Month: September 2016

The Friday File: In 2014, US music downloading totaled $2.6 billion, down from $2.8 billion in 2013, and accounted for 37% of music sales. Physical sales of CDs/LPs totaled $2.1 billion, from $2.3 billion in 2013, and represented 32% of…

Surprising many, OPEC announced it may cut production late this year by as much as 700,000 bbl/day, an amount representing about two-thirds of the current global oversupply. However, it’s also an amount easily made up by US fracking activity that…

In 2015, the male median full-time wage was $51,212 while it was $40,742 for women. Women now make 80% of what men do, up from 78% in 2007 and 60% in 1980. Economists estimate that half the gap stems from…

The Bank of Japan’s decision to target a 0% yield on 10-year Japanese government bonds should reassure the government that it can run bigger deficits without triggering a jump in debt service costs, thereby promoting increased spending. But with a…

With viewership expected to reach as high as 106 million, the price for a 30-second pre- or post- Clinton-Trump presidential debate ad (the 90-minute debate is ad free) on a major network is $225,000. While a far cry from the…

The Friday File: Through 12/31/15, 80% of the adult US population had taken at least one airplane trip in their life, up from 49% in 1971. Last year, 45% of the adult US population flew compared to 21% in 1971.…

Yesterday, the Fed came as close as you can to raising interest rates, without actually raising them. Assuming the general election doesn’t send markets into a tailspin, rates rise by 0.25% on 12/14/16. Interestingly, Fed members reduced their expectations about…

While Apple broke no Irish laws, it was masterful at tax avoidance. To wit, Apple paid a microscopic 0.005% of its profit in taxes, 1/2500th of the 12.5% official Irish rate, between 1991 and 2007. It may now retroactively owe…

Despite the trivial economic impact of a rise of one-quarter of one percentage point in the federal funds rate, pundits obsess about whether the Fed will raise the rate as if the fate of mankind hangs in the balance. It’s…

With labor productivity growth dismal, here is a to-do list: increase infrastructure spending, improve K-12 education, boost funding for basic research, make our corporate tax structure internationally competitive, encourage the educated and talented to immigrate, reduce regulation and increase corporate…