Econ70

Job openings hit an all-time high of 6 million in April, and the number of hires fell by 259,000 to 5 million. The gap between openings and hires of 1 million is also the highest on record and suggests that…

After bottoming at a seasonally adjusted annual sales rate of 9 million cars and light trucks in 2/09, car sales increased almost nonstop through 10/15 when sales hit 18.1 million. Since then, only in 12/16 did sales exceed 18 million,…

Despite just 138,000 net new May jobs and downward revisions to March and April, US job growth is solid and well above the level needed to absorb new job entrants. To wit, the unemployment rate fell to 4.3%, the lowest…

The Friday File: It’s known that sunset is much earlier on the eastern edge of a time zone than the western edge. Separately, research shows people sleep longer when the sun sets earlier and more sleep is thought to improve…

In 2000, when e-commerce was 1% of retail sales, department store employment was 1.8 million. Today, e-commerce sales are 8.5% of retail sales and department store employment is 1.3 million. During the same period, employment at non-store retailers rose from…

Tax cuts, let alone tax reform, are becoming increasingly impossible. The White House and Senate nixed a border tax adjustment, and that will reduce revenues by $1 trillion over a decade. Moreover, the healthcare reform bill that passed the House…

The US economy expanded at just 1.2% in 17Q1, better than an earlier estimate of a dismal 0.7%, on the back of better consumer and business spending and slightly less contractionary government spending than initially thought. Given the lousy data…

The Friday File: The President with the shortest term was William Henry Harrison; 31 days. James Garfield follows, his term lasted just 199 days. By comparison, Zachary Taylor, with a term of 491 days, was a long-term tenant at the…

While April existing home sales were down 2.3% M-o-M and up just 1.6% compared to 4/16, it’s due to limited inventory. While inventories rose 7.2% M-o-M, April marks the 23rd consecutive month of Y-o-Y inventory declines! As for new home…

Household financial health is modestly improving. In 2016, 70% of Americans said they were living comfortably/doing OK, up from 69% in 2015 and 62% in 2013. Similarly, the percentage with no retirement savings has declined from 31% in 2014 to…