Paulitical Economy™

Paul Musson

A snapshot of what’s going on in the world’s economy. 

  1. 8H AGO

    Post 350: Mortgage Debt of the Next Generation is Funding the Baby Boomers’ Retirement

    A look at how pension plans compare between the Canadian private and public sectors.Car prices in the U.S. and Canada have soared.And no, it’s not because of tariffs.Macy’s seems to be turning around its business.And more evidence of the Special K phenomenon.But not all luxury companies are benefiting, and Saks Global may be filing for bankruptcy protection.And we take a look back.Continuing our luxury theme, we look at stats for the most expensive homes sold in the U.S. in 2025.And a cool video of Larry Ellison’s house in Florida that includes a PGA standard par three golf hole.The growth in spending of the bottom 10% of income earners since 2021 in the U.S. has not kept pace with inflation.In other words, it’s been falling in real terms.Not so for the top 10%.In Financial Ructions:We see how the U.S. government concurrently put in place two new housing policies which will have opposite effects on the housing affordability crisis.A report shows that tariffs can actually serve to reduce inflation.Unfortunately it’s due to tariffs slowing the economy and increasing unemployment.We continue our book review of Depression, War and Cold War by Robert Higgs.We see the hazards of using traditional measures of economic prosperity in a command and control economy.And while World War II was not a time of economic prosperity, it did serve to do away with the pessimistic expectations that had become ingrained during the Great Depression.And did set the stage for booming prosperity once the war ended.

    35 min
  2. 12/23/2025

    Post 347: Christmas Music, In-Flight Miracles and Monetary Delusion

    Christmas with Andy Williams and the murder trial of his ex-wife.The US restaurant industry is seeing negative foot traffic. This is what happens when inflation drives dining costs through the roof.However, after a rough patch in late 2024, Olive Garden owner Darden Restaurants continues to generate decent sales growth.A quick, closer look at Costco Travel. And great deals on car rentals too.And some people will shamelessly do anything to jump the queue.US headline inflation ticked down but is still above the Fed’s arbitrarily set 2% confiscation rate. However, due to the government shutdown there are questions about the veracity of the data.Canada’s inflation rate remains steady in its own arbitrarily set confiscation range. Although core measures, while still elevated are the lowest since March of last year. And rental accommodation in some cities is down significantly.Welfare fraud in America is costing hundreds of billions of dollars. Such that many on welfare live better than most middle-class Americans.In Financial Ructions: Japan has the highest debt to GDP of any developed economy. And now interest rates are rising as 35 years of interest rate and price discovery distortion come home to roost.And in our book review of Where Keynes Went Wrong by Hunter Lewis. We look at Keynes’s barbarous relic and see that the gold exchange standard that contributed to the Great Depression was not the classical gold standard.And how Keynes, with his enormous intellect, deliberately sought to confuse and intimidate critics into silence.

    44 min
  3. 12/01/2025

    Post 344: Apple’s Story, Canada’s Blind Spot, Japan’s Dilemma

    Apple is a pretty impressive business founded by a very impressive entrepreneur.But its share price is way ahead of the business i.e. expensive.We take a look back.After many quarters of negative comparable store sales growth, Best Buy’s sales are actually accelerating.Strongest growth in over four years.Hewlitt-Packard adjusted sales have now grown for six straight quarters.And we take a look back.Canada’s method of calculating inflation doesn’t capture the soaring prices of housing.But the Bank of Canada didn’t need a properly constructed inflation number to warn them about a brewing housing affordability crisis.In Financial Ructions:A look at rising interest rates in Japan.And how the Bank of Japan is caught between a rock and a hard place i.e. rising interest rates and higher inflation.US jobs grow in September, although one source has them negative in three of the last four months.And job openings continue to fall.Canada has had two good labour force survey monthly jobs prints in a row.And jobs in the private sector increased for the first time since June.However, the payroll survey shows that jobs have shrunk 133,200 so far this year.In our book review of Where Keynes Went Wrong,We see how Keynes gave politicians the intellectual cover they needed for their profligacy.And Hayek didn’t think Keynes knew much about economics.And we look at the tight relationship between government and Wall Street.And how that  led to taxpayer dollars being used to make investors whole on their toxic investments.

    43 min

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A snapshot of what’s going on in the world’s economy.