Recession coming?

[+ FrankR]

12 hours ago, augustus said:

You CANNOT borrow yourself to prosperity.  Eco 101.  It is clear that the current size of government can no longer be sustained and will inevitably lead to the financial ruin of the United States.   Our “resilient” economy is a house of cards!

Here is a breakdown of federal spending from the US treasury. Which category would you like to cut back on?

[+ FrankR]

We can afford the spending - according to IMF data the US spending per GDP is significantly lower than other developed countries. The problem is we are not paying for the spending…we are funding it through lending, which explains the 13% of federal funding that goes towards interest in the chart above. So, if we did something sensible like …that would remove the interest charge and get rid of the loans. Win…win. 🤓

[+ augustus]

12 hours ago, FrankR said:

The problem is we are not paying for the spending…we are funding it through lending,

Exactly!  But we are not getting Sweden like income tax rates or European style VAT's here.

[+ augustus]

15 minutes ago, FrankR said:

45,000 with more than $100mil in net worth.  Approx 10% (4,500) with more than $500mil in net worth. Sounds like plenty to me.

That 45,000 is worldwide.  About 10k in the USA.  Actually, they already pay hefty taxes.  Are you talking about confiscating people's wealth??!!  Do you have any idea of the economic consequences of that?

The number of people with at least $100 million has doubled since 2003

WWW.CNBC.COM

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Low interest rates fueled the growth in asset prices, leading to a rapid expansion in the number of centi-millionaires.

 

[+ FrankR]

16 minutes ago, augustus said:

That 45,000 is worldwide.  About 10k in the USA.  Actually, they already pay hefty taxes.  Are you talking about confiscating people's wealth??!!  Do you have any idea of the economic consequences of that?

The number of people with at least $100 million has doubled since 2003

WWW.CNBC.COM

---

Low interest rates fueled the growth in asset prices, leading to a rapid expansion in the number of centi-millionaires.

 

My numbers are based on. JP Morgan Wealth Management report dates January 2024 - will see if I still have it. Back to the topic if recession - I listen closely to earnings calls; most of the earnings calls so far this year indicated that business is strong and inflation under control. I will grant you that I can only speak to the companies I follow and they are best if breed.  I can list 10 billionaires that disagree with you about them paying hefty taxes already. 

[EZEtoGRU]

8 hours ago, FrankR said:

 I can list 10 billionaires that disagree with you about them paying hefty taxes already. 

Correct!  And many of them insist they don’t pay enough in taxes. 

[Kevin Slater]

This thread has veered way off the topic of personal finance.  Giving it a break.