We have been waiting for the non-essential durable goods side of the manufacturing sector to start showing evidence of demand side contraction in consumer purchases. There have been subtle sector-by-sector indicators of consumer spending shifts for several months; however, today we get the direct evidence from Samsung.
Samsung is one of the leading manufacturers of consumer electronics and products that require chips. For three months the electronics sector has shown background signals that inventory was not moving. One of the more recent indicators of a demand side contraction was the lack of upward price pressure inside the electronics sector. Essentially, consumers are not purchasing the current inventory, so prices are actually dropping in this segment. [SEE TABLE 2, CPI Chart]:
Despite overall inflation of 8.6% within the CPI, deep inside the category indexes you will note that electronic prices are actually dropping. Televisions -9.5%, Video equipment -4.3%, etc. Video and audio products overall dropped in price 1.4% for May, and dropped 5.2% year-over-year.
The supply chain in this sector is lengthy. Meaning inventory builds slowly as consumers stop purchasing in the USA. Retail store inventory turns slow, store inventory climbs, then warehouses inventories climb as stores do not need product. The negative boxcar effect travels back to the manufacturer overseas over the course of several purchase cycles. Eventually, everyone within the sector is telling the supplier we do not need product. Then the manufacturer has to quickly slowdown raw material.
Due to lengthy supply chains, including trans-pacific shipments, the process to stop deliveries in this electronic goods sector is around 90-days before the drop in retail sales reaches the manufacturer to stop production. Here is the announcement from Samsung:
TAIPEI/ SEOUL — Samsung Electronics is temporarily halting new procurement orders and asking multiple suppliers to delay or reduce shipments of components and parts for several weeks due to swelling inventories and global inflation concerns, sources have told Nikkei Asia.
The notification by the South Korean tech titan applies to components for multiple key product lines, including TVs, home appliances and smartphones, four people familiar with the situation said, and the postponement of orders involves a wide range of components across chips, electronics parts and final product packages.
The move by Samsung, the world’s No. 1 smartphone and TV maker and one of the leading home appliance providers, is the latest sign that electronics makers are pessimistic about the economic outlook amid global inflation risks.
Samsung told suppliers that the company needs to closely review its inventory levels of both components and final products to ensure stock on hand is manageable, according to the sources. Two people said the move will last until the end of July. One of the people said shipments from that source’s company have not been completely halted but the volume of the company’s planned shipment to Samsung for July has been slashed by 50%.
Samsung’s inventory assets reached 47.6 trillion won ($36.9 billion) at the end of March, up from 41.4 trillion won in December, according to its first quarter earnings report. The ratio of inventory assets to total assets also jumped to 10.8% from 9.7% during the same period. (read more)
Various Wall Street economists and MSM pundits have stated, erroneously – and many intentionally, there has been no evidence of a demand side contraction. However, CTH reviews of the data have shown exactly the opposite. There are multiple indicators of demand side contraction, including drops in retail sales units that goes all the way back to last holiday season.
Yesterday the U.S. Dept of Commerce released the May retail sales [pdf DATA HERE], showing a 0.3% drop in retail sales for the month.
Retail sales -as measured in units purchased- have been in a contracting position since June of 2021. When the current data shows a drop of -0.3% in May, the actual drop in retail sales is much, much greater. The dept of commerce calculates retail sales in dollars. When prices are 20% higher and sales are low, retailers are selling less stuff (fewer units) at higher prices. This has been the reality of our economy for several months. This is also why productivity has been declining for more than a year.
If you take the 8.6% inflation rate (far understated) and an aggregate drop in sales of 0.3% (again, far understated as a measure of inflation), that means consumers are spending limited incomes on critical or essential purchases like housing, food, fuel and energy. Consumers are not purchasing durable goods; people are hunkering down.
Yearly retail sales (May ’21 compared to May ’22) are +8.1%. However, yearly retail inflation for the same period is +8.6%. Again, reflecting that less stuff is being purchased inside the economy at higher prices. If the commerce dept was measuring actual units being purchased, we would be seeing massive drops in sales.
Samsung is reacting to a demand side contraction.
Eh.
I’m going outside to check the garden and rabbits.
Dang gopher is destroying mine!!!!
Armordillos, multicolored grasshoppers, squirrels..
Retired Magistrate here: Deer, deer and more deer along with rabbits. I gave up on growing a vegetable garden and fruit trees. No matter what I do the deer get the goodies. However, if and when things get really bad those deer will provide much needed meat. We have two decks but they are in the shade and don’t get enough sun. If I put the pots out where there is sun, they provide a tasty snack for the wild life.
Someone in our rural area has been feeding the deer so they have no fear, which is not good. I blame it on the “townies” moving to the country and feeding the “cute” wild animals.
So, I just keep buying more non perishables and further stocking up.
I lived somewhere with a sparse deer population until people started feeding them…they love white bread. When deer eat people food it disrupts their reproductive cycle and they start having triplets, twins, quadruplets all year round. The deer population multiplied and stripped a lot of the vegetation, not just gardens but all the wild raspberries, blackberries, etc. It was not a good thing and lime disease is problem.
So the state had to hire a sharp shooter and they shooter baited the deer one night and then came back another night and took down many many deer. It was not a pleasant thing but it had to be done. The meet was donated to homeless shelters, etc.
“I gave up on growing a vegetable garden and fruit trees.”
The deer trimmed my semi-dwarf apple trees to look like an umbrella!!
I hear that coyote urine is an effective deer repellent but have not made any effort to test it.
I sold off that property to finance a move to Alask.
A friend of mine uses human urine around the edge of the garden to deter deer. It apparently works, along with a 7’ electrified fence.
And for contraception I use abstinence and foam.
Don’t use the expanding foam cause that would be a mistake.
😳
And what really deters well is urinating on an electric fence… or so I hear, anyway.
That is a universal deterrent for ALL species–so I’ve heard. I saw a dog water a hot fence, but he hasn’t been back to say if it is effective or not . . .
When I was a teen, about 50 years ago, a friend and I were frog hunting a reedy pond. Because of the reeds, we were wading in about a foot of water and hunting back toward the bank. My friend was the shooter and I was using a strong light to hold the frogs for the shot. I got the urge to relieve, and thought it was an easy matter to simply turn out the light, turn away from my friend and take care of business.
What we did not know was that the farmer had installed a new electric fence across the pond. I found it the hard was with only an instantaneous contact. It is a mistake that one does not make twice.
Won’t be much left of the frog if your shooting them! We just bopped them on the head with a long 1×2 stick then tossed them in a gunny sack. I learned at age four how to skin them and no meat damage except where I slit their necks.
😂
Now that brings back some childhood memories! We would always dare the boys to pee on the electric fence, and someone would always take the dare! Once! LOL
Marcia, I hang dollar tree blow up pool toys in my fruit trees every year and it does help for the most part. Birds don’t like anything with eyes to watch them. I also put plastic owls on t-posts throughout the orchard and in the blueberries. They help a lot. Also lots of Halloween ghosts and ghouls fluttering in the veg garden. That’s where all my decorations go and Halloween are the best because of the flowing and fluttering. I put those pinwheel flowers near the watermelons and cantaloupes that helps keep the squirrels from eating them. Dollar Tree used to be my best friend until they got so expensive.
Last I heard they were Dollar and a Half Tree headed towards Two Dollar Tree.
