Phil Gramm and Michael Solon explain in The Wall Street Journal's Opinion section, that the Trump tax cuts are on their way to paying for themselves with increased economic activity. They writes: For a midterm report card on the economy under President Trump, take a look at two recent government reports. The Commerce Department reported Thursday that real gross domestic product grew by 3.1% from the fourth quarter of 2017 to the fourth quarter of 2018—the largest rise in 13 years. And last month the Congressional Budget Office reported that even if the current surge in economic growth isn’t … [Read more...]
Archives for March 2019
Inflation is Destroying Venezuela’s Economy: Shield Your Portfolio Against It
Socialist president Nicolas Maduro has run out of other people's money, and so his government is using inflation of its currency to pay its bills. The country's inflation has gotten out of hand, and hyperinflation has ensued. Now, the dropping value of the country's bolivars has decimated its manufacturing industry. The Wall Street Journal reports: Manufacturing’s fall reflects broader economic devastation. Venezuela’s economy has halved during President Nicolás Maduro’s six years in office, and is expected to decline another 30% this year as new U.S. sanctions on oil hit. The country’s GDP, … [Read more...]
Dear Amazon: National Right to Work President’s Open Letter
When politicians play games to lure companies to their state, it is oftentimes with tax breaks using money they don’t have, as was the case with New York’s tax breaks to Amazon. Amazon was going to pay much more in taxes than they received in tax breaks—by a lot—it was basically New York Prime. The topic came up at a recent lunch with clients. I told them I was torn. I have a real problem when politicians use other people’s money to do their bidding. But I’m certainly not sad to see the backlash Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez will face in 2020. My beef with politicians is, they … [Read more...]
Is Fed Policy Sparking Socialism?
The Financial Times' David McWilliams makes a convincing case that what has empowered "millennial socialism" is the policies of the Federal Reserve. He writes: Is Ben Bernanke the father of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez? Not in the literal sense, obviously, but in the philosophical and political sense. As we mark the 10th anniversary of the bull market, it is worth considering whether the efforts of the US Federal Reserve, under Mr Bernanke’s leadership, to avoid 1930s-style debt deflation ended up spawning a new generation of socialists, such as the freshman Congresswoman Ms Ocasio-Cortez, in … [Read more...]
New 5G Technologies Demand New Ad Strategies
The advent of 5G technology, which claims to be as fast as some high speed wired internet services, has changed the way telecoms must advertise their services. Consumers haven't seen anything like it, and the telcos must prepare them for the innovation. Alexandra Bruell explains at The Wall Street Journal: One of the biggest advances in telecom technology in a decade is forcing the industry’s largest players to rethink their advertising approach. As carriers begin to roll out 5G—fifth-generation technology expected to amplify wireless speeds and power—some are focusing on emotive … [Read more...]
Amazon, Groceries and What it Means for Wal-Mart
Delivering non-perishable goods is one thing. Making sure you’re happy with the apples and oranges they picked for you and delivered to your door is another thing all together. Americans are picky about their fruits and vegetables. And it’s why the grocery deliver business hasn’t been able to scale. It’s a major endeavor. Amazon announced last week it is opening a handful of grocery stores separate from its Whole Foods operation. The key to groceries is execution. It’s not good business to bet against Bezos, but when you look at Wal-Mart’s footprint, it’s hard not to believe there will be … [Read more...]
Will Democrats Break Up Big Tech Companies?
Rhode Island Congressman David Cicilline (D) has suggested imposing on tech companies a form of the Glass-Steagall rules that have been applied to banks. The rules would seek to break up functions of the tech companies to avoid anti-trust issues. Kiran Stacey reports in the Financial Times: David Cicilline, the head of the House antitrust subcommittee, has suggested imposing a version of the Glass-Steagall rules — which forced banks to separate commercial and investment banking — on the technology industry. His comments add to growing calls from senior figures in the Democratic party to … [Read more...]
Big Brewers Look for New Answers in Flat Beer Market
Big brewers like AB InBev are looking to turn around a market for their products that has been extremely difficult to navigate of late. Saabira Chaudhuri reports on the brewer's efforts to boost growth, writing in The Wall Street Journal: In response to the slowdown, AB InBev has launched pricier, limited-edition or flavored variants of its flagship brands and worked to diversify. Earlier in February, it bought a maker of ready-to-drink canned cocktails and high-end spirits, adding to its growing portfolio of nonbeer offerings, including spiked seltzer and energy drinks. It has also pushed … [Read more...]
The 3 Disturbing Implications of the Fed’s Flip
The Fed was on a good path last year. After nearly a decade of punishing savers with zero and ultra-low interest rates, Chairman Jerome Powell oversaw a move toward more normal monetary policy. From his start in January of last year through December, the Fed hiked interest rates a total of four times and allowed its asset portfolio to fall by about $325 billion. Over Bernanke’s eight years at the helm of the Fed, interest rates were increased a grand total of three times. Yellen wasn’t much better. It took here four years to get in five hikes. Powell did four in one year. Powell’s more … [Read more...]
Tucker Explains: Poverty Doesn’t Cause Instability. Envy Does.
You don’t need to be rich to live the good life. The good life is more a way of life. Not to sound too trippy but “it’s a feeling, man.” Sort of like the peace and love shared by Deadheads swaying to Jerry, or classic rock fans to Hendrix at Woodstock. You can’t always explain why you feel a certain way. You just do. That’s how it was for me growing up. I just felt good about my family. I liked my friends and life was good. But we weren’t rich. And it didn’t matter. We didn’t talk about our place in society. We were middle class and our place was a small single level cape in … [Read more...]
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