Category: TRENDS ON THE U.S. ECONOMIC FRONT

The European Union has suspended its ban on government subsidies to businesses as member nations pledge hundreds of billions of euros to save industries, sustain companies, and pay laid-off workers as the implications of their response to the virus plays out. France already has promised €45 billion to re-inflate its economy. The Netherlands has announced...

As the Trends Journal has been reporting, U.S. oil companies – especially those heavily invested in fracked wells – are facing three threats to their existence: oil prices lower than they’ve been for years and, for many companies, lower than the cost of pulling oil out of the ground; the global economic shutdown; and $86...

U.S. Mega-Banks Going Bust? From 14 February through 20 March, five of the largest U.S. banks lost an average of 45 percent of their stock market value, reports Wall Street on Parade (WSOP): Bank of America: -43.6 percent Citigroup: -51.7 percent Goldman Sachs: -41.6 percent JP Morgan Chase: -39.3 percent Morgan Stanley: -46.9 percent The...

The overloaded $1.2 trillion market in junk bonds – bonds issued by high-risk companies – is showing strains and may break down completely. Years of low interest rates and easy credit have encouraged companies to borrow to buy their own or others’ stocks, to buy other companies, or to expand operations, among other financial adventures....

The coronavirus is killing more jobs, businesses, and industries than people. In America alone, some 43 percent of people are now locked down. While the International Labor Organization projects some 25 million people will be out of work worldwide over the next several months, with income loss from $860 billion to $3.4 trillion, we forecast...

On Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average continued its sell off, falling another 582 points, or 3 percent, erasing three years of gains and was on pace to clinch its worst calendar month since 1931. The S&P 500 dropped 2.9 percent, down more than 30 percent from a record close set on 19 February. Analysts...

The U.S. Federal Reserve, as aptly noted by Pam and Russ Martens, “has just become a brand new national legislative body. It will, without any oversight in Congress, decide what corporation and business to save and which to let fail.” They note that “Wall Street’s mega banks and trading houses will, once again have trillions...

With entire cities now locked down, industries closed, and consumers losing their paychecks as the COVID-19 governments force them to close down, the retail sector will be hit with “Greatest Depression” sale slumps. Key industries requiring face-to-face contact with customers are shutting down, leaving tens of millions of workers suddenly without paychecks. The legendary restaurant,...

The U.S. annual budget deficit totaled $625 billion during the first five months of the current federal fiscal year, a 15-percent rise compared to the same period in the previous year. Federal spending was up 9 percent during the period, while government revenue increased 7 percent. The rising deficit has resulted from increased spending on...

Since the virus outbreak, investment managers seeking to minimize risk have been dumping their holdings of stocks and bonds in emerging economies. Foreign investors have shed $47.1 billion of the instruments since 21 January, twice as much as immediately following the market crash that launched the Great Recession in 2008. TREND FORECAST: Violence and protests...