Tag: household income

Prepare for Full-Blown Recession to Hit in the Summer

Commentary My private theory is that we never really left the recession that began March 2020 with lockdowns. Real household income and labor participation still haven’t recovered. Productivity has crawled along but within the range of statistical error. No question that the U.S. economy has downshifted. Whatever pathetic growth we experience now barely registers as…


Financial Expectations of Americans Lowest Since 2010

Americans are becoming more pessimistic about their personal financial situation as well as the direction of the U.S. economy, with financial expectations at their lowest in over a decade. The share of respondents who expect their personal financial situation to “get better” over the next 12 months dropped to 31 percent in February from 33…


Household Income Growth Expectations Register Biggest Drop Ever: NY Fed Survey

Expectations for U.S. household income growth saw its largest decline in January, even as short-term inflation is expected to remain elevated, the latest data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Survey of Consumer Expectations shows. “After increasing each month since September of last year, the median expected growth in household income dropped by…


Americans Spending Nearly $400 More per Month Owing to Inflation

The elevated inflation rate is forcing U.S. citizens to spend hundreds of dollars a month extra than usual, forcing many into a financially tough spot as households struggle to make ends meet. The average U.S. household in November spent $396 more a month to buy the same goods and services they purchased a year back,…


Americans’ Incomes Decline for Second Year in a Row Amid Soaring Inflation

The real median 2021 household income of Americans, recorded at $70,784, was down for a second year in a row, while poverty crept up as the country battles inflation at a 40-year high, according to numbers released on Sept. 13 by the U.S. Census Bureau in its annual report on the nation’s financial well-being. Compared…


Statistics Canada Says Household Debt Ratio up in Second Quarter

Statistics Canada says the amount Canadians owe relative to their income moved higher in the second quarter as the level of debt grew faster than their earnings. The agency says household credit market debt as a proportion of household disposable income rose to 181.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis in the second quarter, up from…


Millennial Money: Don’t Let Money ‘Rules’ Get You Down

Put 20 percent down when buying a home. Don’t spend more than 30 percent of your income on housing costs. Keep child care expenses below 10 percent of your annual household income. These money rules of thumb can be useful guardrails, helping you allocate spending and determine what’s affordable. They can also be incredibly defeating…


Hong Kong’s Child Raising Costs Nearly 70 Percent of Median Household Income: Survey

Hong Kong’s total population saw negative growth in 2021, with data showing the declining birth rate being a top reason. A recent survey found that the average cost of raising a child in Hong Kong accounts for nearly 70 percent of the city’s median household income. According to its Census and Statistics Department (CSD), Hong…


Weakening Household Finances

Commentary American consumers—the backbone of the post-pandemic recovery—are losing the wherewithal to keep up their spending. Signs were already evident in the uneven pace of spending growth during recent months. Matters have become crystal clear in the income data reported by the Commerce Department. Households are already sacrificing savings flows just to keep up with…


Over a Third of Americans Making $250,000 Are Currently Living Paycheck to Paycheck: Surveys

About 36 percent of Americans earning at least $250,000 a year claim that they are living paycheck to paycheck, a sign on how rising inflation is hitting households at all ends of the spectrum throughout the country, according to two surveys quoted by Bloomberg. Individuals earning $250,000, who are among the top 5 percent of income…