Cash flow is the biggest ulcer for business owners and many say they would rather organize junk drawers, give up social media or trash their smartphone. Nearly half of small business owners say they would give up their favorite junk food for a year if it meant they didn’t have any cash flow issues for…
Business owner blues follows economic optimism, expressed last month, perhaps an aberration. In June, small biz owners turned pessimistic citing the continued difficulty of finding qualified workers, difficulty in planning inventories, and likelihood of interest rates rising, as significant factors. The impact of trade tariffs on consumer spending, starting this fall, has added even more…
Consumer confidence slides in June reversing the brightening Spring momentum in the wake of the misguided government shutdown and nasty Winter weather coast-to-coast. This Summer, consumers are considering the impact of increased tariffs (taxes) on imported Chinese goods this Fall, the threat of tariffs (taxes) on goods from Mexico, the possibility of quickly rising global…
Southwest higher altitude business card is offering a whopping 80K points sign-up bonus plus a 9K points card anniversary award. The 80K bonus points require a $5,000 card spend in the first three months. The new Southwest Rapid Rewards Performance Business Visa from Chase will set a standard in the very competitive business reward credit…
The small biz surge has joined the economic optimism pep rally in May following a stressful and bizarre start for 2019, created largely by the hurtful Trump Shutdown. The latest surveys are showing small business owners as well as consumers are feeling better about the short-term. Small business owners indicate sales, hiring and investment expectations…
The real economy optimism was driven higher by U.S. small business owners who cite strong job creation, expectations for sales, business conditions, and credit conditions as the underlying reasons. The latest data show small business owners have largely recovered from the impact of the “Trump Shutdown,” nasty winter weather nationwide, and interest rate concerns. According…
After a crappy economic start in the first three months of 2019, U.S. consumer confidence showed signs of rebirth in April. For the short-term, consumers see a strong economy into the summer and the fall with solid job and business growth, but 2020 is another question. Recent surveys indicate the April bump is still a…
The impact of last year’s tax reform legislation on consumer confidence has greatly diminished in the first four months of 2019 as the personal tax deadline looms. The slight increase in average refunds is unremarkable as well as the paltry increases in average paychecks suggests the 2018 tax cuts were overwhelmingly tilted toward the corporate…
U.S. consumer confidence has been going sideways over the past two years. A February bounce, following the end of the Trump government shutdown, was short-lived as consumer confidence resumed its slow downward erosion in March. An upside down, or inverted, yield curve happens when short-term interest rates become higher than long-term rates. Investors consider this…
As the fog clears it has become clear the Trump Shutdown messed up consumer economic statistics, far more than projected, producing skewed economic data. Lenders were particularly rattled when the latest figures revealed an uptick in auto loan defaults. First mortgage defaults also edged up, raising concerns among bankers. Credit card delinquency also moved upward…
