On the one-year anniversary of President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, inflation is still high and rising.
Friend,
On the one-year anniversary of President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, inflation is still high and rising. Meanwhile, school is starting, and Congress will be back in session in a couple of weeks. With lingering must-pass legislation plus oversight on key issues, Congress has a full agenda once back in session.
Economic and labor policy impact every single American, whether you're on Wall Street or a stay-at-home parent. Want to stay up to date on the latest economic, labor, and tech analysis? Sign up for Independent Women's Forum's Center for Economic Opportunity (CEO) Newsletter HERE ([link removed]) .
Sincerely,
Patrice Onwuka
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From: Patrice Onwuka
Date: Thu, Aug 17, 2023 at 4:41 PM
Subject: The Midpoint: A troubling credit card debt milestone
Welcome to the August recess edition of the Midpoint newsletter. Capitol Hill is quiet but economic data releases keep us busy. Kids safety online is important, but there are free speech concerns to consider with legislation as our fellow, Rachel Chiu, writes in the Wall Street Journal.
As back-to-school shopping is underway, inflation is top of mind for households. A new credit card debt milestone is nothing to celebrate, but DEI layoffs give us hope. Keep reading for the latest economic, labor, and tech analysis from Independent Women’s Forum’s Center for Economic Opportunity (CEO).
** BREAKING ([link removed])
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Inflation Picks up Again–Still Far Higher Than 2021 ([link removed])
** TOPLINE ([link removed])
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Americans Are Straddling a Record $1 Trillion in Credit Card Debt Thanks to Big-Government-Driven Inflation
The economy notched a new record last month–and it’s not a good one. For the first time, Americans’ credit card debt levels surpassed $1 trillion.
According to new data ([link removed]) released by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York this week, credit card balances rose 4.6% (or $45 billion) to hit a series high of $1.03 trillion in Q2 2023. Americans opened 5.48 million new accounts this quarter and limits grew by $9 billion to $4.6 trillion.
Auto loan balances rose by $20 billion, and combined with credit card balances, were major drivers of total household debt rising marginally by $16 billion (0.1%) to over $17 trillion.
Delinquency rates are an area of concern. While they were roughly flat in Q2 and remained low, previously they had been declining sharply since the beginning of the pandemic. Increasingly, credit card and auto loan debt moving into delinquency is rising (by 0.7 and 0.4 percentage points, respectively).
Household financial health is concerning overall but worrisome for some more than others. Because inflation remains 16% higher than in January 2021, households effectively received a pay cut as my colleague Carrie Sheffield explained recently ([link removed]) . “There’s only so much hard debt that people can handle before delinquencies really spike,” Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree said.
At the root of our economic woes, we find government. [keep reading ([link removed]) ]
** MUST-SEE ([link removed])
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Fox & Friends First | U.S. Credit Rating Downgrade Is an Indictment on Washington’s Fiscal Policies ([link removed])
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** ABOVE THE DOTTED LINE
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* Must-Read: Wall Street Journal | The Constitution Protects Harmful Speech ([link removed])
* ICYMI: Biden’s Faux Inflation-Reducing Bill Turns One ([link removed])
* Blog: Inflation Reduction Act Further Saddled Americans With Debt ([link removed])
* Hot Take: New York Post | Fitch Downgraded America To Punish Republicans for the Debt-Ceiling Fight ([link removed])
* ICYMI: July Jobs Report Highlights Problems With Bidenomics ([link removed])
* Hot Take: Newsmax | Free Markets Thrive When Aimless, Faux Justice Booted ([link removed])
* Listen: Randy Tobler Show | Gabriella Hoffman on Rhode Island’s Independent Contractor Crackdown ([link removed])
* Trending: Inflation Is “Top Of Mind” for Back-To-School Shoppers ([link removed])
* Blog: MA App-Based Drivers Want To Remain Independent Contractors ([link removed])
Yours in freedom,
Patrice Onwuka
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