Build a dome of chicken wire over your garden in sections, so you can lift one section at a time to weed, fertilize and harvest. Put long stakes through each side so aggressive animals can’t get under it. Some ingenious animals will get through anyway, but maybe this will cut your losses.
Here, the “townies” have built subdivisions of expensive homes where the deer used to live. Then, they gripe about the deer having the gall to eat their plants or dent their cars when they kill or maim them!
Ever hear this hilarious phone call about moving a deer crossing?
I’ve never been quite sure whether the caller was pulling a leg or serious – but I know a lot of moonbats who are this stupid…
OMG That’s hysterical! never heard that before. I’m only 70. When I got married to a city gal 47 yrs ago I explained that the signs meant “dancing deer” for the next xx miles. Who Knew?
Oh, deer God…
😆 😆 😆
Same here
A ten foot fence can solve that. It will pay for itself in no time at all. One of my former employers took that route when the deer started getting into the garden and fruit trees.
Chipmunks! They keep digging up my seeds.
You need some young kids with Red Riders… No more chipmunk problem…
RECIPE TO CONTROL VARMINTS
Right up front, I want to advise you to buy a cheap, but powerful blender that you’re not going to use for anything except garden formulas like this. If you can set the blender outside while you mix up this formula, all the better.
WEAR GLOVES AND GOGGLES IF POSSIBLE! WHEN YOU LIFT THE BLENDER LID DO NOT BREATHE THE FUMES OR LET THEM GET IN YOUR EYES AT ANY TIME!
DO NOT APPLY WHEN CHILDREN, (or adults) OR PETS WILL BE EXPOSED TO THE FUMES OR THE LIQUID!!! This is TOTALLY ORGANIC, BUT SERIOUSLY POWERFUL!!!
Supplies:
2 ENTIRE BULBS OF GARLIC, broken into cloves
Several of the HOTTEST FRESH PEPPERS YOU CAN BUY (at least jalapeño heat!)
Water
Coarse strainer
Finer strainer
Pump-up sprayer
Blend the garlic which has been broken into cloves – no need to peel – a bulb at a time along with the whole peppers. Use enough water to blend well without splashing out!
Now listen CAREFULLY!
When you open the lid, make sure your face is well away from it! THE FUMES WILL BRING YOU TO YOUR KNEES OTHERWISE!
Strain coarsely, then finer into a large lidded storage container.
Keep mixture cool but away from innocents!
Pour some into a pump-up sprayer, adding enough water to bring to spraying capability.
Don’t directly spray your strawberries or anything else you wouldn’t want to pick up the taste of the mixture!
For armadillos:
They have very poor eyesight, but super-sensitive noses which enable them to smell insects underground. They tend to follow fence lines, because of their poor vision.
Determine where they’re getting into your garden or your yard, and then spray that area especially paying attention to anything that they can follow to get there such as a fence or a hedge.
For other varmints, use your best judgment, and reapply after rain or when your yard quits smelling like SALSA!
We cleared up our armadillo problem in one night, by the way.
Deer, in general, don’t like highly scented plants. They tend to avoid aromatics, like sage, ginger and others. This formula can be effective, too.
But keep this in mind, when deer are starving they will eat almost anything – even plants that are poison to them! Sometimes they will pull your plants up by the roots just to take a taste, and the plants will die anyway.
Our best success has come with not planting things the deer like to eat in areas that are not protected from the deer. I would rather look at a yard with native plants they don’t tend to eat, as opposed to a yard that has rosebushes and tasty deer snacks planted all over it – and then covered with chicken wire. Anytime!
That and drainage issues when we get 3-5 inches of rain in a couple hours are why most of my vegetables are in pots on the deck of the screen porch. I can’t grow a year’s worth that way but I can still grow a lot.
Put up an solar or 110v powered electric fence. Space your wires at 6 inch, 18 inch and 36 inch levels. This will stop anything from rabbit to deer. Use aluminum wire (less long term problems) and put in 2 ground rods which will give critters a better Jolt!!! Tractor supply has a good selection. The 15 mile version works great in residential gardens as it has enough backup energy to overcome the effects of weeds and plant branches touching the wire. You still want to keep object such as weeds touching wires if possible. You will be amazed how much of your previous gardens were eaten by the critters. Voles and slugs are still problems but the Buzzing stakes (ultrasound) help a little.
Just picked up some seeds and I have no idea what Im doing.
What are the rabbits for?
lol
Rabbits are for eatin’.
I have a long way to go. I dont even want to kill a rat. Animals are the only thing thats still normal and sane to me these days.
You’ll change your mind when there’s nothing left to eat.
You have never been hungry enough. But you will be. I had to stop hunting because it took 3 lousy shots one time to kill a rabbit and he would not stop staring at me. Took several years but got over it and gun handling again so I’m okay if it comes to that. It’s okay to be human but you must eat.
If God didn’t intend for Man to eat meat, He wouldn’t have made animals taste so good!
PETA = People Eating Tasty Animals.
“Vegetarian” = old Indian word for “Poor Hunter.”
Meat doesn’t get born wrapped in cellophane and styrofoam. Mother Nature is NOT like in the movie “Bambi.” It’s more like “Hunger Games” only more desperate.
I have many butterfly gardens and often many rabbits so many areas fenced in. If the neighborhood fox does not get the rabbits and they are a pain still, then I trap them and eat them.
May I have your fox?
I have a suburban yard so full of rabbits (not to mention red squirrels and chipmunks) that it could be the set for Watership Down. I’ve only just put toe in the water to grow some food plants other than raspberries. I have a large patio pot with my first batch of redskin potatoes, and an elevated planter with 2 types of lettuce and some bell peppers.
I don’t dare, however, plant any food directly in the ground except an attempt at rhubarb that I have under a protective sort of net cover. I once planted it unprotected and it was sheared off at the bottom within an hour.
Wasscly Wabbits.
Rabbits are too lean. You need to add fat to your rabbit diet. Squirrel has some but also lean. Fish is better all around. Keep some cheese around , very good fat to protein ratio.
I think someone a few blocks from me raises ducks. Kind of unusual for a urban area in Southern California.
Then again it is starting to resemble Saigon and I worry about the future for dogs.
been a duck hunter for years. my freezer is full of them. if prepared properly, duck is awesome.
I like to slice up several duck breasts into several pcs, marinate them over night, wrap them with bacon and a sliver of onion, secure with a toothpick, grill it hot and fast, when the bacon is crispy, but the duck is still rare, pull it off. turns to boot leather if over-cooked.
too bad geese aren’t as tastey, those dang trash chickens are all over the place, and much easier to shoot.
Mass Psychosis: I know people in So. Cal. suburbia who raise chickens, ducks and rabbits. From the street, you’d have no idea.
Adding sour cream to the pan juices when making hasenpfeffer gives some fat content to the dish.
If you brown the meat in bacon grease, your “too lean” concern vanishes.
Trapped rabbits as a teenager in Scotland. ( they are classed as vermin)
They were a popular food, although not for me.
We also used a ferret. We let it go free in a rabbit warren and put purse nets over the holes.
12-20 were a common haul for the weekend. A local butcher gave us 25 cents a rabbit.
A pint of real beer cost us under angers approximately 20 cents.
So we thought we were in heaven..
Have you seen the cost of a pint there now, Dekester??
Hi Betsy,
Not been there since 2018..likely over three quid.
Cheers!
Between £5 and £8 a pint.
London getting the rawest deal. Now close your mouth, or the flies will get in.
