Category Archives: Weekly Financial News

What Do Slowing Retail Sales Mean?

Posted on September 17, 2018 by Popular Economics Weekly

Popular Economics Weekly Graph: Econoday Retail sales are slowing this fall, yet consumers’ confidence is at an all-time high. Why are consumers buying less and saving more this season? It could be higher interest rates, as the Fed has raised … Continue reading →

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Does Lower Inflation Mean a Goldilocks Economy?

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Popular Economics Weekly

Popular Economics Weekly Graph: Calculated Risk Consumers are being helped by consumer prices that are barely rising. The Consumer Price Index is up just 2.7 percent, and core CPI without food and energy prices up 2.2 percent in 12 months. … Continue reading →

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August Jobs Report No Big Deal

Posted on September 7, 2018 by Popular Economics Weekly

Popular Economics Weekly Graph: MarketWatch Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 201,000 in August, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 3.9 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Job gains occurred in professional and business services, health … Continue reading →

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Important Unemployment Report Tomorrow?

Posted on September 6, 2018 by Popular Economics Weekly

Financial FAQs Graph: Econoday Tomorrow’s U.S. unemployment report is predicted to drop the unemployment rate to 3.8 percent, according to MarketWatch. But that may be misleading, as almost one million job openings remain unfilled, which could boost the payroll jobs … Continue reading →

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What Really Is Fair Trade?

Posted on August 30, 2018 by Popular Economics Weekly

Popular Economics Weekly China is our trading partner with the largest deficit; $506 billion in exports to the US vs. $130 billion in imports from US for a -$376 billion trade deficit in 2017. Canada is the 2nd largest partner … Continue reading →

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Labor Productivity is the Golden Fleece

Posted on August 26, 2018 by Popular Economics Weekly

Financial FAQs Graph: Econoday Rising labor productivity is the golden fleece of economic growth, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, because major economists maintain it is really the only way workers can raise their standard of … Continue reading →

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Where Goes the Housing Market?

Posted on August 20, 2018 by Popular Economics Weekly

The Mortgage Corner Graph: Econoday We definitely have a housing shortage. Housing construction is unable to keep up with the demand for single-family homes, in particular. Year-on-year, starts are down 1.4 percent with completions, at a 1.188 million rate, down … Continue reading →

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Interest Rates Dangerously Low?

Posted on August 17, 2018 by Popular Economics Weekly

Popular Economics Weekly Graph: FRED Why should historically low interest rates be a problem, you say?  Doesn’t that help consumer demand by enabling consumers to buy more by borrowing more cheaply, and economic growth by encouraging companies to create more … Continue reading →

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Why aren’t Wages Growing Faster?

Posted on August 8, 2018 by Popular Economics Weekly

Popular Economics Weekly Graph: FRED Interest rates are far too low for this late in the recovery from the Great Recession. We know this because the Treasury Yield Curve has been falling that measures the difference between the 10-year and … Continue reading →

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Slower July Jobs Growth

Posted on August 3, 2018 by Popular Economics Weekly

Popular Economics Weekly Graph: MarketWatch Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 157,000 in July, and the unemployment rate edged down to 3.9 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment increased in professional and business services, in manufacturing, … Continue reading →

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