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While it has taken 8.25 years, inflation-adjusted GDP in the 19 country Eurozone (not to be confused with the 28 nation European Union) is back where it was on 1/1/08! Among the largest nations, Germany is tops, with its GDP…
The median priced home is $220,000. Assuming 10% down and thus a $198,000 mortgage, at the current 30-year mortgage rate of 3.7%, that works out to a payment of $917/month. Add $180/month for property taxes and the total is $1,097/month…
15.6% of high school graduates do nothing. While down from the 2/14 peak of 16.9%, it’s substantially above the previous recession high of 14.8% set in 2003/2004. For whites, the current rate of 13.7% is higher than any time prior…
Friday’s Employment data was puzzling. While the economy created 160,000 jobs, it was the weakest growth since 9/15 and the labor force participation rate fell from 63% to 62.8%. But Y-o-Y wage growth increased from 2.3% to 2.5%, the 4th…
The Friday File: The most used banknote in circulation is the $1 bill featuring Washington, which accounts for 30% of all bills. The $100 Ben Franklin comes in second, accounting for 28% of all bills (probably because of drug cartel…
Q1/16 non-farm labor productivity growth fell at a seasonally-adjusted annualized rate of -1%; Y-o-Y productivity growth rose just 0.6%. Since the end of the recession in 6/09, productivity growth has averaged a dismal 1.3%. These weak numbers help explain how…
Q1/16 revenue at Amazon was a staggering $29 billion and net income was $513 million. More interesting, Amazon Web Services (AWS) revenue jumped 64% to $2.6 billion, 9% of total revenue, but 67% of operating income and 56% of operating…
While the seasonally adjusted Q1/16 home ownership rate of 63.6% slipped from 63.7% in Q4/15, the long decline in homeownership is over. In Q1/15, the rate was 63.8%, just 0.2 percentage points above where it is now, its smallest January…
Q1/16 GDP growth came in at a very lackluster 0.5%, its worst performance since Q1/14. Since 2010, lousy Q1 GDP growth has been the norm, averaging just 0.8%. The good news; consumer spending grew a passable 1.9% and new-home construction…
The Friday File: With more efficient planes and low fuel costs, ultra-long flights are in. The longest flight in the world is 8,810 miles, takes 17 hours and 20 minutes, and is from Auckland to Dubai. The next longest is…