We call Squirrels “Limb Bacon”… Squirrels and Dumplings are my favorite… Or Squirrel Jambalaya…
Hasenpfeffer makes for a mighty fine meal.
I always liked him on “Knight Rider.” Oh, wait . . .
Exactly. White New Zealands.
And fertilizer pellets
To eat.
Hasenpfeffer.
Go to your local humane society and adopt a rescue animal. That will provide protein when you need it.
LOL…
Nowadays they don’t just give you a rescue animal for free. They charge you $300-500 or more for shots, spaying/neutering and adoption fees. If you can afford to adopt a rescue animal, you can afford filet mignon at a 4-star restaurant.
better yet, rescue a hunting breed and use them to bring home game.
I don’t care how bad things get, I’m not eating my hunting dog.
She finds and retrieves far more game per year than she weighs.
Eating her would be a very short-sited decision.
I’m sure it’s Trump’s fault.
Or Putin’s.
“Putins War”
“Has anyone tried unplugging the United States and plugging it back in?”
I tried that already, it didn’t work. 🤣
Drat…worth a try, Patrick…
I held the power button down for 30 seconds but when I turned it back on Biden was still there!
Points awarded for not giving up…keep trying!
It’s hard to speak too costumer service reps, they’re all located in India!
I hear you on that!!!
Biden’s Hard Drive has long since fragmented, so no amount of rebooting will work. Only total replacement.
Not to mention corrupted operating system.
Seriously, the blue screen of death would be preferable.
Obviously Biden is shorted out.
Betsy jones: System reboots, but, acts wonky and keeps clearing out my cash without my permission.
well played
😁
Got to leave it unplugged for at least 6 months.
Ya know, when the Constitution was written, the founders specified that, “The Congress shall assemble at least once in every Year, and such Meeting shall be on the first Monday in December unless they shall by Law appoint a different day.” Which, of course, they did in 1933.
Apparently, the founders wanted to limit the amount of damage done in any calendar year. Let’s try that again.
Yeah, but I ended up with the dreaded “blue screen of death” when it rebooted
Always a bad sign…maybe we just need to replace the old corrupted parts. And purge it of all the malignant “viruses”…
Scrub it, like with a cloth…
…and a lot bleach, G. Good idea.
What difference at this point does it make!
🔨🔨🔨
We need a Linux USA.
True story. Wife’s notebook acting up so she asked me to take a look. Windoze 10. After a few minutes looking at this clownshow I ran and hid. You literally cannot do anything w/o a microcrap account and not much independent action with it.
Sure you can. You don’t need a ms account even on windows 10, you can create a local account. But yeah, windows of any version is crap. After 42 years in the IT world primarily programming on Unix flavored systems, I bought a MacBook Pro to replace my aging windows laptop and I love that I have Linux under the hood.
I thought Apple has their own OS, like Catalina or High Sierra? Are those really Linux?
Thanks for the laugh, Bet! I needed that.
Most welcome, my friend.
This is going to require a totally different approach. After all, we have no idea where the last “save point” is.
No, no, no. I think it’s time for a full hard drive change over, with a stripped down basic OS. Just a few files on thumb drive to carry over.
Light weight, lean, mean, and with absolute no “add on bloat” that is a drag on the system.
What about those “Activation keys” that don’t work anymore?
Well, what I have found, is when you strip your OS down to the bare basics, you don’t need those activation keys anymore.
Just make certain the Constitution AS WRITTEN is on one of those thumb drives.
That would be the light weight, lean, mean OS I mentioned.
The thumb drive would have the extremely few pieces of legislation passed that actually helped America, not hurt it.
You obviously know what you’re doing. I award you the no bid contract!
Lol
😊
My computer minded hubby (builds them) has suggested you need to replace the Biden chip, the Obama processor,and the Clinton hard drive.
Free advice…no payment requested.
And there’s that pesky Soros trojan buried in the registry.
Ahhhhhh…yes! Well that has to go…permanently.
what about the fan for when the you-know-what hits it
A part I overlooked. Well spotted. It’s the little things that are so important.
Good Lord … you are on fire today!
Two cups of uber strong coffee will do that to ya.😉
Just give it a good whack. Maybe it’s alllll out of whack!
You have brilliantly diagnosed the problem. I think we’d all line up to give it several “good whacks”.
That’s hilarious!!
Elvis had a solution with his TV. Didn’t really fix it, though.
Try unplugging Biden. He’s glitching.
Maybe one of those 46 Ukraine biowar research labs can develop a loss-of-function shot . . . before the Smith & Wesson lead injections start flying.
http://media.gettyimages.com/photos/studio-shot-of-surge-protector-plugged-into-itself-picture-id87658455
Non functioning…Just like the Incredible Husk.
The very first thing ya gotta do is unplug the network cable to remove it from the network. All the incoming crap comes from the network.
Truth!!
We are, sort-of, experiencing the infamous “blue screen of death.”
An apt metaphor.
Once the US is unplugged, you can’t plug it back in; the gender of the plug, outlet or both start changing at random.
What can I say?? Utterly brilliant!! Bravo👏👏👏
I suspect that the operating system has become corrupted.
Cntrl/alt/delete
After the fool Obama and the other fool Biden, this country quite is flushed down the toilet. Trump pulled it out of the toilet for short while, but the Democrats kept flushing and flushing. Trump loved the little people and worked hard for them, never forget that.
And so it begins…going to be a very long summer for a lot of retailers and a very bad Christmas for a lot of formerly middle class families!
And a blood bath at the November midterms.
Depends on Dominion. See the GA primaries.
The MAGA candidates running for primaries first have to contend with knives in the back from the GOPe before they can have the general stolen from them by the dim’s.
Nancy Pelosi does not seem particularly worried. I wonder why?
Smirnoff?
But the mid-terms won’t matter! It’s going to take much of a hands on participation by American patriots if we have even the slimmest of chances at saving our heritage. A little black mark on a ballot or the flip of a toggle in a ‘dominion’ booth…just don’t matter anymore. It is time for products produced by those formerly great American manufacturing companies to get a sea-to-sea field test…Colt, Smith & Wesson, Winshester, the dregs of Remington. Maybe, just maybe, there still may be some hope!
Meanwhile…from the mountains of SW Colorado….WOLVERINES!!!!!
Buy your Christmas stuff now while the prices are low.
I purchased most of my Xmas gifts in March when there were some good sales.
With three children, their families, comprised of 1) twin 17 year old lads plus one sister, 2) boy, girl, and 3) triplets plus one sister…plus their parents, you can understand that we as seniors on a fixed income are at the top of the pyramid with a very wide base. A difficult time of year for us…or was.
For Christmas, we send a 3.5 gallon tin of popcorn (3 flavours) to each family. They LOVE it, and always look forward to that as our special gift to them.
It ends up costing way less than I would spend on individual presents… plus the added.bonus is I can do it online, saving gas and mental anguish deciding what to get for each. We are happy giving them what they love, and they are happy receiving it.
Win Win.
And as I always like to give kudos to well operated companies, we buy through The Popcorn Factory. An amazing variety of products in all sizes, a wonderful selection of holiday appropriate tins.
The only thing about ordering is one doesn’t want wait until the last minute as delivery times between order placement and arrival can be up to 10 days.
I give each grandkid a crisp new $100 bill. It saves me a lot of wasted gas and money trying to get something appropriate for each one, and who can’t use a little extra cash.
New money is always nice. I hope are thanked with loads of hugs and thank yous.
Your enthusiasm and warmth of spirit sure is appreciated.
