Doc Hobbs - ECON 2120 - The Ongoing Saga

02/21/2023

https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/stock-market-news-today-02-15-2023/card/correlation-between-stock-bond-moves-drops-qzZBZr0pBh629bCEeKYc?page=1

Have you ever noticed a correlation between bonds and stocks? Visit this site to see what the relationship looked like and how it is parting from this trend within the past year.

U.S. stocks and bonds aren't moving in lockstep anymore. The correlation between the S&P 500 and the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate bond index over the past several sessions is the lowest since last summer on a rolling 21-trading-day basis. For much of last year, stocks and bonds moved in tandem as risi

02/13/2023

https://www.wsj.com/articles/once-flush-savings-accounts-are-starting-to-run-dry-11675691637?page=1

Within the last year, Americans have blown through their savings from the 2020 pandemic. When the government payments stopped, inflation rose, and savings got drained. More people are finding themselves cutting back on spending due to prices rising.

The combination of high prices and the end of pandemic relief programs is eating into household savings.

02/06/2023

https://www.wsj.com/articles/what-is-supercore-inflation-11675195498?page=1

Supercore inflation is the Fed’s newest way to gauge inflation. Rather than using CPI, supercore is used to gauge the pace of inflation by looking at core services with housing removed. Read more about the importance of supercore below.

Supercore inflation comprises the price of services excluding energy and housing. Here’s why it’s important.

02/06/2023

https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/stock-market-news-today-02-03-2023/card/chart-hourly-wages-cpi-since-2020-5VtI90cFNbIDC5PeGi1A?page=1

Will the CPI and wages return to how they were before the pandemic? This chart shows how the peaks are plateauing but at a higher index than that before 2020.

Employers added a surprisingly strong 517,000 jobs in January, pushing the unemployment rate to a 53-year low. [Wage growth](https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/stock-market-news-today-02-03-2023/card

01/30/2023

https://www.wsj.com/articles/consumer-spending-inflation-economy-11675093472?mod=series_inflation
Consumer spending has decreased due to high inflation. This has affected many households. People's savings have fallen to only 3.4% of their income, they are struggling to pay off bills, prices of groceries are rising, and companies such as amazon are cutting staff. Read this article to discover how people have been affected by the continuous high inflation without the aid provided during the pandemic.

The flush savings accounts and cheap credit that helped keep Americans spending at high rates since 2020 are disappearing, while inflation remains elevated.

01/18/2023

https://www.wsj.com/articles/inflation-weary-americans-find-some-relief-as-prices-fall-for-dozens-of-products-11673585724?mod=economy_more_pos5
Did you notice that the price of eggs rose 59.9% within the past year? The small CPI increase within the past month has overshadowed the CPI decline over the past year for many products.

The cost of gasoline, milk and cars fell in December, but child care and haircuts were more expensive.

01/17/2023

https://www.discoursemagazine.com/ideas/2023/01/03/the-greatness-of-growth/

Ever wonder what could double American living standards and lift people out of poverty? The answer turns out to be beneficial to nearly everyone: economic growth. Read this article to discover how we could all benefit and why this should be prioritized.

In the face of anemic growth rates since the early aughts, the U.S. seems to have forgotten a fundamental truth: Economic growth is not only possible but desirable. It can lift people out of poverty faster than anything else, as well as reduce the federal debt, promote innovation and restore fairnes...

01/11/2023

https://www.npr.org/2020/07/15/884827691/planet-money-summer-school

After listening to Planet Money Summer School 2: GDP & What Counts, one particular quote sparked my curiosity about GDP: "every measure you use will distort behavior... it's a blessing and curse." After listening to the flaws of GDP, it seems as though no measurement would be consistent or 100% flaw-proof. Currently, the GDP does not measure the pollution and damage to the environment companies produce. This, therefore, promotes distortion to the environment. I think it is interesting how we use GDP, although flawed, to compare ourselves to other countries and to our previous and future behaviors. Therefore, if there was a trend to be a homemaker over having a job and hiring childcare then the GDP would decrease since homemakers are not included in the GDP calculation. I think one trend could have an effect on a country's GDP.

Planet Money Summer School is a crash course in economics for your ears. See the world through the lens of an economist and you'll start to feel a little less overwhelmed when making financial decisions.

07/28/2018

New study shows that splitting attention between lecture and cellphone or laptop use hinders long-term retention, and those in class suffer from others' use of devices.

10/04/2017

08/14/2017

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Zl0wr1915o

One entrepreneur’s invention cut world poverty and revolutionized manufacturing. Learn more with Steve Davies: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QLoeehMw0w&li...