Growth of the Vacant Housing Stock in the US

by Wolf Richter • Jul 28, 2026 • 2 Comments

The US added 1.51 million housing units (new construction minus demolitions) in 12 months, homes for 3.5 million people. The population grew by 757,000. And vacant housing units continued to surge.

Korean KOSPI Crashes 10.8% Today, -34% in 25 Days, after 300% Spike, as Consensual Hallucination Fades

by Wolf Richter • Jul 28, 2026 • 38 Comments

Amid general chipmaker bloodbath, SK Hynix and Samsung, which make up half of the index, crashed even more.

How Massive AI Data Center Investment Pushes the Economy & Prices: See Durable Goods Orders

by Wolf Richter • Jul 27, 2026 • 34 Comments

Orders for computer & electronic products; electrical equipment & components; machinery incl. power generation equipment; fabricated metals products; and core capital goods – all surged.

Long-Term Treasury Yields Jump as Bloodied Bond Market Gets Edgier about Inflation & the Massive New Debt

by Wolf Richter • Jul 25, 2026 • 94 Comments

During the last debt scare, the 10-year yield hit 5%, and the floodgates of demand opened. Now the debt is $6 trillion bigger; no guarantee 5% will open the floodgates again.

New Single-Family Home Prices Drop Further amid Declining Sales and once again Growing Inventory Glut

by Wolf Richter • Jul 24, 2026 • 50 Comments

In the South, inventory for sale was up 71% from 2019, while sales were down 8%. Homebuilders are very motivated to make deals.

Bond Market Just Flipped to “Rate Hike in July” as 2-Month Treasury Yield Spiked by 13 Basis Points

by Wolf Richter • Jul 23, 2026 • 44 Comments

Warsh scuttled forward guidance, markets are on their own. However this comes out, it promises to be a rougher ride, but in a fresh breeze.

AI May Not Cause Total Jobs Armageddon Afterall: Google Reports on How AI Is Being Used at Work

by Wolf Richter • Jul 23, 2026 • 87 Comments

AI is used in 68% of occupations representing 88% of US employment, from software developers to farmers, industrial engineers, and foresters. It’s not automating away those jobs but is helping workers do their jobs.

Mortgage Rates Rise to 6.77%, Highest in a Year, Driven by Bond Market Fears of Inflation & the Ballooning Debt

by Wolf Richter • Jul 22, 2026 • 68 Comments

Promising another morose summer in the housing market.

Single-Family & Multifamily Rents in Face of an Onslaught of New Supply & Fading Population Growth

by Wolf Richter • Jul 21, 2026 • 51 Comments

The gap between single-family rents and multifamily rents has widened massively. A look at 14 big markets.

Oh Dear, Condo Prices Fell by 15% to 33% in 30 Bigger Cities Already. Some Dropped Back to 2006 Levels

by Wolf Richter • Jul 20, 2026 • 53 Comments

In another 39 bigger cities, condo prices fell by 8% to 14%. A massive hangover after a historic Condo Bubble.

30-Year Treasury Yield still 5.06%, 30-Year TIPS Yield Highest since 2010 Reintroduction, Yield Curve Prepped for Rate Hike

by Wolf Richter • Jul 19, 2026 • 42 Comments

Unabated fears of inflation and worries about the onslaught of new debt keep pushing up long-term yields.

Home Prices in 33 Big Expensive Cities in America: 25 Fell Year-over-Year in June, 2 Rose to New Highs

by Wolf Richter • Jul 17, 2026 • 83 Comments

And 28 were down from their peaks in prior years, led by Austin -27% and Oakland -25%.

Fuel for the 2nd Wave of Inflation: Import Prices of Manufactured Goods, Driven by Computers & Electronic Products

by Wolf Richter • Jul 17, 2026 • 32 Comments

The first shock was due to the supply-chain chaos in 2021 through 2022. The second shock is now, it’s huge, and it’s due to the AI investment boom.

Americans Splurge Online and at Vehicle Dealers, instead of Buying Homes? YOLO? Retail Sales without Gas Stations Jump for 5th Month

by Wolf Richter • Jul 16, 2026 • 64 Comments

Sales at gas stations were pushed by massive price movements of gasoline; we look at retailer categories separately to sort it out.

Pending Home Sales Plunge to Near-Record Low in the Data, Hit Low in the West. Since then, Mortgage Rates Rose Further

by Wolf Richter • Jul 16, 2026 • 62 Comments

Sales sag in all regions, plunge the most in the Midwest, drop to lowest for June in the South. Demand stuck in the deep-freeze.

Producer Price Inflation beyond Energy: “Core” PPI Accelerates to 4.7%, Services PPI to 4.6%. Lots of Inflation Going on in Here

by Wolf Richter • Jul 15, 2026 • 61 Comments

The plunge in energy prices pushed down overall PPI inflation, to a still very high 5.5%. It has been zigzagging higher since mid-2023.

Largest “Foreign” Holders of US Treasuries, including US Hedge Funds Engaged in the “Basis Trade” & Corporate America

by Wolf Richter • Jul 14, 2026 • 14 Comments

How much of that foreign demand for US Treasuries is actually “foreign?” Less than it seems. Here are some clues.

Gasoline Plunged in June and lots of Month-to-Month CPI Squiggles Happened to Drop Simultaneously, but that Won’t Last

by Wolf Richter • Jul 14, 2026 • 54 Comments

The CPI headline does not provide political backing for a politically unpopular rate hike at the July FOMC meeting. Details – such as outliers reverting in a month or two – don’t matter today.

Fed Should Hike “in the Near Term” if CPI & PPI this Week Are “Hot”: Fed’s Waller. So at the July Meeting? Treasury Yields Jump

by Wolf Richter • Jul 13, 2026 • 65 Comments

“Sternly staring at inflation until it melts before our withering gaze is not an option,” he said with a sense of urgency.

US Government Sold $743 Billion of Treasury Securities this Week, 30-Year Yield at 5.06% on Inflation, Lax Fed, Supply Fears

by Wolf Richter • Jul 10, 2026 • 84 Comments

Lots of new supply: Treasury debt of notes and bonds outstanding ballooned by $70 billion this week.