Cheers!
🤗!!!
great ideas for all of us thanks again
I may treat myself to a new washer and dryer at good sale prices. My 28 yo current models still work but they are getting long in the tooth and I’m afraid they’ll quit at a bad time.
If you decide to replace them, replace them with the Speed Queen brand. Made in the USA. Very little service needs. They actually wash the clothes well and last a long time. They cost more.
I have restored my 34 years old Maytag washer/dryer 10 years ago. Working great still. I repaired my 36 year old Jenn Air range/stove with the cast iron cartridge burners buying used parts off of eBay which I purchased new when we built our custom built home in 1987. I repair all of my appliances using Youtube videos. I just repaired a stuck cold water shut off valve under my kitchen sink so I could replace my side water sprayer using a YouTube video. Youtube has a video for fixing just about anything. If you can still find replacement parts, older appliances will last longer than buying new ones which last about 10-12 years. My older appliances were made in the USA. My older small appliances are all Kitchen Aid made in USA all working great.
I have noticed that the weekly fliers sent out by the box stores are becoming very thick.
Many products are listed at significant discount. I haven’t spent much money on retail for probably two years. I don’t think I am alone.
DD
I’ve been doing some bargain purchasing over the last couple of weeks. I told my brother and sister that this is a good time to shop online for small appliances while they are available in a warehouse and in the way. Shanghai has started shipping again so the distribution centers have to make space.
I can’t get much of a return on nest egg savings, but I can do pretty well with the tools and appliances I can get right now. This, all while avoiding Amazon. Walmart, Lowes, Tractor Supply and others have vendors who will ship directly and do so for free with a minimum purchase right now. Works for me.
Another surprise, generally you could find major items (i.e. repair parts for a Grass Hopper Mower) cheaper online (even with shipping). That has recently changed and in fact most items can now be locally procured at slight less cost and in stock then they are online. When I mentioned this to the local dealer they laughed and said that it was common knowledge within retail sales that online purchases have gone up much more dramatically (in time and amount) then local sales. WHO WOULD HAVE SEEN THAT COMING?
Yeah … but the FREE shipping!
I like your username. Never noticed it until now.
I consider curb pickup a very good friend.
No, you are not alone, DD! We are both retired and between taxes and inflation, we are becoming very judicious in what we buy….when my husband retired at the end of 2019, after 31+ years as a firefighter, we felt pretty good about our financial position and planned to do some travelling and just enjoy ourselves while we were still relatively young and healthy.
Donald Trump looked like he was going to cruise to re-election and the world felt safe and stable…Two months later, COVID hit and nothing has felt safe or stable since then! Thankful that my faith sustains me and I know my ultimate destination, but definitely not sure what the immediate future will hold for any of us!
I retired the 4th week of January, 2020. Talk about timing! No traveling for me either but at least I missed all the covid/BLM/ George Floyd stuff at work and didn’t have to get the not-a-vaccine to keep a job.
You can still visit Detroit. Hotels there are pretty cheap. Just remember to keep your doors locked.
Yeah, I think I’ll pass.
Why??? Biden just told a crowd Obama told him to fix Detroit…and he did!!!
This current “world” would have been so much different had the 2020 election not been stolen. PDT could have dug things out of the rona farce and industries would have been on solid footing. The rapid exposure of evil world wide demonstrates the world is on a Biblical time-line not one driven by men. Of course evil is committed by man, but the rushing towards a one world government through the destruction of America and other nations, without a doubt, is setting the stage for the emergence of the evil one, the anti-christ. Is there another explanation?
Hmmm, but wouldn’t be fun, if just when they think they have set up and “built” their OWG, we turn it (everything) into a OGW – One God World. After all, it’s the intent that counts.
Day to day is all you can do, vm. We used to try to see as best as we could around corners which served us well…back then.
But now when we try that, there’s someone standing there ready to ambush us with a 2×4 to the face.
It’s hard sometimes, but faith and trust that He is doing better things for us than we can hope or pray for sustain us. Plus I’ve always found that most times the worst we imagine might be does not happen.
I know we are in choppy, uncharted waters, and I am a gold medal worrier, but I must hold to these or lose my peace and sanity. Blessings as always. B
Sometimes day-by-day is too long of a time period, and we’re reduced to minute by minute… but yes, we do have to walk by faith because it’s very much impossible to walk by sight right now!
I have joked for years that worrying is my spiritual gift! Glad to hear I’m not alone in that camp!
Thank you for your encouraging words – same back to you!
No ma’am, you are not alone, but I am making progesss.
“Worry is fear borrowed from tomorrow.”
CS Lewis had a thing or two say about that, Boogywstew. That sounds very much like him. Neither he nor you are wrong.
No you are not, Dan. Same.
Retired Magistrate here: No, it doesn’t have to be a very bad Christmas for a lot of formerly middle class families.
Start buying your Christmas presents now: yard sales, estate sales, thrift stores, etc. and sales that stores are having now. Purchase board games, craft kits, art supplies so people can be creative and stop looking at their phones all the time.
Remember, as long as you keep in mind that JESUS CHRIST is the best gift of all, Christmas, no matter what the economy is doing, will be wonderful.
I don’t disagree with anything that you’re saying but perhaps I should clarify my comments.
When I speak about middle-class families at Christmas time, I am probably thinking of myself as a ten-year-old in the midst of the 1973 oil crisis when my dad’s income was suddenly cut by more than 50% because the company he worked for wasn’t able to sell their products… My parents tried very hard to give us a normal Christmas but it was very obvious that there was a lot of stress and a lot of tension and the following year my mother had to return to work to supplement their income.
I know that we were far from the only families whose lives were upended in that time. And many of the poor decisions made by the politicians of that era reverberated for decades to come. I fear we are in another time such as that and my heart hurts for all of the children today whose lives have already been flipped upside down in the last two years!
While we do for our families as I stated above, my husband and I don’t give one another gifts anymore. There is nothing we need or want.
What we look forward to is Carols from Kings College Cambridge on Christmas Eve (Britbox), which is the most wonderful service ever…and we celebrate the most joyous gift ever…the birth of our Lord and Saviour. There is such peace in that for us, and that is everything.
(The Easter service from Kings is also magnificent)
Heck, buy them non perishable food for Christmas. They might really appreciate it.
like a reader of semaphore, a trained observer
Hmm…let’s see… how many people need the most UP TO DATE Phone or TV? So they can have the “coolest” phone as to impress people? This used to work among the young set but without the advent of new “features” ie camera’s…it is not as “cool” as it once was for such people
We as consumers have been fed this for years…but in reality i think people are waking up to the fact that their current Phone or TV works pretty well for them. So why spend the money?
Not to throw cold water on the analysis…but AT&T plans have slid for years…has the electronics industry plateaued and is now on the back side? i think so.
Phones only last as long as allowed to function on servers. Over the last twenty years my perfectly good phone had to be upgraded as no longer worked with faux software updates and new faux technologies.
Between this forced upgrading and your insight, we all will be reverting back to our phones being just phones.
Phone and personal monitoring and tracking device, that is.
Planned obsolescence.
I’ve had the same Samsung s7, since it was new. I’ve had this thing at least 6 years. I don’t get the fascination with having the newest phones.
Google lens . Google it. It’s like Google search but for the camera. House alarm battery died, searched it with Google lens, found the cheapest one available instantly.
