Credit Crunch

  • CREDIT CRUNCH: The amount of credit consumers used in December rose by a scant 2.9% — the smallest uptick in more than two years — as Americans tightened their belts in response to a slowing economy…(MarketWatch)
  • SO MUCH FOR TARIFFS: The U.S. trade deficit widened in December, reversing half of the prior month’s sharp contraction, as imports rebounded and exports of goods dropped to a 10-month low amid cooling global demand and declining crude oil prices…(Reuters)
  • READ MY LIPS: Jerome Powell is really trying to tell Wall Street rates are staying high. “I’m not going to try to persuade people to have a different forecast, but our forecast is that it will take some time and some patience, and that we’ll need to keep rates higher for longer,” ( WSJ)