May 10 Update: US COVID-19 Test Results

The US might be able to test 400,000 to 600,000 people per day sometime in May according to Dr. Fauci – and that might be enough for test and trace. However, the US might need more than 900,000 tests per day according to Dr. Jha of Harvard’s Global Health Institute. There were 277,897 test results […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/10/may-10-update-us-covid-19-test-results/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=may-10-update-us-covid-19-test-results

Covid-19 is an inequality issue

I just noticed this in the Observer. It lists Covid-19 cases by local authority in England alone. I have taken all with death rates over 400 power £100,000 of population: The north is being hit hard. As are poorer areas. Covid-19 is not only about inequality. But it certainly is in part. And that matters […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/10/covid-19-is-an-inequality-issue/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=covid-19-is-an-inequality-issue

Employment: April Diffusion Indexes Decline to Record Lows

The BLS diffusion index for total private employment was at a record low 4.8 in April, down from 28.5 in March. For manufacturing, the diffusion index was at a record low 2.6, down from 26.3 in March. Think of this as a measure of how widespread job gains or losses are across industries. The further […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/10/employment-april-diffusion-indexes-decline-to-record-lows/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=employment-april-diffusion-indexes-decline-to-record-lows

What is money? An explanation

As a follow up to the debates this week on how to disseminate ideas I wrote and recorded this yesterday: This is the transcript, near enough (as I suspect I changed a word or two when recording): If people are asked what money is they usually talk about notes and coins. But when they come […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/10/what-is-money-an-explanation/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=what-is-money-an-explanation

Question of to the day: what to call an economics that embraces MMT?

Jo Wilson made this comment this comment on the blog this morning when discussing how to communicate economic ideas: Find a way to communicate what MMT actually is (heck, just give it a new name), as so many non-scientific people seem to confuse “theory” with “hypothesis” – as soon as they hear “theory” it’s immediately translated to […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/10/question-of-to-the-day-what-to-call-an-economics-that-embraces-mmt/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=question-of-to-the-day-what-to-call-an-economics-that-embraces-mmt

May 9 Update: US COVID-19 Test Results: Third Consecutive Day Over 300K

The US might be able to test 400,000 to 600,000 people per day sometime in May according to Dr. Fauci – and that might be enough for test and trace. However, the US might need more than 900,000 tests per day according to Dr. Jha of Harvard’s Global Health Institute. There were 300,842 test results […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/09/may-9-update-us-covid-19-test-results-third-consecutive-day-over-300k/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=may-9-update-us-covid-19-test-results-third-consecutive-day-over-300k

Recession Measures and NBER

Calling the beginning or end of a recession takes time. The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) waits until the data is revised, and if the recovery is sluggish, this process can take from 18 months to two years or longer. In addition, if the economy slides into recession again, the committee will only consider […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/09/recession-measures-and-nber/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=recession-measures-and-nber

A Primer on Recent Financial Opportunity Zone Regulations

In December 2019, the United States Treasury recently released guidelines in Subchapter Z of the Internal Revenue Code. the regulations play the vital role of clarifying earlier 2018 and 2019 regulations about financial opportunity zones. This article briefly reviews some of the most important lessons to be learned from this announcement.  The Role of Opportunity […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/09/a-primer-on-recent-financial-opportunity-zone-regulations/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=a-primer-on-recent-financial-opportunity-zone-regulations

Working From Home Guide – 5 Tips for Working During the Lockdown

Did you know that 4.3 million people in the U.S. work from home at least half the time? For these members of corporate America, working from home is a breeze. But with coronavirus upon us, millions of more people are now working from home. And it can be a big adjustment. For this reason, we’ve… […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/09/working-from-home-guide-5-tips-for-working-during-the-lockdown/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=working-from-home-guide-5-tips-for-working-during-the-lockdown

Schedule for Week of May 10, 2020

The key reports this week are April CPI and retail sales. For manufacturing, the April Industrial Production report will be released on Friday. Fed Chair Jerome Powell speaks on Wednesday. —– Monday, May 11th —–No major economic releases scheduled. —– Tuesday, May 12th —–6:00 AM ET: NFIB Small Business Optimism Index for April. 8:30 AM: […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/09/schedule-for-week-of-may-10-2020/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=schedule-for-week-of-may-10-2020

Ely, Saturday morning.