An unusual cell phone company, at least in my opinion, is Unihertz. They routinely stress that buying a small cell phone might keep you from obsessing over social media. Coincidentally, one of their models is the world’s smallest smart phone. They also make 3 very different physical keyboard phones.
I’m a BlackBerry phone lover so my PKB research led me to Unihertz where I bought a Titan and love it.
I also love driving a stick shift so there’s probably some connection?
Thanks for all you do Sundance. Even though you may frown on it. You really should start a Youtube channel. Perhaps the American flag as the permanent screen and you reading your daily articles. There are so many on Youtube earning thousands by repeating what you say on Youtube.
No….Just say No Sundancs!! Please!!
If he’s getting a channel, I hope it’s on Rumble.
Yesterday Pigloosi blamed our problems on the war in Iraq. Go figure FJB.
Iraq??? Appears to be fixated on the wrong war. Maybe this is the next one??
She was hitting the sauce really hard again!
My father used that term “sauce” …thanks for bringing it back…
Like W, Pelosi, was thinking of that other war the Deep State started for corrupt purposes, their prior gravy train.
Definitely Freudian.
“Samsung is reacting to a demand side contraction.”
In many respects, thinking long term, this might be a good thing once it starts happening to several other sectors of the economy.
I see no other way for woke companies to wake up, get some semblance of common sense and start getting our politicians to listen unless they start feeling the pain we have been feeling for months.
Politicians don’t listen to their voters. Maybe they might listen to those who sponsor them.
Perhaps some rather painful reality will get them to start paying better attention to what is going on in this country, and stop the foolishness.
See Convention of States. Politicians still make their bloated salaries, even as you and I are ruined. We better change that, or we are truly screwed.
About a year ago I picked out a particular refrigerator that we wanted to get for our kitchen.
There is some renovation work needed for it to fit in our small kitchen So we did not buy right then – the price was just under $1000 at Lowes and HD.
Inflation started ramping and same frig was $2400 a few months Later
I noticed it was down to $1700 last week
I expect it to drop back down to original price by end of summer!!!
Something to think about when buying fridge’s and freezers. When the companies that make these items were hit with make more energy efficient equipment, they put 50Hz. compressors in them. But they had to make a phase shift board to go in it to make it run on our 60Hz system. It causes a bunch of problems and the boards burn out and compressors go bad. The fridge might last 5 years or till the warranty runs out. Then you pay for someone to come out to check it, they tell you the compressor is bad. You pay $2,500 for the fridge, it last 5+ years then put it on the curb cause it costs to much to fix. If you have an older one that still works, better keep it.
I’d like to find a dishwasher manufactured in 1998 or older. I haven’t had one since then that actually washed dishes.
Try Bosch
Thanks for the tip. I tried Bosch. I wasn’t super impressed.
wow thanks for that info, what year did they start having to put those compressors in?
Not sure of the year. Go on Facebook Market, search for fridges or freezers for sale. There are a ton of fridges for sale. People are trying to get anything for them. I almost bought one just to see why so many were for sale. But I read a lot about the problems with them and found out about the type of compressor they use so didn’t buy one. Samsung was one of the worse ones. Mat have to go back to the old ice box. ha
Good information.
Thank you.
Sundance; as more times then not, you are spot on. As a Home Improvement Contractor I spend a fair amount of time in big box stores (Lowes/Home Depot). It has been obvious for months that the number of customers and the amount of material individual customers are buying is down noticeably. My guess about 40%! As I have previously written on this site, up until about 60 days ago Pro Sales and Management has been saying that sales volume is steady if not up. However, in the last two months that has changed to the point that Pro Sales is no longer always staffed and the explanation is that (they say) sales are down about 30% year over year in spite of the HUGE price increases.
Recently I had a conversation with my son where I pointed out that my first home, purchased while Carter was President had an interest rate of 13.7% on a VA guaranteed Loan. THEN I HAD ONE OF THOSE MOMENTS – when interest on home loans was that high, INTEREST ON SAVINGS WAS STILL SLIGHTLY HIGHER – NOT SO NOW and I wonder what are the implications of that?
The Fed is pretending to care about inflation. End of year forecast for interest rates is 3.75-4%. They aren’t serious about this…at all.
They can’t. There is too much debt in corporations and government and of course families. 10+% interest rates will bankrupt half the country.
A couple of months ago, I conversed with the owner of a local lumber yard. The builders buy their framing lumber there.
He told me that business had been brisk. The builders were working as fast as they could go in anticipation of the rate hikes that they knew were coming. They needed to roll with the momentum until the punch bowl got yanked away.
This is another one of those foundational issues that just don’t generate much inquiry. Almost certainly on purpose (by the media).
It used to be that high interest rates helped those who lived off savings. That is now dead. Bonds (government and also corporate) also had high returns (“yields”).
I think quantitative easing and the explosive debt the government has incurred (with a lot of it in short term debt) makes it impossible for them to allow those rates to ever return to the days when they were able to offset inflation.
We will have a new situation of high inflation AND low interest on savings/bonds. The 0.75% interest rate from the Fed is nothing compared to inflation and so far hasn’t been matched by private banks offering increased interest rates for savings for normal people.
I think the credentialed elite have fundamentally broken the financial system to where it can no longer function in a balanced fashion that matches real economic activity. It is now so heavily contaminated with Wall Street fraud products (those gargantuan derivative and hedge fund accounts that dwarf traditional stocks) that once things go bad, the system can’t correct itself.
Honestly I am not smart enough to figure this out or take advantage of it, I found your comments note worthy and believe, like you, that much more thought and conversation needs to be given to the subject.
I’m in 100% agreement with you. I think they broke it good.
Do you remember in I think it was 2009 that banks can pay derivatives before they pay depositors?
Yeah, if things get bad no one will get their money out of the banks. No one.
“The 0.75% interest rate from the Fed is nothing compared to inflation.”
If the Fed is buying Treasury debt, it will tend to force nominal interest rates lower.
Even with the recent discount rate increase, interest rates continue to lag behind CPI data.
Lowe’s had a LOT of empty parking spaces, some close to the door, on Friday two weeks ago around 10 a.m. This doesn’t happen much around here.
In contrast…both Home Depot and Lowes have been packed where I am in blueMA.
I think what’s happening here may be that reality is finally penetrating the titanium skulls of our majority of moonbats. It’s dawning on them, far later than it has in areas most of the rest of you live in, that it’s time to acquire things that are only going to go up in price from now on, and stay there for a long time.
murray, ive had that moment too. it comes from living long enough to see patterns. decades ago, both my first investment property mortgage and bank CDs were around 15%. now mortgages are over 6% but CDs pay 2-3% . its not a conspiracy theory to conclude that the govt is lying about the inflation rate, so their bank cronies can pay us lower interest on deposits— which they then lend out for rates that are twice as high. the only implication i can think of is that banks will get richer while we get poorer.
i hope your son learns useful skills from you and doesnt waste his time or money going to college. thanks for your service.
Not sure it is that simple. Consider that in the past (when loan interest rates were high) banks NEEDED saved dollars to make the loans. Now the Federal Reserve provides those dollars to be loaned by simply turning on the printing press!!!!
excellent point. the middle class has become dispensable in so many ways.
I-Bonds are at 9.6%.
NOT AN EXPERT ON DETAILS…..
Yes, but there is MUCH more to that story. As I understand it, sort of like an annuity that pays out high, the actual redemption value goes down proportionately.
The “ Big Five” Canadian Bank Stocks are indicating a massive shift in sentiment.
