Four months ago, when looking at the latest S&P/Bankcard data, we first reported that credit card defaults had surged the most since June 2013, a troubling development which ran fully counter to the narrative that the economy was recovering and the US consumer's balance sheet was improving.
Authored by Andrew Zatlin via MoneyballEconomics.com,
Total Retail Spend Grows On Hurricane-Linked Demand
First, I want to point out that the two hurricanes that have devastated Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico have been horrible.
Hundreds of thousands, if not millions of peoples’ lives were affected. And their circumstances have changed dramatically over these past couple months.
BUT… these hurricanes were a positive for economists looking for a boost in spending.
In what may be the final nail in President Trump's tax reform proposal, months after the White House proposed ending a tax break for people in high-tax states - which would suggest Trump had more than enough time familiarize himself with how it all works - Trump reportedly "grew angry" when he learned that the change would hurt some middle-income taxpayers, Bloomberg reports citing people familiar with his thinking.
Authored by Kevin Muir via The Macro Tourist,
Although US stock markets are getting all the attention, Japan is quietly knocking up against 20-year highs.
As Facebook COO Sherly Sandberg completes her desperate DC walk of shame in an attempt to appease Mark Warner and the rest of the Facebook-scapegoaters, she gave Axios an interview to explain (strawman) what the biggest social media platform in the world will do about the Russian menace that has Made America Divided Again (allegedly)...
Sandberg said she had "very productive" meetings yesterday with congressional leaders investigating Russian efforts to use social media to meddle with the 2016 U.S. presidential election.