The Bowtie Economist's Daily Dose of 70-Word Wisdom

While corporate profit growth has, of late, been strong, only one-third of the growth has come from rising revenues. Corporate profits are being primarily driven by intense cost-cutting. We know this because unit labor cost growth has been zero Y-o-Y,…

In a move largely unexpected just days ago, the Fed cut the Fed funds rate by 50bps! This is an overt acknowledgement that the inflation battle is over, and that rising unemployment is now public enemy #1. While the Fed…

What is both amazing and absolutely terrifying about the current housing market is how unaffordable it is. The combination of ever rising prices and stubbornly high rates has reduced first-time housing affordability to its worst level since the mid-1980s. But…

While economists struggle to agree on many policies, there are some they coalesce around. When asked if giving the President more direct influence over monetary policy would lead to substantially worse monetary policy decisions, 94% agreed. Similarly, 95% agreed that…

The Friday File: Invented in 1962 by Bill Winkelbach, a part owner of the dismally bad 1-13 1962 Oakland Raiders, fantasy football is now played by an estimated 55 million Americans, double the number that watch a NFL game. Winkelbach…

For the first time since 2019, median inflation-adjusted household income rose, to $80,610 in 2023, up from 2022’s $77,540. This brings median income almost back to the 2019 peak of $81,210. The rise was the result of a tight labor…

Following last night’s debate, the question is who won? While subjective, objective data is available. The price of Truth Social, a social media platform majority-owned by, and closely identified with, former President Trump closed at $18.65 on 9/10/24 and opened…

Markets were somewhat perturbed by August M-o-M wage growth of 0.4%. They needn’t be. The main driver was a huge 0.9% increase in technology, the fastest pace since 8/22. Moreover, with productivity rising at a stellar 2.5% Y-o-Y, wage growth…

Employers added a decent 142,000 net jobs in August, but July was revised down from 114,000 to 89,000 and June from 179,000 to 118,000. Four of the five weakest monthly readings since 12/20 have come during the past five months.…

The Friday File: While the federal government collects excise tax on fermented malt beverages at rates ranging from $0.11/gallon to $0.58/gallon, based on production, location, and quantity, state excise taxes show bigger variation. Rates are lowest in Wyoming at $0.02/gallon.…