Canadian Banks are truly powerhouses in our country.
A few were down over 3% today.
The meltdown is fascinating to watch.
My hunch is real, as opposed to feigned panic is setting in.
We will see, but here in Canada Trudeau and his C*#ts have created an previously unknown hatred for government.
They may not get the compliance they anticipate.
A good friend recently returned from a family wedding in the L.A. Area ( Similar Valley)
He is comfortably off, but was taken aback at prices of everyday items.
Here in a sleepy working class small town where we are on a small getaway.
An A/W burger restaurant is desperate for workers.
A sign out front is offering work at $18.25. ( several dollars above the minimum wage)
Yikes!
LOL…”Similar Valley” 😀 That’s a new one. we usually refer to it as Steamy Valley.
😉
I’d call it slimy valley. They make too many naughty movies there. LOL.
Since early this year I have been telling my family and brothers and sisters to hunker down for recession coming and sell your stocks (401K and IRA’s) and go to cash or pure fixed income assets.
I went to all cash by end of January after making good money in 2021. Then in the last month (May-June) I have moved all my IRA into a brokered CD’s ladder – 1 yr 2.3% monthly div. and 2 year 2.85% monthly div. For needed cash I have that in Discover savings paying .9% now and that is going up fast and will likely be about 2.0% by year end.
Since I am now 100% fixed safe income type person now. I can breath easy and not worry about the stock or bond market for the next year. However since I am only gong to make about 2.5% on my assets, that means a tighter reign on spending.
Since I have stocked meat and vitamins ahead for the next year and other supplies for house and yard, my expenses are going to be much lower for the next year. So I guess I am as ready as possible for any possible recession.
PS. in Nov 2020 ($10,000 I-bonds 7.12%) and April 2021 ($10,000 I-bonds 7.12%) I maxed out in US I-bonds paying 9.62% now. Paid 7.12% for first 6 months and now 9.62%. Plus I get another $3500 I-bonds in Fed Tax refund. If inflation is still high in Jan 2023 I will max out annual buy – $10k.
I did the same.
Between my wife, myself and two of our kids, we moved $40k into I-bonds when they hit 9.62%. Considering another $20k through our Trust and an LLC I own. Did it with cash I was going to use on my new Bronco which arrived 6 weeks ago, but instead traded in my 2017 4Runner for what I paid for it 5 years ago, and took a loan at 2.5% from PenFed with the difference. Best part is Ford honored my July 2020 reservation price, which was $20k under what my model and options are selling for used right now. Also just sold 3 rental properties, and invested in decent return, inflation-protected but liquid investments to use once prices in real estate correct.
Ain’t goin’ away any time soon.
Where The Real Chip Shortage Is
12 Jun 2022
I have spent a lot of time on this channel talking about sexy, leading edge engineering things like Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography and so on.
But the reality is that the chip shortage’s greatest hurt hits far from the leading edge. In this video, we are going to talk about the massive shortage in trailing-edge semiconductors, and why it’s so hard to fix.
Winston: Very informative video. Thanks.
I am going to open up a sports card store called Joe Biden’s Sports Cards to sell my collection.
“Why is that 1989 Griffey Rookie card the price of a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle? It’s Putin’s fault.
Inflation is continuing higher, the demand for fuel and food is inelastic. Inflation may drop for other items as demand contracts because of the squeeze on people’s budgets but the stuff you need every day is going up. I suppose when the recession starts to hit hard, and people start getting fired or people stop travelling gasoline for cars may go down a bit.
I know, I know, it’s complicated; everything is interconnected and bloody terrible on every front. But I have a hard time getting worked up about collapse in demand when inflation has been going nuts everywhere. Least of all am I going to boo hoo over the coming collapse in housing prices, esp. when Blackrock is likely to be the biggest loser in real estate history. Sure, Fink and Donilon and Co. will try to hold on and gouge renters til the kingdom comes, but I’m thinking they are likely on track to be the worst investors in the history of everything, not only in the here and now, but also viz. the state of their eternal souls .
With so many Blackrock connected flunkies in Potatoes Administration, I doubt they will suffer much….if at all.
Blackrock is running Exxon Mobil, and they have no intention in producing more oil, only in shutting it down completely.
Nope!! Their plan is rentals.
Section 8
And the beat goes on
“Ain’t No Sunshine”……………………………………………………………………………………………….
FJB!!!!!!!!
🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬
@Sundance
“…[L]ess stuff (less units) at high…”
Fewer units. Typo. Cheers.
Revlon declared bankruptcy claiming supply chain problems.
There is nothing unusual about a company going BR, but having to seek BR protection due to supply chain problems is unique with a cosmetic co.
Note: I know Revlon makes more things than make-up.
My old Samsung Galaxy S10 started having “issues” Friday night so I bought a new S22+ from a T-Mobile brick and mortar store on Saturday. There weren’t nearly as many people there as I would expect on a Saturday, maybe 3 customers at a time with at least 4 workers on the sales floor. I asked if they thought business had been slowing down at all and the one clerk without a customer said yes because her commissions are definitely lower than last year at this time.
Verizon raising their rates prompted me to do some comparison shopping yesterday.
I already decided to stop into my Tmobile store next week.
Seems their rates are a lot better. Verizon has 55+ plan for Seniors—only if you live in FL.
T mobile has two plans for seniors!
When We The People spend all our hard earned money on a mortgage, heating/cooling a home, on gasoline and food there is little money left over for any discretionary spending thanks to ChiCom Joe and his rampant inflation! New cars aren’t selling either a Ford service manager told me just the other day. I was at Cracker Barrel for breakfast this morning after my wife’s visit to the Doctor and there was hardly anyone there which hasn’t been our past experience. I know this is anecdotal but layoffs in recreational, restaurants, retail and entertainment are coming if this trend continues! We’re headed for a depression and we’re going to blow right past a recession!!! IMHO I’m not an economist! God help us! Hosanna!
My husband went to replace his broken phone. The sales associate tried to push him towards the newest Samsung on a payment plan ($1300 over 3 years) and if he signed up that day, he’d “save” $250 on it. Ummm no, he went with paying cash and got a lesser Samsung model for $300. Phone works fine and he’s not stuck in a contract/loan. The whole phone industry is a big scam for the consumer.
Just like cable TV
I buy a phone when it breaks. I am currently on a Galaxy S9 and it was two or three models behind whatever was current then. The upside is not only did the store want to get rid of the phone at half price, the cases were half price too.
I noticed this at Costco on TV prices over the past 6 months.
After last Christmas I went shopping for a new LG 77” OLED. List was $3599 from LG. Amazon and Costco had them for $2999. I bought one for $2499 delivered from Video Only in early January.
Was at Costco this week and noticed the LG 77” OLED was now selling for $2100. That’s just too unnaturally low.
As Darth Vader would say “There is a disturbance in The Force”.
Costco has tons of inventory I was told by an employee. Warehouses maxed out.
Did the Costco TV thing too. Been watching a 75 inch TV for months.
Finally felt it was a good price for me.
Made the purchase.
Got it delivered.
Checked their website.
300 dollar reduction. 😟
Filed a price adjustment with Costco.
Got 300 bucks back. 😁
Didn’t the great Democrat paragon of moral values teach these idiots (FJB) anything? Remember “It’s the ECONOMY stupid!”
It’s not rocket science…when majority of GDP is consumer spending and government policies destroys disposable income, our economy contracts.
When new green deal extracts our wealth, do tell just what are we going to buy from corporations.
