U.S. consumer prices rose by 0.2 percent in July, pointing to a steady increase in inflation pressures, according to figures out from the Labor Department this morning. In the 12 months through July, the Consumer Price Index increased 2.9 percent.
Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the CPI rose 0.2 percent, the same gain as in May and June. The annual increase in the so-called core CPI was 2.4 percent, the largest rise since September 2008.
Shelter costs were a big driver of this: Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence, which is what a homeowner would pay to rent or receive from renting a home, rose 0.3 percent last month after increasing by the same margin in June. Overall, the so-called shelter index rose 3.5 percent in the 12 months through July. Prices for new motor vehicles rose 0.3 percent in July, apparel prices fell 0.3 percent, and healthcare costs fell 0.2 percent.
Friday, August 10, 2018
Thursday, August 9, 2018
The Tight Labor Market
The economy has reached a point of such strength that there are now more job openings in the U.S. than there are unemployed. Overall in June, the number of available jobs exceeded the number of unemployed Americans by nearly 100,000.
There were 6.7 million job openings on average in the three months ended in June—the highest quarterly level on record dating back to 2001. The number of available jobs grew by nearly 750,000 this spring, compared with a year earlier, according to Labor Department data released this week.
The problem is most acute in a few fields, led by transportation. The number of unfilled jobs in transportation, warehousing and utilities, combined, grew by 109,000 over the past year to 298,000, a 58 percent increase. That's the largest growth rate of about 20 broad groupings tracked by the Labor Department.
There were 6.7 million job openings on average in the three months ended in June—the highest quarterly level on record dating back to 2001. The number of available jobs grew by nearly 750,000 this spring, compared with a year earlier, according to Labor Department data released this week.
The problem is most acute in a few fields, led by transportation. The number of unfilled jobs in transportation, warehousing and utilities, combined, grew by 109,000 over the past year to 298,000, a 58 percent increase. That's the largest growth rate of about 20 broad groupings tracked by the Labor Department.
Wednesday, August 8, 2018
Misunderstanding Long Term Care
There is a wide disconnect between what many Americans believe about long-term care versus what the actual needs are. Today, 70 percent of Americans will need some type of long-term care, but only 46 percent believe they will need it, according to a new study by the Moll Law Group, a personal injury firm.
Most Americans — 64 percent — have nothing saved for long-term care. In addition, 67 percent aren’t able to contribute to their parent’s long-term care. Most of study participants believe the age at which they will need long-term care is 79 years old, while it’s actually 73. Women will need long-term care on average for 3.7 years, while men will need it for 2.2 years.
Another misconception is the out-of-pocket cost of long-term care. The study found that the actual out-of-pocket cost is more than $47,000, while many Americans believe it is roughly half that, $25,350.
Most Americans — 64 percent — have nothing saved for long-term care. In addition, 67 percent aren’t able to contribute to their parent’s long-term care. Most of study participants believe the age at which they will need long-term care is 79 years old, while it’s actually 73. Women will need long-term care on average for 3.7 years, while men will need it for 2.2 years.
Another misconception is the out-of-pocket cost of long-term care. The study found that the actual out-of-pocket cost is more than $47,000, while many Americans believe it is roughly half that, $25,350.
Tuesday, August 7, 2018
Earnings Beats by Sector
Earnings season always features headlines that say companies “beat” or “miss” analysts’ estimates. In the latest quarter, even more companies have been beating than usual, with a total of 80 percent exceeding the analysts' expectations for their earnings per share.
Leading the way has been the health-care industry. The S&P 500's health-care sector has 63 companies, of which 61 (a whopping 97 percent) beat analysts’ estimates when they most recently reported their results. Information technology isn't far behind, at 93 percent.
The worst sector for beating estimates has been energy: Just 55 percent of those stocks exceeded the street's forecast. But notice that even there, a majority of the stocks outperform the estimates.
Leading the way has been the health-care industry. The S&P 500's health-care sector has 63 companies, of which 61 (a whopping 97 percent) beat analysts’ estimates when they most recently reported their results. Information technology isn't far behind, at 93 percent.
The worst sector for beating estimates has been energy: Just 55 percent of those stocks exceeded the street's forecast. But notice that even there, a majority of the stocks outperform the estimates.
