Economics from the Clowns

Economics from the Clowns

November 17, 2022 Decker 
 
Ever since the gods determined that homo sapiens were a mostly crazy lot of nutjobs who were more concerned with the lint in their navel than lending any type of assistance to their fellow traveler – the gods saw fit that humankind should be banished to a planet called Earth to sort out their selfish, arrogant, apathetic and sometimes murderous tendencies. 
This hasn’t worked.  

FED tells employers to STOP giving pay rises in order to bring inflation down: Warns wages are rising faster than they have in decades – and there are now almost two jobs for every person looking of work – via dailymail.co.uk
Employers should stop giving pay rises to their staff, a member of the Federal Reserve‘s board has said, in a bid to help bring down inflation.
Christopher Waller, one of six members of the Fed’s board, used a speech in Phoenix, Arizona to urge bosses to take into account inflation when looking at their labor force.
He pointed out that there are now almost two jobs for every person looking for work, and that wages were rising faster than they have in decades – making the target of 2 percent inflation even tougher to reach. 
‘Wage growth has been a contributing factor to inflation, especially in the service sector, so it is important to get the labor market into better balance to bring future wage growth down to a more sustainable level that will assist in moving overall inflation lower,’ said Waller.

The problem here, as the gods see it, is that no one has told these particular types of dickheads – not when they were young, then teenager, then college arsehole, then budding psychofuck – the following:

Sadly, people swallow bat guano like ‘wage growth has been a contributing factor to inflation’ without blinking an eye.
There is only ONE contributing factor to inflation, and it can be summed up in one word: Government, as famed economist Milton Friedman outlined long ago, in just 3 minutes.  And it’s quite simple:



https://youtu.be/F94jGTWNWsA

And ‘two jobs for every person looking for work’ – really?

Retail relies on the holiday season for the bulk of its revenue. In fact, a quarter of all retail spending in the US occurs in the last two months of the year. Numerous retailers have already downgraded their forecasts for the holiday season, and therefore, overall revenue estimates will go down. I reported that early indications of Halloween spending amid inflation were cause for concern. People were still willing to spend on the holiday, but everything cost significantly more, and availability was limited
Two weeks ago, reports were coming in of hiring halts, but now mass layoffs are suddenly appearing in the news. Amazon plans to fire 10,000 employees this week alone. This is a steep mass layoff that represents 3% of corporate employees and 1% of the entire workforce. This is the largest layoff in the company’s history.
Other retailers have announced layoffs as well, and this is not limited to the US. E-commerce giant Alibaba also laid off nearly 10,000 workers this past August due to poor numbers. AliExpress eliminated 40% of its entire workforce and cited supply chain disruptions as the main culprit, as it was one of the most popular shopping apps in Russia.
Gap Inc. will eliminate 500 corporate roles in the US and Asia. Peloton parted ways with 500 people in October in its most recent round of layoffs. Shopify eliminated 10% of its staff in July and plans to make additional cuts. Nordstrom fired 200 employees from a warehouse distribution center. Wayfair eliminated 900 positions after a hiring freeze in May. Mass layoffs are becoming a common occurrence during a time when retailers usually hire additional staff.
The supply chain crisis is to blame. FedEx plans to furlough employees right before the busy Christmas season. Their revenue was up 21% last quarter, but shipments fell 5% in the same time period. Overall inflation and wage losses are a positive sign for the Fed but a complete disaster to individuals and their families. Expect sales as retailers attempt to eliminate outdated inventory to make room for delayed shipments. – Martin Armstrong – armstrongeconomics.com

Geez…I wonder if anyone at the FED will be foregoing their pay rises, you know, as an example?
Not a bloody chance.

MORE HERE: https://dispatchesfromtheasylum.com/2022/11/17/economics-from-the-clowns/