The number of companies that have sunk into the lowest five ranks of Moody’s credit rating system, or are just one step above, has virtually doubled that of the Great Recession, from 213 in 2008 to 412 now. The 21-level ratings system ranges from Aaa to C, the lower grade meaning a company has defaulted...
Tag: may 19 2020
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LOW-WAGE WORKERS PAY LOCKDOWN PRICE
According to a Federal Reserve survey, 39 percent of households with annual incomes below $40,000 lost at least one job since the pandemic struck, while only 19 percent of households earning $40,000 to $100,000 did. Among households with incomes of $100,000 or more, 11 percent lost one or more jobs. While 5 percent of workers...
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SPENDING TANKS, SAVINGS SOAR
Spooked by the prospect of losing their jobs and another economic shutdown this fall, Americans are cutting spending, paying off installment debt, and hoarding cash. Retail sales cratered in April, falling 16.4 percent from March, an unprecedented one-month plunge, and 21.4 percent lower than a year earlier. March’s decline was 8.3 percent. Furniture sales retreated...
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THE GREAT DEFLATION?
Prices for U.S. consumer goods, excluding groceries, declined in March and April, falling 0.8 percent in the latter month, the largest one-month slide since December 2008, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Gasoline and energy prices, which are now heading back up a bit, led the price shrinkage, contracting by 10.1 percent. Excluding...
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U.S. MARKETS
Yesterday, the Dow closed up 911 points on continued hopes of reopening the locked economy and hopes for progress on a COVID virus vaccine. Today, the Dow fell nearly 400 points after a report questioned the results for that potential coronavirus vaccine. NASDAQ dropped 0.54 percent. Brent Crude fell a bit, closing at $34.51 a barrel while West...
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HONG KONG: PROTESTS VS. COVID
As reported in last week’s Trends Journal, protests started heating up again on the streets of Hong Kong after the months-long string of demonstrations were stopped by stay-at-home orders in response to the coronavirus. The city government proclaimed over the weekend that the majority of social-distancing restrictions would remain, including the ban on any public...
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SAUDI ARABIA: WASHINGTON’S 9/11 ALLY
Since the worst attack by a foreign enemy on American soil took place on 9/11, both the mainstream media and Washington have made concerted efforts to underreport the fact that 15 of the 19 hijackers involved in the attack were Saudis. The most recent example was revealed on 13 May when it was reported the...
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DISSING DISTANCING
According to cellphone location data, citizens across the U.S. have been moving around a lot more recently, despite the continuing imposition of government ordered restrictions, and they are moving closer together. As states slowly begin the tedious task of reopening and lifting certain bans, the data shows people are adhering less to social distancing. Data...
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WISCONSIN STAY-AT-HOME ORDERS STRUCK DOWN
Last Wednesday, the Wisconsin Supreme Court declared the state’s stay-at-home orders were “unlawful, invalid and unenforceable.” The 4-3 ruling referred to the restrictions as a “vast seizure of power.” Writing on behalf of the court’s majority, Justice Daniel Kelly noted, “This comprehensive claim to control virtually every aspect of a person’s life is something we...
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KILLING THE ELDERLY
As we have been reporting since the COVID-19 outbreak, across America and around the world, the vast majority of those dying from COVID are the elderly, particularly those with significant pre-existing health issues and living in nursing homes. In many European countries, the number of deaths from elder care homes is around 50 percent. In...