Econ70

After two straight record-breaking years of 17.5 million units in 2015 and 17.6 million units in 2016, car sales are retrenching. Prior to July, car sales had declined in four of the last five months, but improved to a seasonally…

In 2015, cash was used in 32% of all consumer transactions, followed closely by debit cards at 27%, credit cards at 21%, electronic payments at 11%, checks at 6% and other at 3%. Between 2012 and 2015, cash usage plummeted…

The Senate Republican failure to pass a “skinny” Obamacare replacement means a revenue loss of probably $150 billion over a decade. Having already nixed the border adjustment tax means the loss of an additional $1 trillion over a decade. Absent…

The Friday File: At last, engineers have figured out how shoelace bows come undone! There are two forces at work. The to-and-fro movement of the leg and the impact of the shoe hitting the ground. Turns out neither force is…

While June housing starts were up 8.3% M-o-M, they were up only 2.1% Y-o-Y, and 6.0% YTD. More interestingly, YTD multifamily starts are flat, while single-family starts are up 10.75%, and they are more costly than multifamily. The 10.75% rise…

While the VIX, which measures stock market volatility (also known as the Wall Street “fear gauge”), is at quarter-century lows, so what. Corporate profits are solid, inflation is miniscule, alternative investments aren’t very compelling and it appears central banks will…

Rhode Island is the latest state to finally see total employment exceed its pre-recession level. That leaves just Alabama, Connecticut, Illinois, Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico, Ohio, and Wyoming with employment levels in 6/17 below what they were in 2008 or…

The upcoming required legislative increase in the debt ceiling may be a nasty battle. Republicans will require Democratic support, which will be legislatively costly, all but guaranteeing a bill that won’t be “clean” or void of concessions. To that end,…

The Friday File: 43% of women say knowing a person’s credit score would have an impact on their willingness to date someone; only 32% of men said the same. By education, 47% of college graduates say knowing the FICO score…

Opioid addiction (OA), including addiction to prescription painkillers and illicit narcotics (heroin), has surged 500% since 2010, while medications use to treat OA grew by just 65%. OA is up partly because 21% of Americans filled at least one opioid…