The Fed is expected to raise rates yet again in December, as a hedge against inflation, but some believe a pause is in order. “With the federal-funds rate at 2%…
When There Are More Jobs than Job Seekers
Yesterday, we looked at the record-breaking (Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey) JOLTS data, which provided good news for American workers. But having more job openings than people looking for…
How Tariffs Will Damage the Economy
In our last post, we explained why tariffs will likely have a negative impact on the steel industry, resulting in fewer exports. But there are many other reasons for opposing…
Affordable Housing Is An Oxymoron
If you own your home, congratulations. Your children may not be so fortunate. With the unemployment rate below 4%, wages have been increasing, but at a slower rate than expected…
Note to Fed: The Phillips Curve Has Left the Building
The Phillips curve, which charts an inverse relationship between unemployment and inflation, was proven unreliable during the 1973-1975 recession, when we had stagflation — the combination of high unemployment and…
The Longest Period of Job Growth Ever. So What?
The second longest recovery … the second longest bull market … the longest period of job growth on record. Such records are pretty meaningless. The recovery has been pretty anemic,…
Inflation Almost There, But Interest Rates Are Not
The Federal Reserve Board acknowledged at its meeting last week that the rate of inflation is “almost” at its 2% target level. The last impediment to raising interest rates to…
Deflation Isn’t Always Bad
As we noted yesterday, the Federal Reserve Board’s attempt to avoid deflation has resulted in lowering income for those in the bottom 25% of the income scale. But we likely…
Fed’s Inflation Focus Hurting Average Americans
While we’ve written in the past about the perils of deflation, we’ve also noted that the Federal Reserve Board’s target of 2% inflation is random and dangerous, as the Fed…
There’s Always Something to Worry About
For investors and economists, there is always something to worry about. When stock prices are high, we worry that they’re going to fall. When they’re low, we worry that they…