This happens when government is illegitimate.
The last thing anyone is thinking about right now is a 65″ 4k TV.
Decorating a 2nd small vacation home, wife and I didn’t want a TV so big it “dominated” the room. So we got a 43″ (or thereabouts). Our main home has a DLP projector and 120″ screen – so old eyes struggle to see the 43′ when we’re there. Rather than pop $2k on a bigger TV, I put the 43″ on a rolling stand, attached the sound bar, and when we want to go “BIG”, we move the TV closer to us. Otherwise for casual viewing, it’s in the corner where we can keep an eye on it while doing other things. The stand was about $100. Worked for us anyway.
Move it closer to see it better. Wow, what a concept!
You brought back memories of sitting on the floor with my sisters, our faces 2 ft. in front of the little tv screen watching “Fury” and “The Lone Ranger” in black and white.
I’m pretty sure watching TV like that is where my neck problems originated. 😉
Cosmetics aren’t durable goods but they are having trouble too.
Or maybe “fashion” these days tends more to dayglo hair dye and nose piercings and Revlon hasn’t kept up.
https://iotwreport.com/revlon-files-for-bankruptcy-protection/
Cosmetics giant Revlon filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Wednesday evening as it grappled with a cumbersome debt load and a snarled supply chain.
Any time I’ve ever used Revlon I’ve had terrible allergic reactions. Personally speaking, not sad to see them go.
Good thing that my guns and ammo do not require ” chips ” to operate.
Biden blames oil companies for high gas prices after (as we know) reducing supply in various ways,. At the same time he threatens to kick the financial crap out of the oil companies by emergency orders. A smart communist trick.
Crude prices up today, oil companies down more than most other stocks.
If you can bear to watch, it’s short …
The green raw deal.
Typical lib trick…and a play that has been run many times in the past…blame oil companies for our pain. As a replay to 1978, gas lines might be coming back.
This go around, it’s not going to work. During the presidential /debates he stated he wanted to cripple the oil and gas industry. Transitory…Putin…no
If R’s are smart…they will replay his statements…remember i said If…
Well, the commies have always told us we don’t need no stinking supply and demand.
Republicans are not very smart!
Biden isn’t calling the shots. Blackrock and other ESG banks are refusing to lend to anyone who wants to finance oil production. Blackrock has two stakeholders on Exxon Mobil’s board who want oil production shut down.
I’m hoping all libs buy an EV and that creates a gas glut. We ‘dinosaurs’ will be paying 2 bucks a gallon again while they have to swipe their credit card through the charger a second time to finish charging. 🙂
I’m thinking maybe we should start eating Liberals.
Sure it’s cannibalism. And sure, they probably taste bitter… but there are ways to temper gamey meat.
We avoid starving, we rid the Country of people who hate America, we reduce the “carbon footprint” and population just like they always wanted, and we create business opportunities like coffin building, food seasoning, and resale shops to re-distribute their property.
It almost sounds like Utopia and it’s bat-sh*t crazy enough that they would sign up for it in droves.
Interesting isn’t it that they want us to reduce their “carbon footprint.” They NEVER volunteer to off themselves to save the world do they?
I see your tongue in cheek 🙂
That said, many years ago I was part of a group conversation (yes here was alcohol involved) about what principles/rules would apply in a real total SHTF situation and we came up with three, “Survival For Dummies”:
#1 – Like a Boy Scout – Be Prepared (not just stuff but mind and body)
#2 – If survival is the goal, NOTHING is worth dying for. Translation, Nomads will live the longest because whatever you have or where ever you are, sooner of later someone bigger, badder, luckier will come along and take it.
#3 – He who turns cannibal will eat the longest because humans are basically clean and you can always find someone slower and smaller. Later someone pointed out that being able to make sausage might provide you enough trading material to eat steak.
The “Progressive” Sausage Company. One more business start-up!
Wrap them in a copy of the Constitution, and soak them in buttermilk
before you cook them.
Barbecue sauce suggestion?
Apply Liberally. 😬
Well, I wouldn’t eat them, but I could make them palatable for our 3 dog pack and 3 cat herd.
Minor quibble: If we eat them, what need is there for coffins?
Valid point. But some relatives may want to bury the bones for closure. 😜
Time to start connecting the dots. The US market for durable goods is already in free fall, and there is no bottom in sight. After Labor Day, it will be obvious to all that consumers at large have exhausted both cash on hand and maxed out their credit cards. The few individuals able to jump on the bargain buying express post Labor Day will not be enough to sustain manufacturing in China, which is already beset with crises in banking and real estate. Xi’s leadership is not only increasingly being called into question at the highest levels of the CCP, the rumblings have become public.
How do tottering regimes often respond in this situation?
By starting a war abroad in the hope that patriotic fervor will allow them to hold on to power.
I expect Xi to green light the invasion of Taiwan in the fall. What this will do to the stock market here is anybody’s guess.
We are so in debt to China….no wonder there was no investigation or retaliation in the Wuhan Lab. We are being blackmailed. China owns most of our retirement accounts. Soon they will own most of our meat production. We are kept busy fighting Democrats and leftists here, while China grows more powerful by the day. They must think it’s pretty funny.
Would be fun to default on all those bonds the Chinese bought. We could crash their economy overnight. But then they would probably nuke us.
Pass the biscuits and ammo, please….
Do you think some of these companies will let go some of their gender, equity and inclusion vice presidents?
ACLU will be all over them if they do. Had a coworker with hearing aids who frequently abandoned her position on the sales floor of electronics and sat inside a storage room on her phone for ages. She was in plain view and could be heard chatting away. The management tried to fire her once, but the ACLU attorneys were right on it. The store had to keep her, and she got to do whatever she wanted.
Huh. When people have to pay double for rent, food and fuel, they stop buying things. Who knew?
Next will come layoffs all over the planet as people who build durable goods are no longer needed.
Of course, those people still have to pay for food, fuel and housing.
I wonder how that’s all going to work out?
What????
We don’t need no economic mumbo-jumbo common sense talk.
Print more money!!! More stimulus! More electric cars! More drag queen story time!!! More if everything!
Fiscal discipline is SO old school.
Rome is burning! Go grab your coat hangers and marshmallows and don’t be such a party pooper.
This is Liberal Utopia, man.
You just don’t appreciate the joy they’ve unleashed.
Sounds like SOMEONE hasn’t been taking his government issued happy medication. We’ll send some health workers to check on you, comrade.
Wonder if this has anything to do with my Samsung phone all of a sudden becoming very slow and much less dependable with no change in how I use it?
I had one of those SSGala xy S7 exploding phones that they banned on all airplanes. The SS people using updates reprogramed the phones so that the battery would only charge 50% and a month later 25%. The phone update that are automatic can make all kinds of changes in the performance of your phone.
Yep. Noticed since my last update my battery is dropping a lot more quickly.
“[C]onsumers are not purchasing the current inventory, so prices are actually dropping in this segment.”
Old and Busted: high tech
The New Hotness: food staples and sundries
HT/Instapundit
I like my 60” TV medium rare, please?
Thatll be 300$
Thanks, that’s a great price.
Can I get some bacon bits, bleu cheese crumbles, and sautéed mushrooms with that?
Food extras on your TV are 20$ each, sir.
Ok, I’ll pass. Just give me the TV, medium rare.
The system was in equilibrium under Trump, but the DC elite have nudged it off center.
Some aspects of the economy, like fuel supply and increasing the money supply, have negative stability.
