Spending Up While Inflation Slows

U.S. consumer spending increased by the most in seven months in October, the Commerce Department said yesterday. Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, jumped 0.6 percent last month. The biggest drivers were prescription medication and utilities.

When adjusted for inflation, consumer spending advanced just 0.4 percent. But the inflation-adjusted number is also the biggest gain for that figure in seven months.

Indeed, there was a slowdown in price gains last month. The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, which excludes the volatile food and energy components, inched up 0.1 percent after increasing 0.2 percent in September. That lowered the year-on-year increase in the core PCE price index to 1.8 percent, the lowest reading since February.

Less Than Charitable in the Garden State

There are wealthy people  in every state in the U.S., but in some states, the rich tend to be less inclined to charitable giving than in others, according to a new report by Business Insider. And New Jersey is one of the stingier ones.

The average person making upward of $500,000 in the U.S. donated about $74,000 in 2016 (the most recent date for which data are available). But New Jersey’s average annual charitable contribution is just $37,368, which ranks us 48th in the nation. On the other hand, 95 percent of those making more than $500,000 per year make some sort of charitable contribution.

The worst states: Alaska, at $36,124, and West Virginia, at $31,313. The most generous state? Wyoming, surprisingly enough, where the average annual contribution by households earning $500,000 – which, to be fair, is a very small number in Wyoming – landed at $223,438.

A Split in Charitable Giving

Overall, the average American household is giving far less to charity than it did a decade ago, but not everyone has fallen into this pattern. Over the past 10 years, charitable giving deductions from lower-income donors have declined significantly, at almost the same rate that charitable giving from higher income donors have increased.

In the early 2000s, households earning $200,000 or more made up only 30 percent of all charitable deductions, but by 2017, this group accounted for 52 percent. And the percent of charitable deductions from households making over $1 million grew from 12 percent in 1995 to 30 percent in 2015.

Meanwhile, the number of donors giving at typical donation levels has been steadily declining. Low-dollar and mid-level donors have declined by about 2 percent each year for more than 15 years.

Entrepreneurs Still Like Stocks

The world’s most successful entrepreneurs now invest 20.2 percent of their total wealth in equities, according to the fifth BNP Paribas global entrepreneur report. For the first time in the study’s history, U.S. entrepreneurs’ top asset allocation choice was equities, outweighing their investments in fixed income, cash or even their own businesses.

The exception is ultra-high-net-worth entrepreneurs, whose heaviest weighting remains their own businesses. The survey results were divided among high-net-worth (investable assets between $10 million and $25 million) and ultra-high-net-worth (investable assets of $25 million or more) investors who owned businesses.

Fifty-five percent of the entrepreneurs in the study have invested in technology companies, usually directly or through mutual funds. The appetite for tech is most voracious in Belgium, India and Singapore, where 79 percent, 74 percent and 70 percent of investors, respectively, invest in the sector, compared with just 59 percent in the U.S.

A Turkey Day Spent Online

While everyone had their eyes on Black Friday, holiday shoppers jumped the gun, setting records for online shopping on Thanksgiving Day. Last Thursday, online spending reached $3.7 billion, up 28 percent from last year, according to Adobe Analytics data.

Smartphones drove a record 54.4 percent of traffic on Thanksgiving, Adobe said, capturing a 36.7 percent share of revenue. The share of Thanksgiving traffic from desktops fell to 36.5 percent from 44.3 percent last year. And tablets generated just 9.1 percent of traffic, versus 9.6 percent in 2017.

According to Target Corp., shoppers ordered more than double on the retailer’s app than they did last year. The most popular items that consumers were buying: televisions, Apple watches, Legos and board games.

What Not to Buy Today

If you're shopping today, here are some ideas of products to stay away from, courtesy of the website MarketWatch. There are a lot of sale items available today, but these aren't them:

Bedding
The lowest prices on bedding and linens have been known to appear in January during what are called “white sales,” so hold off until then if you can. Discounts at this time can hit 70 percent.

Winter clothes
Fall and winter clothing generally isn’t the best value on Black Friday. Jeans, for instance, see big sales in October, and retailers frequently offer big clearance sales on jackets when winter gives way to spring.

Toys
Toys are one of the seasonal purchase staples, but historically, it’s best to wait until closer to Christmas to purchase them. In past years, select toys have been on sale for as much as 50 percent off in the final days before Christmas.

Christmas decorations
You’ll see plenty of deals on artificial trees and rolls of wrapping paper on Black Friday — especially at home and craft stores — but retailers are particularly eager to slash prices closer to December 25.

Thoughts for Thanksgiving Day

"Appreciation can change a day, even change a life. Your willingness to put it into words is all that is necessary." ~ Margaret Cousins

“The more we express thanks, the more gratitude we feel. The more gratitude we feel, the more we express thanks. It’s circular, and it leads to a happier life.” ~ Steve Goodier

“Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.” ~ Charles Dickens