It’s global. The numbers are there for all to see. From developed to underdeveloped nations, economies are slowing down and/or contracting. Numerous companies across the tech, media, finance, and retail industries made significant cuts in 2023 and will continue the trend this year.
Category: 9 January 2024
WAREHOUSES HAVE THE MOST EMPTY SPACE SINCE 2020
Across the U.S., 5.2 percent of warehouse space stood empty in last year’s fourth quarter, up from 4.6 percent in the third and 3.1 percent in 2022’s final three months, real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield reported.
COVID HAS PERMANENTLY NARROWED CONSUMERS’ CHOICES
Choked supply chains during the COVID War cut the number of items that manufacturers could make. Product lines in everything from bed sheets to cat food narrowed. Now that the COVID era has largely passed and supply lines have re-established themselves, those missing items are not coming back, The Wall Street Journal reported.
CPR CAN DO MORE HARM THAN GOOD WITHOUT A DEFIBRILLATOR
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,[1] 90 percent of the annual health care expenditure which totals $4.1 trillion is directed to people with chronic and mental health conditions. One of those is cardiovascular disease, which is the cause of more than 877,500 deaths each year.
SPOTLIGHT: BIGS GETTING BIGGER
Consolidation is the name of the “Bigs” game. The more they own the more they control... it’s the way of the power hungry world. As we have noted since the Central Banksters started to rapidly raise interest rates, the decade’s long merger and acquisition spree is over.
SPOTLIGHT: CHINA’S ECONOMIC STRUGGLE
“On the path ahead, winds and rain are the norm” for the Chinese economy, president Xi Jinping told his countrymen in a New Year’s Eve speech.
HOME CONSTRUCTION STARTS AND PERMITS JUMP IN NOVEMBER
In November, builders began work on new homes at a clip that translates to an annual rate of 1.6 million housing units and filed permits to construct 1.5 million more, news service Quartz reported.
FACTORY CONSTRUCTION IS BOOMING BUT WILL FACTORY PRODUCTION FOLLOW?
The Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act and U.S. Chips and Science Act have dedicated funding to high-tech and clean energy investments. As a result, factories are being built in selected areas of the country at a pace not seen in decades.
THE RENT IS STILL TOO DAMN HIGH
Twenty-four percent of U.S. adults who rent their homes say they can no longer comfortably afford to pay their rent, according to a survey of 1,249 individuals by Intuit Credit Karma.
LAYOFFS VIRTUALLY DOUBLED IN 2023
Last year, U.S. companies planned or carried out layoffs targeting 721,677 jobs, 98 percent more than in 2022 and the most since 2020, outplacement service Challenger, Gray & Christmas (CGC) said in a report released last week.