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2 Ways the 2022 Economic Woes Affected Your Retirement Accounts

Integrity Financial Planning

The 2022 economic climate has been bumpy for most and, in some cases, even bumpier for retirees. Americans and the world at large dealt with the economic ramifications of the Russia-Ukraine war, post-pandemic industrial effects, and rising inflation and interest rates. 1] However, in 2022, this number spiked to 9.1% 1] [link].

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Stop Worrying About All Those Tech Layoffs…

The Big Picture

Microsoft laid off 10% of its 221,000 workforce bringing headcount back to mid-2021 levels. I wanted to drop a quick note about the endless spate of layoff announcements — and why you should (mostly) ignore them. Amazon , now has 1.5 million employees, more than half of whom were hired in 2020-2022. At least, not yet.

Economics 317
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The Great Resignation Is Long Over

The Big Picture

I have detailed over the past decade or so the lagging nature of wages in America — deflationary in economic terms — and how that had begun to change in the late 2010s pre-pandemic. By any measure, we still have an enormous number of unfilled positions. Elvis (Your Waiter) Has Left the Building (July 9, 2021).

Medicine 325
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Round Trip

The Big Picture

After a monstrous 68% recovery from the March 2020 pandemic low, and another nearly 30% gain in 2021, markets decided to have one of their all-too-regular spasms. Were you a late FOMO buyer in 2021? Recall John Kenneth Galbraith’s observation: “The only function of economic forecasting is to make astrology look respectable.”

Economics 246
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Service sector showing some cracks, too: Weekly Economic Review & Outlook

Nationwide Financial

Coming off the blowout jobs report and the debt ceiling agreement, last week was a slower week for economic data. Given the Fed’s guidance, we expect them to hold rates unchanged on Wednesday, but retain a hawkish bias which opens the door to a July rate hike if economic activity and namely inflation do not cool sufficiently.

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Wealth Inequality Starts at the Top

The Big Picture

Source: FRED Wealth disparities get ever more lopsided the higher up the economic strata you climb; there is more disparity with the top 1% than the top 10%, but the biggest spreads are at the top 0.1% (and above). Consider the chart at top, created by Invictus via FRED.

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Collapse in Prospective Home Buyer Traffic

The Big Picture

The four largest drops occurred during distinct periods of economic distress: 1990 (recession), 2006-09 (GFC), 2020 (pandemic/recession), and today (FOMC 300 bp rate hike). Previously : How Everybody Miscalculated Housing Demand (July 29, 2021). Aspirational Pricing (May 25, 2022).

Budgeting 363