From the APP:
NJ private-sector jobs back to pre-COVID levels. But will hiring spree last?
New Jersey added 9,800 jobs and its unemployment remained a low 3.9% in June, the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development said Thursday in a sign that businesses and consumers have continued their robust spending despite the highest inflation levels in 40 years.
With the latest job gains, the Labor Department noted, New Jersey has recovered all of the 702,000 private-sector jobs that it lost during the first two months of the pandemic in 2020.
“Despite all the worries about inflation, worries about consumer spending, the state’s job market is still very, very strong,” Rutgers University economist James W. Hughes said.
The monthly unemployment report is made up of a survey of employer payrolls to measure the number of jobs and a survey of households to measure the unemployment rate. It is considered a key economic indicator, Hughes said, since employers will begin to cut back on hiring, or even lay off workers, if they see bleak prospects ahead.
…
New Jersey’s job market, like the nation’s, has recovered from the COVID-19 losses faster than economists expected thanks to a huge federal stimulus and record low interest rates that put money in consumers’ pockets, experts have said.
When the public sector is included, the Garden State through June regained 98% of the jobs it lost during the onset of the pandemic, in line with the U.S.
The state Labor Department said Thursday that New Jersey ended the first half of the year with 96,000 jobs, a pace slightly slower than last year, but still one that would be considered historically strong.
…
“In my view we just haven’t felt the effect of the rate rises yet, and the resulting recession is on its way,” said Jennifer Hunt, a Rutgers University economist. “But I admit to being very unsure — the strength of the last jobs report was quite surprising. Inflation itself isn’t a reason to think the labor market would be hurt; it is rather the interest rate rises.”
First
Before there can be a bull run in stocks, investors need to see inflation and bond yields peak, as well as a change in the Federal Reserve’s hawkish policy by 2023, said Hartnett. That’s unlikely without a big recession, so he recommends investors sell the S&P 500 at 4,200, a level about 5% above the last close.
The S&P 500 is up 5.6% so far in July, which would be the biggest monthly advance since October. The index is still down 16% for the year.
Here are some more highlights from Bank of America’s flows report. The data is for the week through July 20.
About $8.2 billion left bonds, the first outflow in three weeks
Cash inflows were $3.5 billion
In terms of equity flows by style factors, US large caps saw inflows
Small cap, growth and value had outflows in the week
Health care and consumer led inflows among sectors, while materials and energy had the biggest outflows
New applications for unemployment benefits climbed again last week, reaching their highest point since late last year in a sign the tight labor market is slowly loosening.
Initial jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs, rose to a seasonally adjusted 251,000 in the week ended July 16 from 244,000 the week before, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Last week’s claims were above the 2019 prepandemic weekly average of 218,000.
The European Central Bank raised interest rates by a larger-than-expected half-percentage point and unveiled a new plan to buy the debt of Europe’s most vulnerable economies, taking bold action to protect the currency union as it navigates the twin threats of skyrocketing inflation and slowing economic growth.
The move takes the ECB’s key interest rate to zero and brings it more into line with other central banks, including the Federal Reserve, underscoring how the bank’s top officials are increasingly worried about high inflation.
U.S. fuel makers are poised to generate historic levels of cash from refining oil into gasoline and other products after fuel prices have surged nationwide.
Valero Energy Corp., Marathon Petroleum Corp. and Phillips 66, the largest three independent refiners, are set to collectively bring in about $14 billion in cash from operations this quarter, analysts estimate, the highest combined level on record according to S&P Capital IQ data. The huge cash flows from their core business will translate into significant profits as the companies report their results beginning next week, analysts said.
Exxon Mobil Corp. this month said its fuel-making profits could climb up to about $4.4 billion in the second quarter, compared with an average of $853 million in the same periods from 2017 to 2019. That was the largest single factor in the company’s forecast that earnings could be as high as about $18 billion, which would be its most lucrative quarter in at least 25 years, according to FactSet.
Freight rail service is deteriorating as the sector’s labor tensions simmer. Containers are piling up around the country and trains are waiting for longer stretches at depots, the WSJ’s Esther Fung reports, frustrating industrial shippers and exacerbating delays across U.S. supply chains. Railroad executives are citing the tight labor market while existing employees say they are overworked and that wage increases are long overdue. Shippers say they started to suffer substandard service levels last fall and complained to federal regulators about delays disrupting the production and delivery of everything from ethanol to grain and livestock feed. The railroads are reporting higher profits under the leaner operations known as precision scheduled railroading. But some shippers say their service is getting worse and their costs are increasing, as bunching goods into one shipment rather than multiple loads to meet the rail requirements complicates their operations.
