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Post by redwolf on Jan 14, 2008 18:10:34 GMT -6
This has to be another sign of things to come. I know I've been trying to cut back. Americans Cut Back Sharply on SpendingBy MICHAEL BARBARO and LOUIS UCHITELLE "Strong evidence is emerging that consumer spending, a bulwark against recession over the last year even as energy prices surged and the housing market sputtered, has begun to slow sharply at every level of the American economy, from the working class to the wealthy.
The abrupt pullback raises the possibility that the country may be experiencing a rare decline in personal consumption, not just a slower rate of growth. Such a decline would be the first since 1991, and it would almost certainly push the entire economy into a recession in the middle of an election year."www.nytimes.com/2008/01/14/business/14spend.html?th&emc=th
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Post by unlawflcombatnt on Jan 14, 2008 21:04:38 GMT -6
Another interesting article from the New York Times. And, not surprisingly, there are some falsehoods included. The following is one example: " There are plenty of recession naysayers. Average hourly wages and salaries have not fallen, and some economists argue that unless — or until — that happens, consumer spending will hold up despite widespread economic unease....." The truth is that Real Weekly Wages are down -0.63% over the last 12 months, and were down -1.1% for the first 11 months of 2007. It's also noteworthy that now even affluent consumers are cutting back. The economy is definitely in for a rough year, and probably a rough several years. Much will depend on how many counterproductive giveaways to the rich that the government comes up with.
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