Monday, August 6, 2018
The Race to $1 Trillion
Apple became the first U.S.-listed company in history to achieve a $1 trillion market capitalization on Thursday. U.S. Steel is generally cited as the first U.S. publicly listed company to reach a $1 billion market capitalization, immediately upon going public in 1901.
IBM is sometimes identified as the first publicly listed U.S. company to reach the $100 billion milestone, doing so on August 20, 1987. However, IBM never closed above that threshold. Meanwhile, AT&T Corp. closed above $100 billion in November 1992, according to FactSet.
A cautionary tale: On July 16, 1999, Microsoft became the first U.S. company to reach a market cap of $500 billion. It stayed above $500 billion for just two trading sessions before dipping back below that level. This was, of course, the heyday of the dot-com boom. Microsoft went on to again hit $500 billion in market value, eventually reaching $607 billion in market cap, in December 1999. But in the spring of 2000, the bubble popped — and Microsoft finished that year with a market cap of $231 billion.
IBM is sometimes identified as the first publicly listed U.S. company to reach the $100 billion milestone, doing so on August 20, 1987. However, IBM never closed above that threshold. Meanwhile, AT&T Corp. closed above $100 billion in November 1992, according to FactSet.
A cautionary tale: On July 16, 1999, Microsoft became the first U.S. company to reach a market cap of $500 billion. It stayed above $500 billion for just two trading sessions before dipping back below that level. This was, of course, the heyday of the dot-com boom. Microsoft went on to again hit $500 billion in market value, eventually reaching $607 billion in market cap, in December 1999. But in the spring of 2000, the bubble popped — and Microsoft finished that year with a market cap of $231 billion.
Friday, August 3, 2018
July's Jobs Report
The U.S. economy added 157,000 jobs in July, according to figures out from the Bureau of Labor Statistics this morning. Incorporating revisions for May and June, which increased employment by a net 59,000, monthly job gains have averaged a very healthy 224,000 the last three months.
The unemployment rate ticked down to 3.9 percent after edging up in June, reflecting more job seekers entering the labor market. Another 105,000 people joined the civilian-labor force in July, but that was nearly exactly matched by the increase in Americans reporting they’re not in the labor force.
White-collar professional firms added 51,000 jobs last month, continuing a strong run of employment gains. Manufacturers filled 37,000 jobs. Health-care providers hired 34,000 people.The financial industry and government were the only industries to lose jobs over the month.
The unemployment rate ticked down to 3.9 percent after edging up in June, reflecting more job seekers entering the labor market. Another 105,000 people joined the civilian-labor force in July, but that was nearly exactly matched by the increase in Americans reporting they’re not in the labor force.
White-collar professional firms added 51,000 jobs last month, continuing a strong run of employment gains. Manufacturers filled 37,000 jobs. Health-care providers hired 34,000 people.The financial industry and government were the only industries to lose jobs over the month.
Thursday, August 2, 2018
Will You Owe More in Taxes?
Despite the tax cuts that take effect this year, more than 30 million taxpayers could owe money to the government next year, according to a Government Accountability Office report based on a simulation run by the Treasury Department. Taxes for more than a fifth of Americans (21 percent) could be underwithheld, meaning that their employer hasn’t taken enough money out of their paychecks to cover taxes.
Had there been no change in the tax law, 18 percent would have been underwithheld. That’s 3 million fewer people. Six percent of taxpayers are expected to break even next year, and the remainder will get some sort of refund.
So why might more Americans owe taxes next year? The IRS and Treasury Department had “limited documentation” for how it updated the withholding tables, according to the GAO report. And employees in high-tax states - like New Jersey - may be affected by the new limitations on state and local tax deductions, which would increase their tax burden.
Had there been no change in the tax law, 18 percent would have been underwithheld. That’s 3 million fewer people. Six percent of taxpayers are expected to break even next year, and the remainder will get some sort of refund.
So why might more Americans owe taxes next year? The IRS and Treasury Department had “limited documentation” for how it updated the withholding tables, according to the GAO report. And employees in high-tax states - like New Jersey - may be affected by the new limitations on state and local tax deductions, which would increase their tax burden.
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