Union Pacific’s second-quarter operating revenue rose 14% despite a 1% decline in carload volume. (Progressive Railroading)
Second-quarter revenue at CSX rose 28% on pricing and fuel surcharge gains along with the addition of trucker Quality Carriers. (MarketWatch)
Maersk Line is warning customers that rail congestion is delaying shipments from Canada’s West Coast to inland destinations. (Financial Post)
The impasse at the Port of Oakland is deepening as shippers warn their businesses are starting to feel the pain. California Gov. Gavin Newsom says the state is proceeding with the transition toward a new law aimed at “gig economy” work, The WSJ Logistics Report’s Paul Berger writes, and his administration is effectively digging in against truckers who have said they will keep blocking gates at the West Coast’s third-busiest port without some action to minimize the impact of the law known as AB5. For now, the protesters are preventing trucks from reaching the West Coast’s third-busiest container port. They are also stopping dockworkers from reaching their posts loading and unloading ships. One state agriculture exporter says two of her shipments for overseas buyers have been tied up in the congestion and that her ability to sell her produce is being undercut by the blockade.
Warehouses may have to do double-duty as power providers as the push toward electric vehicles picks up. Companies with growing fleets of electric trucks and cargo vans are starting to ask industrial real-estate developers to install chargers at their distribution centers. The WSJ Logistics Report’s Liz Young writes the requests signal that logistics operators are preparing for a shift in the power behind transport as the new technology gets a foothold in commercial operations. Businesses and governments are starting to pay more attention to the relatively scant charging infrastructure that’s available along highways. But much of the investment so far has been aimed at passenger cars. The high stakes in shipping operations have companies looking at natural logistics nodes like distribution centers. Still, adding charging capability adds costs and complications as warehouses need to ensure they have the space and energy to plug in.
Rivian Automotive began delivering the first of 100,000 electric cargo vans that Amazon has ordered. (New York Times)
AT&T said more of its customers are starting to fall behind on their bills, a sign that rising costs are pinching many households even for services most Americans consider essential. The wireless giant logged another customer surge in its latest quarter after smartphone promotions helped it lure new clients and keep existing ones. But subscribers were paying their monthly phone and internet bills on average two days slower than a year earlier, Drew FitzGerald reports.
Ex, what school system?
The valuation of the U.S. stock market has fallen faster than in the aftermath of the dot-com crash, recording the biggest six, 12 and 18-month drops since data on price-to-forward-earnings ratios began in 1985. That should be only a slight consolation to investors.
Start with the good news, such as it is: Cheaper stocks are a good thing for those investing now, and they’ve become a lot cheaper in a very short time. The S&P 500’s valuation hasn’t fallen quite so fast as the overall market, but on a longer-term measure—Yale professor Robert Shiller’s cyclically-adjusted price to earnings—the drop from November’s peak was bigger over such a period only twice since 1881, after the 1929 and dot-com crashes.
Here we come to the bad news. Wall Street has only just begun to worry that earnings might fall too. Even as valuations were dropping, analysts continued to upgrade their forecasts for profits for most of the year—until a few weeks ago. Now forecasts are being slashed, and investors are increasingly convinced that a recession is on the way, which would crush earnings. Analysts shifted rapidly: In late May upgrades still outnumbered downgrades, but so far this month downgrades outnumber upgrades by two to one.
I saw my first rivian pickup truck yesterday. Looked like a more aerodynamic version of a pickup.
Come and get it!
https://emailrpt.gsmls.com/public/show_public_report_rpt.do?&method=getData&Id=234802715_499180&langValue=public.English&sysid=null&report=clientfull&reportchange=true
I understand the democrats are hinting at different endings for the season finale of the January 6th erect1on drama? I think they should have Trump blast through the doors of the committee like Tony Montana and go down in a blaze of glory! I heard the Xbox version comes out in 2023! It’s hearsay but hearsay is WORD from what I’m told.
Libturd,
Hope you get a lot of bids!
Lib; Good luck!! Hope you sell it quickly!! One less headache in your life!
