17/07: Bought Gasoline Lately?
Gasoline prices are $3.10 for regular in Philly and $3.25 in St. Paul.
And the band played on and on....
And the markets went up and up....
Consumers balked in June according to the government (-0.9%) and spent more according to Target etc. Of course food prices are up 7% year-over-year and Target sells a lot of groceries. Any connection there? Duh!
If the consumer represents 70% of economic activity and she is being taxed (equivalently) by higher energy (and food) prices and is already overly indebted how is it possible for consumer spending to do anything but stall in the near term? More borrowing could delay the inevitable - maybe for quite awhile - but the ultiomate outcome is not in doubt if energy prices stay high.
OSF
July 17, 2007
And the band played on and on....
And the markets went up and up....
Consumers balked in June according to the government (-0.9%) and spent more according to Target etc. Of course food prices are up 7% year-over-year and Target sells a lot of groceries. Any connection there? Duh!
If the consumer represents 70% of economic activity and she is being taxed (equivalently) by higher energy (and food) prices and is already overly indebted how is it possible for consumer spending to do anything but stall in the near term? More borrowing could delay the inevitable - maybe for quite awhile - but the ultiomate outcome is not in doubt if energy prices stay high.
OSF
July 17, 2007
