By almost any measure, the housing market is in a major rebound, with the U.S. Commerce Department reporting on Tuesday that residential construction starts jumped an impressive 22.6% in July. This is the largest jump in housing starts in almost four years, according to a report by Reuters.
Economic Trends
Q2 GDP Crashes 33% in Worst Economic Quarter in Recorded History
In new economic data released by the government today, the real gross domestic product (GDP) for the second quarter of 2020 declined an astonishing 32.9%, the worst ever such reading in recorded history. This result follows a decline of 5% in the first quarter and demarks a deep and painful recession resulting from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic engulfing the United States, and the world.
Learn more about this stunning GDP crash…
[Read more…] about Q2 GDP Crashes 33% in Worst Economic Quarter in Recorded HistoryResidential Construction & New Home Sales Bounce Back in June
Two new economic reports from June covering the housing industry show promising results, with both residential construction (otherwise known as housing starts), and sales of newly constructed homes taking a nice bounce in June. This was welcome news after dramatic declines hit the housing market in early Spring.
But will it hold?
See more on the changing housing market
[Read more…] about Residential Construction & New Home Sales Bounce Back in JuneHousing Starts Struggle to Regain Their Footing in May
Last month, Strata-gee reported on a shocking 30+% drop in residential housing construction, with starts dropping an eye-popping 30.2% in April. That was ultimately revised to a decline of “only” 26.4%…still a massive one month decline. Now in May, we see starts attempting to rebound from those unprecedented drops.
See more on May’s housing starts data…
[Read more…] about Housing Starts Struggle to Regain Their Footing in MayA New Epidemic Sweeps Across America…Recession
I would hope that by now long time Strata-gee readers had already anticipated this day, and now it’s official that this day has come – the U.S. economy is in a recession. It really shouldn’t surprise anyone. However, I know that there are some I’ve spoken with who were expecting a “rubber ball” rebound where – almost magically – everything, including business levels, would bounce back to normal quickly. This seemed to be based more on wishful thinking, or just general optimism, rather than anything factually based.
I suspect some of those folks might be a little surprised to learn that the economy is sliding into recession.
Learn more about our 2020 recession…
[Read more…] about A New Epidemic Sweeps Across America…RecessionStrata-gee’s COVID-19 Impact on Tech II Survey: What a Difference a Month Makes!
Now completed, Strata-gee’s COVID-19 Impact on Tech II Survey is a follow-up study to Strata-gee’s original survey, COVID-19 Impact on Tech. If you haven’t read those original results yet, I would suggest you start there by clicking on this link as it will add context to the follow-up survey discussed here. And this time we learn that things have definitely changed in just five short weeks. In a nutshell, survey respondents report that the impact of COVID-19 this time around is much greater than in March.
See more of what the Strata-gee COVID-19 Impact on Tech Survey is telling us…
[Read more…] about Strata-gee’s COVID-19 Impact on Tech II Survey: What a Difference a Month Makes!Tighten Your Harness, The Rocket Ship U.S. Economy is Coming Down Hard
You knew it was coming, but we just couldn’t see it until statistical data caught up with the rapidly changing U.S. economy. But now, we are getting a snapshot of these changes and they are breathtaking…and a little scary. Hold on tight…it’s going to get worse before it gets better.
See a selection of data showing the economy hitting the brakes…
[Read more…] about Tighten Your Harness, The Rocket Ship U.S. Economy is Coming Down HardFear Factor: Consumers’ Fear Suggests a Slow Recovery from Recession
COVID-19 Recession: Will Rebound be a V…U…or W?
The Coronavirus pandemic has hit America big time. With a head-spinning swiftness, the epidemic swept across the country with ruthless efficiency – first impacting densely populated urban areas (NYC, LA, Chicago), then spreading its tentacles throughout more sparsely populated regions of the country. It has extracted a devastating human toll, striking fear in the hearts of consumers, and brought a once bustling economy to a screeching halt…plunging it into recession.
We have never seen anything quite like this and for business owners and managers…we are truly in uncharted territory. With almost 85% of all Americans now subject to some form of Shelter-In-Place or Stay-At-Home order, everything except essential services, such as grocery stores and pharmacies, has been closed down – and most companies have seen their sales disappear. Will a fearful consumer complicate our recovery from this recession?
See more on what kind of rebound to expect…
[Read more…] about Fear Factor: Consumers’ Fear Suggests a Slow Recovery from RecessionStuck in COVID-19 Isolation? Country Music Star Says ‘Thank Goodness for Technology’
An astonishing 283 million Americans are stuck in some form of self-isolation or self-quarantine due to the fact that most states and cities have imposed a “Stay-at-Home” rule in the fight to snuff out the COVID-19 pandemic. This new reality in which we find ourselves means that almost all businesses (except for a few essential services) are closed – and millions of Americans are stuck at home with little or nothing to do. But what role does their technology play in this situation?
Thanks to Technology, we can all be connected…
[Read more…] about Stuck in COVID-19 Isolation? Country Music Star Says ‘Thank Goodness for Technology’Economic Data Deteriorates Rapidly in March
Unemployment Claims Jump to 6.6M; Mortgage Applications Plunged 24%
We are now beginning to see a rapid deterioration in economic data in the wake of the impact of the Coronavirus COVID-19 epidemic sweeping the country. Stunning new numbers are dropping at a rate never seen before and suggest we may yet have a long road to recovery. Unemployment claims skyrocketed to 6.6 million new jobless claims at the end of the month, and mortgage applications plunged 24% in March year-over-year.