Meanwhile, the Republican candidate for NY governor is attacked at a campaign event and the wannabe assassin is immediately released without bail. Not sure it’s possible to overstate the levels of blue state stupidity and depravity (or is it actually ‘equity’ as the Dems would have us believe).
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/21/nyregion/lee-zeldin-attacked-campaign-event.html
HCA 181 -> 210, overnight. +29, 16%….
Cha-fucking-ching, lol.
Lib, let’s waltz to promised land together….
But you’re Verizon. :P
your. Oy!
Need to shadow your trades.
Ed,
The moon landing was real, right? Plenty of conspiracy people believe it was a hoax. Imagine if Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins testified that it was a lie and Neil Armstrong orchestrated the jump in Studio City. I guess you would continue to believe it was real. You believe that Orange Khan was a great leader because Faux News ignores the truth and broadcasts their own lies. He won’t escape this one, no matter what cult believes. He is pathetic, mentally ill old man and his R cabinet members have testified so. Keep on believing though.
Lib,
Good luck selling the house! Tenants and houses can be a headache , now is the time to reap your reward for all the time you put in!
Lib
Good luck with the house.
Shocked at how low the taxes are.
Finally. I keep getting these calls got one yesterday….
“Washington (CNN Business)US telecom providers will now be required to block millions of illegal robocalls a day advertising extended vehicle warranties, the Federal Communications Commission said Thursday, taking aim at a group of individuals accused of sending more than 8 billion such messages since 2018.
Thursday’s order by the FCC requires voice providers to stop carrying calls the agency has linked to 13 individuals and six companies, mostly based in Texas and California but also in such far-flung places as Hungary.
The robocalls produced by the group typically begin with recorded lines such as, “We’ve been trying to reach you concerning your car’s extended warranty,” the FCC order said.
Such calls represented the single largest source of consumer complaints to the FCC in each of the past two years, adding up to thousands of complaints a year.
As part of its scheme, the group bought access to nearly half a million phone numbers from more than 200 area codes in the fall and winter of 2020, the FCC said, and then used them to make it appear to recipients that the robocalls were coming from local numbers.
The group is still blasting out millions of illegal calls every day, the FCC added.”
Bystander,
Here’s some facts: The January 6th picador circus will end up in the same waste basket as the fake Russian Illusion show and the democrats will be shellacked on November 8th. The leftist media and fruit punch swilling s0cialist crowd is talking about Trump, 24/7 which is a remarkable case of mental sickness while a list of issues in this country are ignored or deflected due to ineptitude and incompetence. The right to murder your baby and creating a new gender for every letter of the alphabet are not kitchen table issues.
Ed.
I agree that Dems should be shellacked on Nov 8th. They promised cohesion and Manchin has basically undercut agenda by himself. That is the way it goes, like McCain giving Fu to dumpy on Obamacare. It has little to do with Jan 6th hearings. It has to be investigated. It is slick operation because everyone came forth from R side to condemn him, period. His culpability can’t be challenged unless you throw entire R cabinet and legislatures under bus as liars. You can’t.
VZ fine, don’t forget I get paid to write risk.
I know Lefty.
Gator is a shrewd tax fighter. Probably saved me $4,000 a year over about 15 years. It really adds up.
Eddie,
Perhaps you are the one with the mental illness. Ranting like a lunatic. It is clear as crystal what Trump was up to and plenty of testimony by witnesses to prove it.
Sorry to argue with you about this. It is like poking fun at someone who is crippled. It is clear your brain belongs in a wheelchair. I will make an attempt to be more kind and understanding of your disability in the future.
House looks great, good luck. Need a GTG at Silk when it closes. You buy if she breaks seven figures :)
Ouch! Lol
Old realtor says:
July 22, 2022 at 12:20 pm
Eddie,
Perhaps you are the one with the mental illness. Ranting like a lunatic. It is clear as crystal what Trump was up to and plenty of testimony by witnesses to prove it.
Sorry to argue with you about this. It is like poking fun at someone who is crippled. It is clear your brain belongs in a wheelchair. I will make an attempt to be more kind and understanding of your disability in the future.
Two things can be true, trump is all of those things mentioned above , and anyone who is still defending Biden is an idiot. He is hands down the worst individual in the office of the president everyone’s lifetime who posts here.