That is, once nudged out of equilibrium, the system picks up speed in the direction of economic catastrophe.
This is where we are now.
At this point corrective measures would have to be huge in order to push the system back into equilibrium.
The longer this is allowed to continue, the more painful the recovery will become
At some point, recovery will no longer be possible.
Are we past that point yet?
It’s gonna take a Volcker shock, at minimum.
I expect interest rates to continue rising, as that’s the only arrow left in the Fed quiver.
Aside from that, it’s up to the committees and the executive.
And that’s BP not looking good either.
There are about 60 houses on my block in the northern suburbs of the Twin Cities, precisely 4 of which have looked run down for years. As we speak, another dozen have joined the group– unmowed lawns, trash piling up against the side of the house, etc.
I am also seeing this on commercial properties, and even at a church in my neighborhood.
When I talk to my neighbors, what I am hearing isn’t simply that inflation is pushing them to the wall. People are giving up hope.
What is it like in your neighborhood?
We are very rural, but I have noted for years that the exterior hoarding issue is growing much worse lately. I guess they don’t want to pay for trash removal. The township does not enforce ordinances. There is a two story home that had issues with roofers, and three ladders have stood against the roof for about 6 years. We pass a house so packed with trash that the windows are blocked by it, and a little girl lives there. I know myself, though, if it were not for rattlesnakes and copperheads, I would not mow as much now due to the gas prices.
Our rural area is quite different.
We are a mostly tourist area, skiing and summer mountain rec area.
Now people have discovered us and are moving here in droves, buying anything and everything to fix up and renovate to live in.
Old, small homes are being fixed up or torn down and moved into.
A couple acres on the edge of a oat field has a spanking brand new house, or a new house on the edge of an alfalfa field.
New houses out in the country every where.
Older run down houses in “iffy” neighborhoods in our small town are being spiffied up and the whole neighborhood is starting to look a lot better.
We are seeing the opposite of what many other places are seeing, money coming in.
One thing I am seeing that others have mentioned is that when shopping for groceries the carts of other shoppers are much less full than they use to be.
Shoppers seem to be buying less when they go to the store and mostly only the basic’s.
I paid $7 for a gallon of milk yesterday which shocked me to the core.
I swear it was only about $4.50 when I bought it last week but I might not be remembering it exactly.
I know it was not close to $7 that is quite a hike for us here.
ColoradoChloe: I was looking seriously at a town in CO like the one you describe, but the tight housing inventory, over-priced, under-quality properties and lefty politics (fueled by too much federal money) soured the appeal for me.
I live on the lake in Texas……
…last year a house listing for 850k went for 1.2 mil……now a lot of for sale signs……people are trying to cash out…….dropping prices 5k a week………..bad news for me is Texas rebulicans passed a law that they can raise taxes based on real estate comps…….my 185k (bought 12yeays ago) house is “supposedly” worth 638k….I fought it and got it lowered 180k………outta state money killed my neighborhood……..house next door went up for sale at 750k 3 years ago…….I thought……no way…..retired airline pilot/navy pilot from California paid cash…….been down hill from there…….12 years ago I bought a house for my mother in law 2 blocks away from me( didn’t want her to move in)…..fixer upper…paid 27k, but had to drop 30k into it, with me doing most of the work……I could have sold it for 200k a few months ago…………I think the market is gonna crash big time.
Discretionary income is being obliterated but the price of junk is on the down slope.
“The consumer is strong!”
“There is no slippery slope!”
“It’s not you, it’s me.”
More proof of organized treason, by the communists who stole the world and our elections. There must be payback
Looks as though they intend to break our balance sheets.
Uh oh. And what scary is all the government spending to “get us out” of the impending recession will be green new deal infrastructure. You’ll pay for it and like it.
TPTB (The Powers That Be) have so mucked up the financial system, globally, that the old tricks aren’t going to work. However, that is a feature, not a flaw. Somewhere it’s published (sorry I wish I could put my finger on it)… their plan is to go to the new financial system, globally, in early 2023. It will be a global digital currency (“the mark” is associated with it) and we won’t be able to buy or sell without participating in it. This is why they’re spending money like it’s water and tightening the noose around our necks. Their full intention is to break the entire system in order to bring us to heel. The current “value of money” means nothing to them because it’s all a ruse anyway. At least, that’s the way I see it.
The thing that saves me in all of this is that I believe in My Redeemer, and know that He has the final word on everything. My job is to remain steadfast and faithful. I know I can’t grow enough food, or stash enough food, or build layers of security and redundancy for every possible scenario. But, I can stand firm. In the meantime, I too have a garden to tend to, and animals to care for, and grandchildren to love on. My soul is secure.
Any day now, I expect the housing market to follow suit.
With $6 a gallon gas, utilities and food doubled, who can afford to pay $1M+ for a three-bedroom house?
Of course, houses aren’t THAT expensive in the outskirts of squalid, urban hellscapes, so there’s that.
Higher prices or lower prices? On the first page of this article, the argument is made that there have been 9% discounts on tv’s. On the second page it is now claimed that there are higher prices and less sales. So which is it?
It’s BOTH. Inflation is causing prices to rise. The dollar is losing value. People have cut back on spending other than essentials. This is causing concern among suppliers (retail stores for example) and manufacturers (Samsung, Apple, GM, Maytag). Their inventories aren’t moving as fast now but instead piling up. So naturally they start discounting merchandise. The discounts have JUST begun. Better to take a smaller profit than be left stuck with stuff they can’t sell.
The article is talking about more than one topic. It’s not that difficult to figure out.
And the article points out that government methods of tracking the economic trouble are flawed. They only track dollar totals. Prior to businesses being forced to start discounting, they were selling fewer items at inflated prices. Selling LESS stuff but the bottom line looked as good as the previous months because they sold items as a higher price due to inflation. Next time they order more it costs more to replace them because shipping went up (fuel costs) and parts went up and health insurance went up and the manufacturer had to cover those costs.
The store still took in as much cash. 10 TV’s @ $1000 a month ago vs 9 TV’s @ $1100 this month (fictitious example) looks like they’re still doing good… So it misses the trend that people are slowing down their spending, changing spending habits. The government bean counters miss the writing on the wall or INTENTIONALLY ignore it. Doesn’t fit the narrative.
Then more and more people become cautious and suddenly the business has a warehouse full of unsold TV’s and panic hits. They stop ordering more. They offer discounts. 0% financing. Etc.
It’s like a pile-up wreck on a foggy highway. Only a few wise or lucky people avoid the collision.
Point of the article: when a HUGE company like Samsung taps the brakes then there’s probably a crash ahead. Prepare.
To break the late 1970s inflation, interest rates were raised to almost 20% which caused a nasty recession. I believe the country’s finances were much better then. If interest rates get to 5% now the budget will be crowded out by interest on the debt. Afraid we are in for much worse.
Yep, FED at 2% is probably as high as they can go without majority of budget going to debt service. 3-5% is out of the question. Forget double digit interest rates.
Would it be such a bad thing if the entire federal budget went to pay the interest?
I can buy gasoline and food, but don’t have the extra bucks for a new 80″ TV – and 250 million other Americans feel the same way so down go 80″ TV sales.
That and Republican Consumer Sentiment is lowest ever – even below Jimmy Carter time in 1980 and wow was that low – I remember it well.
The 79” TV is the new 80”.
Drink your subsidized vodka and don’t complain, citizen, or we will report you!