High Home Prices Dent Housing Sales – June 28, 2021
The pandemic has generated economic distortions throughout the economy, and housing is no exception. After sales briefly fell during last year’s lockdown, sales surged and…
Is Good News Bad News for Investors?
Can the economy grow too quickly? Can the economy add too many jobs? Is fast wage growth something we want to avoid? Might there be…
Baby Steps – June 21, 2021
The red-hot economy and higher inflation haven’t gone unnoticed at the Federal Reserve, even after it kept its key short-term lending rate, the fed funds…
Tapping on the Monetary Brakes – June 16th, 2021
At the height of the pandemic, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said the Fed was not even “thinking about thinking about raising interest rates.” That may…
Another Inflationary Impulse Strikes Consumers – June 14, 2021
The U.S. BLS reported last week that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.6% in May, topping the forecast by analysts of 0.4% (Investor’s Business…
Companies Beg for Workers – June 9th, 2021
During the month of April, the number of job openings in the U.S. increased a record 1 million to an all-time high of 9.3 million,…
Job Growth Strong, Not Spectacular – June 7, 2021
The U.S. BLS reported nonfarm payrolls rose by 559,000 in May. It’s above the 278,000 jobs added in April, but below 785,000 in March. The…
Layoffs Tumble – June 1, 2021
Layoffs are not just a measure of the labor market. The level and direction of layoffs is an important indicator of the health of the…
Bull Market Year 2—What Happens Next
The S&P 500 Index1 advanced 76% in the first year of the new bull market (S&P 500 data St. Louis Federal Reserve). We’re now in…
Inflation and Stock Market Performance – May 24, 2021
A Google search of the word “inflation” has more than doubled since the beginning of the year. It’s up more than three-fold since last summer,…