I am now of the opinion that most of the issue we have would not have happened under trump, which is remarkable to me. Absolutely remarkable.
Wow, an Irish cult member arrives. My Irish relatives absolutely laughed that Trump was our prez and thought US was insane. Trump caused much of the mess, Anus. You can’t print trillions in free handouts in 2020 then claim it had no impact on inflation now. Economy was shut down on his watch. He gave us Fauci as COVID task force leader. Biden is a doddering old man but has higher Dow and lower unemployment than Orange Khan. You simply decide to ignore facts that you screamed to the hollows was the “mark of greatest economy in the history of man-kind”. How is black unemployment? Oh right lowest of pandemic era. Trump did that, right?
Trump simply can’t be defended for his actions on Jan 6; that should be crystal clear. He needs to go away.
They need some else to run outside of Trump, Cruze, or DesSantis. Last election was the is 1st time I voted D. If its biden trump i’m sitting it out.
Trick: I have sat out the last 2 elections. I could not bring myself to vote for either one, either time. First time not voting.
Beautiful beach day it’s about 7 degrees cooler than inland with a nice ocean breeze. Just ordered $56 with of Jersey Mike’s for the kids and adults their prices keep going up and up next time I may just make them myself.
Trick
If those are our choices I’m either voting libertarian or for teddy Roosevelt
Hold: If those are the choices, I will vote for myself!
Trump will be under indictment and perhaps on trial in Georgia by next year he won’t be running.
I will vote for you 3b.
Bystander: Thank you!! Summer White House will be in Asbury Park or Spring Lake.!
Bystander,
Again you can’t see the forest for the trees. The only cult I see here is the one you apparently in. They are both awful, but Biden is simply dreadful, there is nothing to defend . Zero.
I was in Ireland last week as a matter of fact and my relatives constantly bring up trump. Which I get, from there perspective but it’s usually Right after they complain about the eight hours my cousin took to be seen at the local medical office. For a land that can’t keep its youth home still in 2021, I laugh whenever they bring up anything from a geopolitical, economic or any other standpoint. It’s a lovely country with a weak economy, with tourism as an enormous driver.
You need to step away with your bitterness, it has engulfed you. Trump is long gone, Biden will be gone soon enough with nothing to be proud of, then it’s on to hopefully a younger generation. But I doubt it, it will be more of the same.
I’ll vote for 3b as well Stu will be the head of the Fed.
Gary secretary of defense
Grim…… head of the ATF
Bystander: I can set you up with a nice Ambassador spot, just let me know where.
Seamus: I would have Stu as head of the Fed, but he might want to be US Ambassador to Costa Rica.
What’s the big deal? This is just good business. Kids don’t get impacted with Covid the way adults too, plus their finger are small and probably. /sarcasm
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11039513/Hyundai-subsidiary-used-child-labor-Alabama-factory.html
Hah, cherry job 3b. All fun and no responsibility. My cousin worked for US embassy in Dublin and dated a guy there.
Seamus,
Ireland is in transition. My younger female cousins all got education and have careers outside farming, in nursing/special ed or business. They have better opportunities elsewhere. Part of joining EU. My male cousins mostly still farmers or skilled craftsman. In the end, they will come back home. Get a plot of land for free and raise families. They are not high society striving for much. The dole is a problem. I guess reductions have people upset.
Also, I get Biden is weak leader and ineffective but saying we would not have these troubles under Trump is a ridiculous statement. We had these problems under him. It shows bias and lack of analysis. The country made right decision in Nov 2020 and hope we make it again in Nov 2024, which should not be Slo Jo or the Clown.
Bystander: I knew you would appreciate it. And the US ambassador residence is beautiful.
Seamus: As Bystander said, Ireland is in transition and has been for over 20 years. It’s changed dramatically over the decades, and mostly for the better. Many still leave because they choose to, and for a variety of reasons, not the primary one which used to be employment. The housing prices are insane in the Dublin area, but there are still very affluent places to live and commuting options much better they were, with a network of highways, and a good train system. Plus more and more are going remote. As Bystander said the level of education is very high, and with multiple degrees. Joining the EU in spite of its problems was the best thing the country ever did. They have always been obsessed with American politics and world affairs in general. Their health system is in crisis, no doubt, and wait times are incredible. Routine stuff over here could take 6 months or more. A lot of Europe is struggling with their health care system, including the UK and their NHS. Your kid needs braces in Britain, good luck 2 year waiting list.
