.org We are at a classic top of the business cycle when the demand for products is sky high and all the factors that restrict supply are causing red hot inflation numbers. The Federal Reserve then must … Continue reading →