Paul Berger of The Wall Street Journal tells his readers that industry analysts say many trucking companies are barely clinging on as freight rates are in retreat, thanks in part to earnings they tucked away during the pandemic. He writes: A push by retailers and manufacturers to cut shipping costs is sending trucking industry hopes of an earnings rebound into a skid. Freight rates have been retreating for much of the year in the trucking sector’s spot market. Analysts and industry executives say longer-term contract prices are also declining as shipping customers focus on keeping … [Read more...]
Inflation Hotter than Expected in March
Sam Goldfarb and Nick Timiraos of The Wall Street Journal report that consumer prices rose 3.5% in March, and underlying price pressures remained strong. They write: Stubborn inflation pressures persisted in March, derailing the case for the Federal Reserve to begin reducing interest rates in June and raising questions over whether it can deliver cuts this year without signs of an economic slowdown. The consumer-price index, a measure of goods and services prices across the economy, rose 3.5% in March from a year earlier, the Labor Department said Wednesday. That was a touch higher than … [Read more...]
“I Got Five Candy Bars for a Nickel”
Are you in control of Your Retirement Life? In my conversations with you, you tell me you are in control and then some. You tell me you’re looking forward to getting away to places far and wide, from Disney to New Zealand and on cruises in between. Nice. You know Your Survival Guy’s a big proponent of spending money. Yes, live within your means, but please, you gotta live. If you’re a member of my Survive and Thrive Club, you know Your Survival Guy is looking forward to an Atlantic crossing on the Queen Mary 2. It ain’t free, and inflation is alive and well, but as my mom reminds me, “I … [Read more...]
It’s Not “Greedy Business” That Causes Inflation
Joe Biden spent time during his State of the Union address to discuss shrinkflation in grocery stores, pinning the blame for the annoying tactic on greedy corporations eager to trick consumers. At the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity, former congressman and presidential candidate, Dr. Ron Paul explains that it's the Fed's money printing that causes inflation, not greedy corporations. Paul writes: President Biden may have recently made history as the first president to discuss snack chips in the State of the Union message. He used snack chips to illustrate the phenomenon of … [Read more...]
Jobs Market Lost Pace in February
Ed Frank of The Wall Street Journal tells his readers that the employment trends index ticked down to 112.29, from January’s downwardly revised 113.18. He writes: The U.S. labor market weakened a little in February, reflecting that jobs were becoming harder to come by, according to a jobs trends index. The Conference Board’s employment trends index ticked down to 112.29 in February from a downwardly revised 113.18 in January, the private-research group said Monday, flipping two months of improvement. “While the index is still elevated compared to its prepandemic level and the … [Read more...]
They’ll Tell You Inflation is “Under Control”
When you hear that inflation is under control, all you need to do is sink your teeth into Your Survival Guy’s food inflation chart to get the real story. You and I know that government knows no limits when it comes to spending your money. It will create dollars out of thin air because it can, and expect you to absorb the devaluation of your own hard earned currency. You and I don’t have the luxury of a printing press in the basement, and we need to live our lives with fiscal responsibility. There’s a word worth repeating. Responsibility. It is up to you to take control of your … [Read more...]
Downgrades Signal Trouble in the Job Market
At the Financial Times, Claire Jones and Kate Duguid report on downgrades in job creation numbers that put into question the strength of recent reports. They write: The US economy added 275,000 jobs last month, beating forecasts, but big downgrades to previous figures complicated the outlook for the US economy. The non-farm payroll figures for February surpassed economists’ predictions of 200,000 new jobs and indicated that the US services sector remains strong. However, February’s 275,000 jobs number was eclipsed by the revised totals for January and December, when 167,000 fewer posts … [Read more...]
China Makes Record Mortgage Rate Cuts
Jamie Chisholm of MarketWatch is reporting that China is cutting mortgage rates by a record amount to help the struggling property sector. Chisholm writes: China made its biggest ever cut to mortgage rates on Tuesday, as the authorities try to support the struggling property sector, though the response from stock markets was muted. The People’s Bank of China said that the country’s lenders would reduce their five-year loan prime rate (LPR) by 25 basis points to 3.95%, a bigger cut than expected and the first since June last year. The one-year LPR was maintained at 3.45%. [...] “To … [Read more...]
Japan Enters Technical Recession
Japan's GDP shrank unexpectedly in the fourth quarter of 2023, putting the country into a technical recession. A technical recession occurs when a nation's GDP drops for two consecutive quarters. That shouldn't be confused with an official recession, which is usually determined by a group of economists such as the NBER in the United States. In The Wall Street Journal, Megumi Fujikawa and Fabiana Negrin Ochoa report on the Japanese economy, writing: Japan dropped a rank to become the world’s fourth-largest economy after a weak end to 2023, as growth in tourism spending failed to offset … [Read more...]
Deflation Tightens Its Grip on China
Jason Douglas of The Wall Street Journal reports consumer prices in China fell at the sharpest pace in more than 14 years. Douglas writes: Deflation is becoming more entrenched in China, with consumer prices falling in January at their steepest pace in more than 14 years—a stark symptom of deepening economic malaise that spells trouble for the global economy. The latest data suggest China faces a growing risk of slipping into a longer-term spell of falling prices that becomes harder to reverse the longer it lasts. [...] That means, according to many economists, that this spell of subdued … [Read more...]
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