8:24…..I don’t wanna splash it here, whole bunch of stuff happening Id love to stare at Neptunes!
“This is deadly accurate. Z’s are going to be an incredible generation. These kids are thrifty, un-wasteful and wicked smart. A lot of 15 year olds have the knowledge base of College Juniors of 20 years ago. Zs will be the greatest generation in my humble opinion.
Zs are the first generation to be color blind, unimpressed with wealth and inclusive of any sexual identifier as a way to include people. This might come across as naive but I see it as a Super Power of productivity. They want the best on their team without prejudice. All Aboard”
They are such pussies. Acting like life isn’t about working and survival. Want full time compensation for part-time work. That’s really what WFH is about…pussification. People want to get done with their work asap, and then sit on their ass scrolling past their screen on their phone. Comical. Spend their spare time screen swiping like that isn’t pointless work…but they will cry about working a 9-5 as a waste of time..insanity.
“Am I the only one that sees a problem with working 8-9 hours a day and then going home to having about 4 hours to yourself which includes getting ready for the next day??? This is not life…”
https://twitter.com/shelbyn_23/status/1549944330646949890?s=21&t=pLTYsAUYEwhxR8f9MUkeNg
The biggest problem for the U.S. housing market is that there aren’t enough homes available. The sales slowdown probably won’t do much to alleviate the situation and over time could make it even worse
https://www.wsj.com/articles/america-still-needs-more-homes-11658337992
2024 mania stage…buy up whatever you can now. While it’s cheap..
“People want to get done with their work asap, and then sit on their ass scrolling past their screen on their phone.”
Mathew 7:3 – “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?”
“…Acting like life isn’t about working and survival. Want full time compensation for part-time work. That’s really what WFH is about…pussification….”
Actually it’s about decentralization. It’s about computer networks with robust collaborative capabilities. It’s about a loosening of arbitrary work rules that have been around since the industrial revolution. It’s about loosening the chokehold that management has on many workers lives.
It’s obvious you have absolutely no idea how business is conducted in the real world.
When someone who works in the real world shows up they must produce value day in and day out. They don’t get a job for life after 3 years. Their job is their life and they need to constantly demonstrate they have what it takes to survive.
Ex : Well said.
OC1 Self awareness is a wonderful thing.
Could not help it but post it.
From the democratic side is Hillary’s fault, after Obama she made sure there was no bench for someone to challenge her.
This is also the reason that immortality if ever achieved should be illegal, just in case any billionaire gets there. In my experience dealing with the geezer crowd, they want to do themselves in by 85.
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-biden-bernie-sanders-age-geriatric-chicken-2024-2022-7
4:50 “share”
Thanks 3b – I “helped” with the buildout of the networks in the 90s by distribution of billions in gear…
This particular application is just that dream fulfilling that potential.
Ex,
You see nothing wrong with this tweet and the thread? Wow, no offense, but you went too far left. Life is about work, not sitting around on your ass all day. An 8 hour day is nothing, and these individuals are crying about it?! How do you think the world progresses? You think we are better off with a population that works a couple hours and then sits around all day? Be real, there are real consequences for accepting a “no work ethic” attitude in our society.
“Am I the only one that sees a problem with working 8-9 hours a day and then going home to having about 4 hours to yourself which includes getting ready for the next day??? This is not life…”
https://twitter.com/shelbyn_23/status/1549944330646949890?s=21&t=pLTYsAUYEwhxR8f9MUkeNg
I’ll out produce most people. I have an extremely strong work ethic. I was brought up to respect a strong worth ethic, not blast it.
Ex says:
July 23, 2022 at 10:18 am
When someone who works in the real world shows up they must produce value day in and day out. They don’t get a job for life after 3 years. Their job is their life and they need to constantly demonstrate they have what it takes to survive.
5:48 you are a cost center. You produce nothing of measurable value.
You exist because of the revenue produced by taxpayers.
This is the same that can be said of every single public servant.
You don’t think his 40 posts a day, including during work days, have value? On second thought, maybe they don’t.
Ex,
I was working over 60 hrs a week at the post office at 19. Took that money and flipped it into a house. I then went back to college, had 3 jobs while doing 18-21 credits a semester. Came out of college almost debt free at a time when most people were crying about college debt. Going to be mortgage free by 50 years old, while avg 30k a year in property taxes since I was 31.
