The White House, economists and media pundits are celebrating the latest unemployment numbers coming out of the Department of Labor. According to the federal department, the unemployment once again dipped, this time to 5.6 percent, a figure that President Obama is celebrating and taking credit for. As many have previously argued, the jobless rate calculated […]
Archives for February 2015
China stimulating economy by pumping $100 billion into banks, expanding credit access
What’s the one way to stimulate an economy? Give the big banks more money of course! Beijing slashes the reserve requirement ratio by 0.5 percent in addition to the reduction in interest rates late last year. This move frees up approximately $100 billion in additional funds banks can lend to borrowers. In order to avoid […]
Chart: Net interest will surpass defense, non-defense spending by 2022
If interest rates remain the same between now and the year 2025, the net interest the United States government pays on its debt will be the biggest budget item, even higher than defense and non-defense spending. According to data from the White House (via the Wall Street Journal), spending on net interest will surpass defense […]
15 facts to show U.S. households are on brink of financial collapse
Economists and the Federal Reserve may argue that the United States economy is improving and returning to pre-recession levels, but households aren’t sharing that same level of enthusiasm. With trillions of dollars in consumer debt, higher price inflation and a lack of income gains, households are facing financial disarray. Today’s environment of record-low interest rates, […]
Shrinkflation: Cadbury’s Daily Milk bar getting smaller in Australia
Your chocolate bar is getting smaller but costing the same at the cash register. The trend for a lot of food companies in recent years has been to reduce the size of the product but either keep the price the same or raise the cost to consumers. From price inflation to higher operating costs, corporations […]