The perpetually depressed American consumer: Stock market high and bounce in real estate does not assist in boosting consumer confidence. 57 percent of Americans think economic outlook is getting worse.
Looking at the stock market and real estate prices would lead you to believe that the economy is recovering at a healthy clip. The underlying conditions of the economy may benefit the financial and real estate sectors (both live off each other) yet for most American families conditions are not rosy. In fact consumer confidence […]
The dual income conundrum – Americans need to work two jobs to make up for stagnant wages and the sinister impact of a middle class being eaten away by inflation.
In the United States the dual income household is the status quo. In the late 1960s dual income households were not common. Today however two income households are the majority largely because many Americans require two incomes just to stay afloat. This has been labeled as the “two income trap†and in many ways, it […]
The death of retail: What do RadioShack and J.C. Penney say about the future consumer economy? Low wage retail work to take a hit.
RadioShack recently announced that it will be closing 1,100 of its 5,000 stores. Holiday sales were dismal and shares were pummeled dropping by 24 percent. The problem of course is that these 1,100 store closures will result in many Americans out of jobs in one of the biggest employment sectors in the country, retail. Yet […]
Personal income faces first year-over-year drop since recession ended: As incomes collapse, spending via consumer credit begins to increase.
There is little doubt that our economy runs on access to debt. Not a tiny bit of debt. But Himalayan mountains of debt. The banking crisis was pitched to the public as one of liquidity but in reality, it was one of solvency. The difference? One is a temporary inability to repay debts while the […]