I more than paid for my job in taxes. Not a free loader.
How many people you know that accomplished what I did without a single penny from mommy and daddy. It was pure hard work. Don’t bust my balls and think I have no work ethic because I was smart enough at a young age to get my ass kicked at the post office and realize I should go be a teacher. I then made it happen. So am I supposed to be feeling bad about that? Am I nor supposed to feel accomplished?
Again, i will eat most people alive when it comes to sacrifice and a work ethic. I didn’t get to where I am on pure luck. I did by busting my ass and hitting goals.
Am i as successful as a zuckerburg, no, but how many people are. Am i more successful than most people…absolutely. Made something out of nothing with hard work and sacrifice.
What can I say…isn’t it obvious? Im a go getter. I am capable of doing multiple things at once and your hate for me blinds you from seeing it.
I am one of the individuals that has provided a lot of value on this blog. Instead of busting my balls you should have maxed out a mortgage and bought from 2013-2020. That was seriously great advice, and what do you come back with? You bust my balls on why I didn’t buy more? Well, you talk to my conservative wife. We had too much in real estate for her liking. Wish she wasn’t, but i respect her…aka it is what it is.
BRT called me out for stock picks years ago. I said put it all in Amazon and apple while the world hated them and they were getting slammed. All this overvalued bs talk by the know it alls. What happened? They blew the f up.
I don’t work in finance, yet I know more about stocks and investing from putting endless years into learning it. I seriously know any insane amount about the financial markets. Arkk was a huge lesson in how liquidity drives everything. It’s more important than company fundamentals. That’s how you get chit companies making their stock holders rich…liquidity. When it rains it pours, when it dries get the f out. Yet, most people are blind to this.
PumpkinFace says:
July 23, 2022 at 8:10 pm
You don’t think his 40 posts a day, including during work days, have value? On second thought, maybe they don’t.
Everyday I try to help provide information on this blog. When I get time, I provide a lot of useful information. What does angry people like pumpkinface do? Yells at me for it. Weird. Why get mad at someone for providing lots of free information? It is what it is…you do you even though I don’t understand the anger.
And it’s sad that none of you see anything wrong with this picture. How? I don’t know. If you think this is good for america or human society in general, you are crazy. This is bad news that people are bitching about working a regular day. They are entitled. I heard generation Z is the opposite and will hopefully save us. I have lost hope in most young millennials. They are total bitches. Not all, but way too many of them are. Had it way too easy in life and now crying about an 8 hour work day or having to actually leave their house for work. What bitches.
On a bright spot, easier competition in the game of capitalism. Just sucks that they will make our country weaker overall.
“Am I the only one that sees a problem with working 8-9 hours a day and then going home to having about 4 hours to yourself which includes getting ready for the next day??? This is not life…”
https://twitter.com/shelbyn_23/status/1549944330646949890?s=21&t=pLTYsAUYEwhxR8f9MUkeNg
Keep defending this loser mentality. How selfish can you be? This girl is out of her mind.
“Then to be married and have kids ON TOP of all of that? Wild. No wonder people are depressed and going through it. That’s too much to handle.
Working 4/5 hours a day would be perfectly fine, too. Even in a field I enjoy. At least I can know majority of my day/life is still for me and not for the job I work for. If only we could get the world to see that our career is our LIFE. Not making money for big corporations…”
“At least I know majority of my day is for me and not for the job I work for. “
Rotflmao….talk about lost in the woods. This is loser talk..
The auto industry collapse has just begun and this would be one of the worst times for you to buy a vehicle.
In a normal market (pre-2020), Auto Loan delinquencies hovered at 2 to 3%.
Today that number is exploding with nearly 1 in every 4 loans in default in Washington DC
The key issue that caused this is how Auto Loans are issued.
Currently, Americans owe more than $1.2 Trillion on auto loans (the highest in US history and a 75% increase from 2009).
Given the fact that more than 85% of cars are financed, we are looking at a massive problem.
I did some digging and found out that over the last 10 years, car dealerships have begun making more profits from the financing of cars rather than the car sales themselves.
Translating from auto sale to loan sale business has resulted in a loosely regulated grey market.
This was possible because dealerships successfully lobbied to have less oversight – meaning that there is no federal oversight with auto loans unlike Mortgages, student loans, and credit cards.