I admit I think I am lucky to live in Ely. I went to the river this morning before it was too hot, and too many people came out. It was beautiful. A barn owl was still out hunting; it must have young. And the air was alive with birdsong – if only I was […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/09/ely-saturday-morning/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ely-saturday-morning

The cappuccino economy

I am aware that we have been discussing the need for narratives to explain the economy on this blog in the last week. Much of that discussion has focussed 0n issues around money and the way that the government is funded. But there are other narratives that are also important, and almost as little understood. […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/09/the-cappuccino-economy/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-cappuccino-economy

May 8 Update: US COVID-19 Test Results: States Ramping Up Tracing

From NPR: States Nearly Doubled Plans For Contact Tracers Since NPR Surveyed Them 10 Days Ago The US might be able to test 400,000 to 600,000 people per day sometime in May according to Dr. Fauci – and that might be enough for test and trace. However, the US might need more than 900,000 tests […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/08/may-8-update-us-covid-19-test-results-states-ramping-up-tracing/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=may-8-update-us-covid-19-test-results-states-ramping-up-tracing

AAR: April Rail Carloads down 25.2% YoY, Intermodal Down 17.2% YoY

From the Association of American Railroads (AAR) Rail Time Indicators. Graphs and excerpts reprinted with permission. Any industry that’s been around for 190 years has experienced a lot, but railroads have never faced something quite like what they’re facing now: huge swaths of their customer base shut down, with no clear idea when things will […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/08/aar-april-rail-carloads-down-25-2-yoy-intermodal-down-17-2-yoy/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=aar-april-rail-carloads-down-25-2-yoy-intermodal-down-17-2-yoy

Make your Listing Shine on Redfin with Video Tours and 3D Virtual Walkthroughs

The coronavirus pandemic has changed the practice of real estate. At Redfin, we’re working on technology that helps all agents—at all brokerages—serve customers in this challenging environment.  We’re making it easy for all real estate agents to highlight their listings through video tours and 3D virtual walkthroughs on Redfin, the most popular brokerage site in […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/08/make-your-listing-shine-on-redfin-with-video-tours-and-3d-virtual-walkthroughs/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=make-your-listing-shine-on-redfin-with-video-tours-and-3d-virtual-walkthroughs

NMHC: Rent Payment Tracker Finds 80.2 Percent of Apartment Households Paid Rent as of May 6

CR Note: People are still paying their rent. In an email, NMHC analysts note that the rent “payment level represents a payment rate of 98.1 percent compared to May 1-6, 2019“ From the NMHC: NMHC Rent Payment Tracker Finds 80.2 Percent of Apartment Households Paid Rent as of May 6 The National Multifamily Housing Council […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/08/nmhc-rent-payment-tracker-finds-80-2-percent-of-apartment-households-paid-rent-as-of-may-6/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=nmhc-rent-payment-tracker-finds-80-2-percent-of-apartment-households-paid-rent-as-of-may-6

Buying a House in Atlanta During Covid-19

The US housing market has been continuously analyzed amidst the COVID-19 outbreak, with many Americans questioning the impact Coronavirus may have on buying a home in their local market. While conditions can change rapidly, Atlanta’s housing market hasn’t seen a drastic negative impact from the virus.  Many people are still looking to buy a house […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/08/buying-a-house-in-atlanta-during-covid-19/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=buying-a-house-in-atlanta-during-covid-19

How the Coronavirus Is Transforming the Housing Market: A Tale of Four Metros

We crunched the numbers to determine how COVID-19 is impacting buyer and seller behavior in places that have flattened the curve, places that haven’t, and those where real estate isn’t considered essential. To better understand how the coronavirus pandemic is impacting local housing markets across the country, we identified four of the U.S. metropolitan areas […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/08/how-the-coronavirus-is-transforming-the-housing-market-a-tale-of-four-metros/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=how-the-coronavirus-is-transforming-the-housing-market-a-tale-of-four-metros

Comments on April Employment Report

The April report was the worst monthly report ever in terms of job losses and the increase in the unemployment rate. The headline number for April was 20,500,000 jobs lost, and the previous two months were revised down 214 thousand, combined. The unemployment rate increased to 14.7%. The BLS noted that the actual unemployment rate […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/08/comments-on-april-employment-report/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=comments-on-april-employment-report

SteelPath May MLP update and news

April MLP performance appeared to reflect improving sentiment as COVID-19 containment efforts are set to ease in many locations. Furthermore, midstream investor anxieties may have been calmed by efforts to improve free cash flow generation through capital spending cuts and, for some, reductions to distribution payouts. MLP Market Overview Midstream MLPs, as measured by the […]

source https://thebtrader.com/2020/05/08/steelpath-may-mlp-update-and-news/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=steelpath-may-mlp-update-and-news