Strategy in TECH...
Last week, Strata-gee reported that housing construction starts jumped mightily in December 2019 – but now we learn in a new report from the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that new home sales actually declined at the same time. Typically, analysts like to see both home sales and construction starts increase together as an indicator of a healthy economy.
Two new research reports from two different research groups came to basically the same conclusion – smart speakers (and IoT devices) show no signs of slowing down with eye-popping growth rates in just the last two years. One of the researchers, Comscore, is calling the trend, “The Smart Speaker Frenzy.”
You knew they were big, but you didn’t know just how big streaming innovator (and leader) Netflix really was…until now. In a bid to prove to investors they have what it takes to stave off a whole new class of streaming competitors, Netflix released some detailed numbers on their global subscription base that has Wall Street really buzzing.
The Census Bureau, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, released new home construction data for November, offering details on what is generally known as housing starts. The overall construction starts – which includes both single-family and multi-family homes – both showed increases over the revised numbers for October, suggesting a return to economic stability after a period of concern about a possible slowdown.
Lots of studies have shown that consumer adoption of various smart home technologies and devices is growing…and that is undoubtedly true. But a new study shows that adoption is not as strong as it could be but for the complexity of installing and using smart home devices.
The Conference Board, in conjunction with Nielsen, announced on Tuesday that consumer confidence, a widely watched economic indicator, fell in November for the fourth straight month in-a-row. Consumers, it seems, are concerned about the current business climate and employment outlook. Even so, the level remains historically high and should not provide too much of a damper on current holiday spending by consumers.
In new data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the readings appear split with housing starts showing increases while new home sales declined. Housing, a prime component of the overall U.S. GDP has been in a bit of a swell over the last couple of months, driven largely by low interest rates stimulating demand for homes.
A new poll from Gallup suggests that consumers are in the mood to spend – and spend generously – at the upcoming holiday season. How much will they spend? What percentage of Americans say they’ll spend less? Or more? Read below to see the results of this surprising poll…
As the economy continues to show more signs of a slowdown, we can’t help but notice increasing volatility in the month-to-month readings of various statistics. The latest government data on housing construction starts is a great example of this. After a big jump in August, starts dropped in September by 9.4% – a larger than normal amount – from the revised rate in August.
In a new report by the U.S. Commerce Department released Wednesday, U.S. retail sales in September have broadly dropped for the first time in seven months. The report is seen by many economists as another significant sign of a cooling economy.