Reduced oversight allowed them to lend money without proper background checks.
An investigation in late 2021 found that up to 50% of the loans were given to customers who might not be able to afford them.
The income and employment verification only happened 4 percent of the time.
All of this means that more and more customers are starting to default.
The best-performing state is Utah with 4.5% of loans in default whereas other areas are much worse
California – 8.7%
Texas – 10%
Washington, DC – 23%
Once payment is more than 90 days late, the lender can repossess your car.
With more and more cars getting repossessed, higher gas prices, and rising inflation, we are seeing the used car demand slowing down drastically.
We can observe the price drop in every single segment.
If we continue with the same trajectory, we could be due for an 18% decline in used car value.
This is something @DougDeMuro also addressed in his recent tweet.
With the average price of a new vehicle rising up to $48k, buying a pre-owned car might look attractive.
But, if you can, do postpone the purchase to see how this will play out.
In the best-case scenario, you will be able to buy the same car at a 20% discount next year.
The auto repo increase has been on watch for months now, with rising interest rates average car loan is more than $700. In May I was able to get 2.79% APR when I got the ioniq5, it was a hedge against increase in gas and rates etc.
Also was able sell a car on facebook. Seen so many price reductions along the way. I did it too. The best will be winter time to buy a used car. Not now. There is still a lot of demand in summer. Also deferred demand due to COVID still persists.
Guy nails it. They just love to complain.
“Of course. The office is just a building and can be disliked at best. They hate the commute, the people in the office, the job they feel that they’re unappreciated and underpaid for doing, the time it takes away from things they’d rather do, their boss, the futility of it all..😆”
10:29 I’m sure that’s very admirable, but I am not sure any of it counts as measurable
Productivity – the kind the gubmint measures – .
However, measuring productivity in the public sector can be tricky because:
There are often no market transactions for public services, or they are distorted by subsidies and other market imperfections.
Many public services are complex, requiring (often immeasurable) inputs from multiple individuals and organizations.
There is often a substantial time lag between investments in inputs and the realization of outputs and outcomes.
This recent World Bank publication provides a summary of the different approaches to measuring productivity in the public sector, presented in the table below. For simplicity, the approaches are separated into: ‘macro’ approaches, which provide aggregate information at the level of an organization, sector, or service as a whole; and ‘micro’ approaches, which can be applied to the individual employee, task, project, and process.
I’ll tell you what, teaching gets no respect in terms of productivity, but public education is one of the most important inputs in future growth. A country/society is only as strong as their public education system. That’s why it’s so important we find good teachers. They have a major impact on the future of this country.
If you are not doing your job as a teacher, for the sake of the country, get out of the job. Chitty teachers boil my blood. They have no idea how important their job is or the consequences of their actions.
These teacher shortages happening now are dangerous. They are going to lower the standards and attract straight up losers. Don’t lower the standards, raise the pay, but as you keep pointing out in the passage below: if it’s not “measurable productivity” no one is going to support paying up. It is what it is, i just hope they can continue to find over qualified candidates for an underpaid job.
I do know of a few high performing senior graduates that are going into teaching, which leaves me with hope. We just need a lot more of them.
Remember, Napoleon was the leader responsible for getting the world on the road towards a public education system. He understood the value it brings to said society. I hope we don’t lose sight of this as we make calls in this country by certain factions to end public education system. That would send this country backwards.
The most important group to educate, and the biggest bang for your buck in terms of GDP productivity, comes from educating the lower class. They will become the most ambitious, and if educated, are a powerful future economic force. Take away a public education system and you will lose this powerful economic force.
Ex says:
July 24, 2022 at 12:23 am
10:29 I’m sure that’s very admirable, but I am not sure any of it counts as measurable
Productivity – the kind the gubmint measures – .
If any future teachers stumble upon this post, do your job to the best of your ability. The future of our country depends on it.
Esp if you are in a poverty stricken location, you have the most important job in that location. You can stop future crime and at the same time help get groups of people out of poverty through the power of education. Motivate them, unlock the ambition hiding beneath the service, and help make America great again. F the money, your job is more important than a monetary exchange for your effort. Your reward is helping people and this country…aka priceless. And this realization will only come with age when you finally realize there is more to life than money…
“Redfin cut 8% of its workforce in June. Compass plans to lay off 10% of its staff due to “clear signals of slowing economic growth”.
