The Question is Not “When” but “Why” the Fed Would Cut Rates with a Labor Market this Strong and Wage Growth Accelerating

Job openings in construction near record; job market retightens in manufacturing and in business & professional services where many tech companies are.

Are the Headlines about Factory Orders Messing with us Again?

by Wolf Richter • Dec 4, 2023 • 51 Comments

The drop in new orders was off an all-time high, while unfilled orders rose to an all-time high. Orders by major category.

I Call them “Drunken Sailors,” But Are They? Can We Finally Get a Deal on a New or Used Vehicle? Is Inflation Moving in the Right Direction? And Other Stuff

by Wolf Richter • Dec 4, 2023 • 14 Comments

Wolf Richter on This Week in Money.

The Eyepopping Factory Construction Boom in the US

by Wolf Richter • Dec 2, 2023 • 227 Comments

The supply-chain catastrophe in 2020-2021, the edgy US-China relationship, and the scary dependence on China triggered a big corporate rethink.

Oh Deary, No, Our Drunken Sailors Did Not Suddenly Sober Up, on the Contrary

by Wolf Richter • Dec 1, 2023 • 161 Comments

They Out-Spent and Out-Earned inflation without breaking a sweat, and saved some too.

Beneath the Skin of the PCE Price Index: Inflation in Services

by Wolf Richter • Nov 30, 2023 • 144 Comments

Gasoline plunged, durable goods fell. Inflation still hot in housing, insurance, healthcare, transportation (incl. auto services). Food inflation simmers.

“Unrealized Losses” on Securities Held by Banks Jump by 22% to $684 Billion in Q3, Oh Lordy

by Wolf Richter • Nov 30, 2023 • 104 Comments

They don’t matter until they suddenly do.

Interest Payments on the Ballooning Federal Debt vs. Tax Receipts & GDP: Not as Bad as in 1982-1997, but Getting There

by Wolf Richter • Nov 29, 2023 • 76 Comments

Our drunken sailors in Congress better head to the detox.

Most Splendid Housing Bubbles in America, Nov. Update: From 2022 Highs, San Francisco -11%, Seattle -10%, Las Vegas -6%, Phoenix -6%, Portland -5%, Denver -5%, Dallas -5%, San Diego…

by Wolf Richter • Nov 28, 2023 • 224 Comments

20-City index below 2022 high, 9 metros below 2022 highs, 10 metros set new highs. The unsavory “National” index cocktail in the headlines gets shredded.

Prices of New Houses Drop Further, -18% Year-over-Year, Sales Drop, High Inventories Rise Further, Supply Jumps

by Wolf Richter • Nov 27, 2023 • 225 Comments

Mortgage-rate buydowns, “smaller product footprints,” and “de-amenitizing” to bring down payments: D.R. Horton.

Money Market Funds, Large CDs, Small CDs All Surged: Americans Figured it Out

by Wolf Richter • Nov 24, 2023 • 144 Comments

Banks, forced by competition from money market funds, got the memo.

Lithium “Shortage” Bubble Implodes (Again), Price Collapsed 77% in a Year, as Demand and Production Both Surged

by Wolf Richter • Nov 23, 2023 • 75 Comments

Investors smell the money, billions are flowing, even in the US, which could become major lithium producer.

Even Higher for Longer if Markets Keep Fighting Central Banks, ECB’s Wunsch Explains. The Fed Has Same Problem

by Wolf Richter • Nov 22, 2023 • 199 Comments

“If the markets don’t infer from this that it’ll be high for longer, we’ll have to use our rate instruments and hike to get where we want to go.”

Home Sales Collapse, Prices Drop Further, Supply Jumps. People Are Finally on Buyers’ Strike

by Wolf Richter • Nov 21, 2023 • 156 Comments

Supply is coming back, demand is not. Prices are still way too high.