Newsweek (March 9)
“America’s teenage population is expected to shrink in the coming decade, whilst the number of people aged 70 or over expands by 14.5 million” as the 70 or over senior population is expected “to boom from 40.8 million to 55.3 million by 2033.” In the two decades since 1971, the U.S. fertility rate fell by 27%. The average woman now bears only 1.66 children, down from 2.26 fifty years ago.
Tags: 1.66 children, 2033, 70 or over, Boom, Fertility rate, Population, Seniors, Shrink, Teenage, U.S., Woman
Washington Post (January 19)
“The S&P 500 hit an all-time closing high Friday.” Up over 1% from Thursday, the index closed at 4,839.81, “surpassing the previous closing record set in January of 2022.” Support stems from confidence in an economy that has averted a recession, apparently achieving an elusive soft-landing. Analysts also “point to an AI-driven frenzy on Wall Street that rivals the dot-com boom of the late ’90s, when investors sought to capitalize on the transformative gains brought by the early internet.”
Tags: AI, Analysts, Boom, Capitalize, Dot-com, Economy, Frenzy, Gains, High, Internet, Investors, Recession, Record Confidence, Rivals, S&P 500, Soft landing, Transformative, Wall Street
WARC (October 12)
“After a pandemic-driven boom, luxury sector growth rates are slowing and returning to something approaching the long-term norm.” Ultimately, a “slowdown had to come at some point – 20% growth rates are not sustainable for an extended period – but the question now being asked is how far the pendulum might swing in the opposite direction, especially as ‘aspirational’ buyers at the bottom end of the market cut back.”
Tags: Aspirational buyers, Boom, Cut back, Growth rates, Luxury sector, Pandemic, Slowdown, Sustainable
Reuters (June 13)
Despite tensions with the North, things are “upbeat” in Seoul. “Compared to pre-pandemic times, the capital city feels richer and more vibrant. A recent boom in local stocks, cryptocurrencies and real estate have spurred the city’s elite, unable to travel, to flex their wealth at home…. Luxury sales topped $14 billion in 2021, making South Korea one of the few markets worldwide to surpass 2019 levels.”
Tags: Boom, Cryptocurrencies, Elite, Luxury sales, Markets, North Korea, Pre-pandemic, Real estate, Richer, Seoul, Stocks, Tensions, Travel, Upbeat, Vibrant, Wealth
Institutional Investor (April 7)
“Companies that have gone public by merging with a special purpose acquisition company have underperformed the S&P 500 by eighty percentage points since 2018.” Indeed, “at no time during the recent SPAC boom—except for a few days in early 2021—did these new listings beat the S&P.”
Boston Globe (April 5)
“After a year of forced dormancy, the restaurant industry is scrambling to get ready for an expected boom this summer…. Despite a massive labor pool, some restaurants say they are having trouble finding people willing to return to the business. The pandemic, it seems, prompted some to reconsider life in an industry notorious for difficult working conditions.”
Tags: Boom, Dormancy, Industry, Labor pool, Notorious, Pandemic, Reconsider, Restaurants, Scrambling, Summer
Wall Street Journal (June 18)
“The boom in U.S. oil production…has become a strategic advantage against authoritarian governments that want to use oil as a weapon. Europe’s weak economy doesn’t have to cope with an oil shock, and the U.S. can squeeze Iran’s exports without damaging the global economy.”
Tags: Authoritarian, Boom, Economy, Exports, Iran, Oil, Production, Shock, Strategic advantage, U.S., Weapon. Europe
1843 (December 13)
There is “a new golden age in board games…. One reason for the tabletop-gaming boom is simply that the products have improved. The best modern games are sociable, engaging and easy to learn, but also cerebral, intriguing and difficult to master. The slow triumph of what used to be called “nerd culture” – think smartphone gaming and “Game of Thrones” on television – has given adults permission to engage openly in pastimes that were previously looked down on as juvenile. And the increasing ubiquity of screens has, paradoxically, fuelled a demand for in-person socialising. Board gaming is another example of an old-style, analogue pastime that, far from being killed by technology, has been reinvigorated by it.”
Tags: Analogue, Board games, Boom, Engaging, Golden age, Nerd culture, Reinvigorated, Sociable, Technology
Euromoney (March 3)
“At what point does a boom become a bubble? The question needs to be asked in Asian high yield, where year-to-date issuance volumes are fast approaching the figure for the whole of 2016 in China and have already long exceeded it in India and Indonesia – after just eight weeks of the year, one of which was a write-off for Chinese New Year.”
Reuters (September 1)
“Activity in China’s manufacturing sector unexpectedly expanded at its fastest pace in nearly two years in August as construction boomed, suggesting the economy is steadying in response to stronger government spending.” The strong performance “may reinforce growing views that China’s central bank will be in no hurry to cut interest rates or banks’ reserve requirements, for fear of adding to high debt levels or fuelling asset bubbles.”
Tags: Asset bubbles, Boom, China, Construction, Debt, Economy, Government, Interest rates, Manufacturing, Pace, Reserves, Spending, Steadying