More pain to come in this sector”
Very risky play unless they develop new tech that can be scaled like driverless taxi or energy storage. They need new avenues of growth or this is toast.
“That is the actual problem with $TSLA now. They got everything to lose and little yet to gain. So much competition coming after the EV market now. They might grow a few more years before the pack begins to erode their market share.”
“39: the number of consecutive days that #gasprices have declined nationally.
67: the number of cents average prices have declined since peaking June 14.
257: how much less (in millions) Americans will spend on gasoline today vs. June 14
40,000: number of gas stations under $4”
“Prepare yourselves now and don’t get caught off guard later. It is only going to get worse. This bull hopium is complete bullshit. This is a bear market rally through and through. Hell is coming and those that are greedy will be taken.”
“Greedy = too much leverage on long or short side. Bear markets are hard but bear rallies are brutal.”
Trains are empty time to Stop caving to NY on incomes taxes.
https://www.nj.com/opinion/2022/07/new-york-gets-the-best-of-new-jersey-governor-phil-murphy-once-again-mulshine.html
Driving into Denver. There is was a business that I thought was a quarry or wholesaler of building materials. I was mistaken. It is called Stone Works.
OK pumps so you see how it feels to be put on the defensive in terms of productivity.
If i were you I’d put the kayBosh on future judgements about the productivity of wfh.
Life is a series of complex intangibles only an imbecile tries to reduce it to something you can fit on a spreadsheet. For me wfh was probably the best year of my professional life. Just because it allowed me to try something I’d never done, with students I’d never met. We covered so much material that year. Plus, since it was so collaborative I was able to archive it for use again. Kids were able to focus through a medium they knew & loved. We had a 90% pass rate for AP 2D Design.
That my friend is productivity. Don’t get me started on the yearbook I “created” that year and the kids that I helped get into college. All while working side by side with my family, helping my own child in ways that ‘we’ never could until we really understood a few issues. WFH was in a word: transformational.
Gas is now $3.56 in my town.
Since I tested negative A week ago I’ve been getting more active each day. I felt doing more everyday while not feeling right will speed up my recovery. Took a 3 mile walk this morning. Felt pretty good. Brain fog is gone too. Feel almost back to normal.
Instructions for these threads.
Never read from bottom up.
Always start from oldest to newest.
Saves so much time when you know which posts to skip.
Damm pool is 89F and hot tub is 106F no heater needed, patio pavers are scorching hot too, have to keep the dog on the grass or in the shade as I singed my own feet. Even with every other day watering my lawn is now also brown and dormant like where not shaded. I hope we get rain tomorrow.My kids will be back in Camp after our Lavallette vacation and it’s too hot so anything but swim. They will want to stay home if this heat keeps up.
Sitting on a dock in the middle of literally nowhere… milky way to the visible eye last night was astounding… same for all the stars, forgot how many there are in the deep dark. Clouds are passing, little bit of Queen Jane – Dead not Dylan – and in celebration of what will be an unexpectedly outstanding sunset in a couple hours or so I’m heading back up to pop about 2x or so what I ought to in some edibles… high today was low 80s, 77 now, made the mistake last night of sleeping with the windows open and woke up shivering to throw socks on as it was lower 50s… wish I could post a photo. Have a good week all, Lib big earnings week haven’t really looked will tomorrow around lunch will post if anything jumps out
https://www.whitehouse.gov/cea/written-materials/2022/07/21/how-do-economists-determine-whether-the-economy-is-in-a-recession/
What is a recession? While some maintain that two consecutive quarters of falling real GDP constitute a recession, that is neither the official definition nor the way economists evaluate the state of the business cycle. Instead, both official determinations of recessions and economists’ assessment of economic activity are based on a holistic look at the data—including the labor market, consumer and business spending, industrial production, and incomes. Based on these data, it is unlikely that the decline in GDP in the first quarter of this year—even if followed by another GDP decline in the second quarter—indicates a recession.
https://www.nj.com/opinion/2022/07/murphys-sabotage-of-top-newark-charters-reeks-of-politics-editorial.html?outputType=amp
Article says it’s the best charter in the country and it has “average” student
Student Progress
6
/10
Students at this school are making average academic progress given where they were last year, compared to similar students in the state
and below average college readiness. 5/10