In The Wall Street Journal, Phred Dvorak discusses the possibilities and drawbacks of using ammonia as a fuel source. He writes: Ammonia is made by producing hydrogen, then adding nitrogen. It is made in massive volumes globally—the bulk as a building block for fertilizer and the rest for uses ranging from refrigerants for skating rinks to the smelly household cleaning liquids most people are familiar with. While plants benefit from the nitrogen portion of ammonia, the clean-fuel industry is interested in its hydrogen content. Hydrogen, one of the world’s most common elements, can burn … [Read more...]
Weathering the Luxury Home Recession
Pam Danziger of The Robin Report tells her readers that leading luxury home furnishings and furniture retailers are already feeling the pinch. She writes: The U.S. luxury market is rapidly falling into a recession (if it isn’t already there), according to Chandler Mount, founder of the Affluent Consumer Research Company. His firm’s latest survey of affluent luxury consumers (average income, about $400k) finds their financial confidence has dropped from an index of 64.2 points in June, the highest it’s been all year, to 55.6 points in October, its lowest. And the index measuring future luxury … [Read more...]
Can the Supreme Court Stop Wealth Taxes Before They Start?
You probably haven't heard of Moore v. United States, a little-known case working its way through the courts that could have major implications for America's savers and business owners. The case revolves around the government's power to tax unrealized gains. These are gains on assets that an owner hasn't locked in yet, and which could disappear with any swing in the market. Tobias Burns and Zach Schonfeld report in The Hill, writing [Your Survival Guy's emphasis in bold]: The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in early December on a case that has the potential to broadly reshape the U.S. … [Read more...]
Home Sales Slump as Prices Hit New Highs
Nicole Freidman of The Wall Street Journal tells her readers that home prices hit a new record in September due to a shortage of homes for sale, even as high interest rates made home purchases less affordable. She writes: The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller National Home Price Index, which measures home prices across the nation, rose 3.9% from a year earlier in September, compared with a 2.5% annual increase the prior month. The September level was the highest since the index began in 1987. On a month-over-month basis, the index rose a seasonally adjusted 0.7% in September. Home … [Read more...]
A Case of the Bah Humbugs for Toy Sales
Harriet Torry and Ben Glickman report that sales of toys and games have slumped as Americans show signs of pulling back. They write: Shoppers couldn’t get enough toys and games during the pandemic. Now, they are finding other ways to spend their time, and that is spelling trouble for toy makers and sellers. Sales of toys have slumped so far this year, down 8% through September compared with the same period last year, according to market-research firm Circana, and appeared poised to be lackluster this holiday season. Imports of toys and games have fallen sharply this year and sales at toy … [Read more...]
Are Investors Ready to Pounce?
Investors waiting to pounce? Not buying it. They finally have rates they can sink their teeth into. They’re in no rush to take on more risk. At least, that’s not what they’re telling me. In The Wall Street Journal, Jack Pritcher suggests investors are looking for more risk. He writes: Stocks and bonds have surged in November. With record investor balances in money-market funds, some analysts are optimistic that they have more room to run. Everything from technology stocks to junk-rated company debt has been rising after an encouraging inflation report reinforced bets that the Federal … [Read more...]
Payment for Gifts Is Upending Retailers
Suzanne Kapnar and Imani Moise of The Wall Street Journal report that consumers are shifting away from store credit cards as brand loyalty wanes and interest rates rise. They write: Retailers aren’t just having trouble getting shoppers to buy sweaters and other holiday items this season. Store credit cards are also a tougher sell. The cards, which typically can only be used at a particular chain, have been a lucrative source of revenue for retailers as merchandise sales have slowed. But the stream is drying up as Americans carry fewer cards and increasingly finance purchases with buy … [Read more...]
Stockpiles Running Low as Peak Shopping Demand Starts
Liz Young of The Wall Street Journal reports that a sharp pullback in stockpiles comes as merchants are trying to focus on getting a better handle on volatile consumer demand. She writes: Retailers are heading into their most crucial sales period of the year with a very different inventory strategy than they undertook in 2022. Warehouses are no longer stuffed with merchandise and store shelves aren’t spilling over with discounted goods in hopes of luring wary consumers into last-minute sales. Instead, merchants from big-box retailers like Walmart and Target to more specialized sellers … [Read more...]
A New Top Dog in the Delivery Business
Dana Mattioli and Esther Fung of The Wall Street Journal tell their readers that Amazon is eclipsing both UPS and FedEx in the delivery business, and the gap is growing. They write: The Seattle e-commerce giant delivered more packages to U.S. homes in 2022 than UPS, after eclipsing FedEx in 2020, and it is on track to widen the gap this year, according to internal Amazon data and people familiar with the matter. The U.S. Postal Service is still the biggest parcel service by volume; it handles hundreds of millions of packages for all three companies. A decade ago Amazon was a major … [Read more...]
Happy Black Friday
You know how Your Survival Guy feels about money: save a third, spend a third, pay taxes with a third. Well, today, let’s focus again on the spending. One of the best ways to keep you motivated and in the game is to take some trips every now and then. Your Survival Guy and Gal just got back from Anguilla, celebrating our 25th anniversary. It wasn’t cheap, but it had also been 25 years since we were last in the Caribbean. That’s a long time. You know there’s plenty of bucket trips you want to take. Now is the perfect time to start making it happen. Action Line: Enjoy Originally … [Read more...]