Big Red Car here and awaiting the results of tonight’s Iowa caucuses. Why do we care what a bunch of very white folk in Iowa care about anyway?
Foggy and 80F today. Ahhh, winter in Texas!
So, we’ve heard of the lost Japanese Decades, right?
Did you know we’ve got our own Lost American Decade? The Lost American Decade!
The characteristics are the same as the Japanese debacle — low interest rates, low inflation, and low rates of growth. Do not say it — the “new” normal. Ugh.
OK, here’s an interesting graph — Real GDP per Capita. [dshort.com to be thanked here, thank you, sir].
This marries inflation adjusted GDP (gross domestic product) with population growth thereby stripping bare the impact of inflation and the growth of our population (which could be considerable over a decade, no?)
Go to 2005 and connect the dots. Just about flat for a decade.
In Japan today, they are charging to hold big cash deposits overnight. Look at this graph.
Warning: This is a gross oversimplification but it stands for the proposition that both the Eurozone and Japan are not exactly growing robustly. Sounds like the United States, no?
Here is a good article on Negative Interest Rates. Read it.
But, hey, what the Hell do I really know anyway? I’m just a Big Red Car. Happy Iowa, y’all!
