Paulitical Economy™

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

  1. 5d ago

    Post 375: Why Xbox, Krispy Kreme and Socialism Struggle

    Dogs in the U.K. go postal.A sad tale of beer in the U.K.Xbox console sales have been plummeting.And here come the layoffs.Demand from Krispy Kreme customers is softer than their donuts.And their share price has tanked over the last five years.And another look back.A great campaign slogan.Financial Ructions:New Zealand and Singapore top the list of countries in terms of ease of doing business.France, Japan and Italy way down the list.Book ReviewWe start a new book review: Why Socialism Struggles by Dr. Doug Cardell.There are a lot of misconceptions about what socialism is and what free market capitalism is.I hope that after reviewing this book you will have a better understanding of how an economy really works.And be able to identify when certain economic doctrine is driven more by ideology than reality.

  2. Jul 6

    Post 374: The Real Story on Tariffs, Brexit, and U.S. Exceptionalism

    The cigarette industry is seeing a slow but steady decline. And employment is falling.Also in the number of employees.Check your eggs.Nike’s customers are under continued pressure.As is Nike’s share price.The wisdom of crowds requires at least one very important condition.Financial Ructions:Japan: Too many holes in the dyke?The U.S. vs. the E.U. cage match.The Bank of Canada worries about capital being misallocated.While they and other central bankers have been the main perpetrators of malinvestment for at least twenty-five years.Productivity growth in Canada has tanked.U.S. exceptionalismAnd no, reckless government spending is not justified by giving hedge funds a place to park their money.U.S. unexceptionalismInsider trading.A look at tariffs.And Brexit.Book Review:We finish our review of Howard Schultz’s great book on Starbucks.And I highly recommend it but especially for anyone looking to start their own business.

  3. Jun 29

    Post 373: Myths: Housing as Investment and The Maestro

    More evidence that pizza sales are slowing with Domino’s just barely in positive territory in the U.S.Another look at wealth disparity in the U.S. and this time we focus on stocks and mutual funds.As you might expect, the disparity is even worse here.A look at toys with two companies going in different directions.As is their share price.No more brown M&M’s and a repost on the Mars company.Too many people think of housing as an investment.No, a house’s productivity does not rise over time.But it is a good vehicle for forced saving.How governments increase house prices from both a demand and supply side of the equation.A quick look at Germany.Some in Canada believe it’s ok to first make housing and good jobs inaccessible for young people.And then charge them half a million dollars if they want to move to another country where good jobs and affordable housing are available.China’s economy is struggling.One data point: car sales are falling rapidly.Financial Ructions:Defunct economists.Alan Greenspan: RIPBook Review: Onward by Howard Schultz (Starbucks)Thinking long-term vs. short-termSelf reinforcing corporate cultures: Good and bad.Reinvesting in all parts of your business all the time.

  4. Jun 22

    Post 372: Social Security Insolvency, Boomer Bailouts, and What the Bitcoin-to-Zero Argument Gets Wrong

    After many quarters of negative U.S. sales growth, Yum! Brands decides to offload its Pizza Hut business.But Taco Bell is still ringing in strong sales growth.The Starbucks turnaround plan seems to be working.A look at wealth disparity in the U.S.And how the older generation has benefited from central bank policiesAt the expense of the next generation.Lululemon’s North American Sales kick off the year by accelerating downwards.But management thinks they’re off to a good start.Apple’s sales soar due to the popularity of its new iPhone 17.A quick look at some price increases in America over the last five years.Social Security in the U.S. will now be insolvent by 2032.And a look at some solutions.Ontario’s housing market is struggling.And could get worse.Canada’s government comes to the rescue with a taxpayer-funded baby boomer bailout.In Financial Ructions:Technology stocks have now eclipsed their 1999 peak weighting within the S&P500.But their share of earnings has gone up even more.That doesn’t mean that they’re cheap.A look at an op-ed that says Bitcoin is going to zero.But it makes some assumptions I don’t agree with.Book Review: Onward by Howard Schultz (Starbucks)We see the importance of empowerment and letting go.A lesson our policymakers have unlearned.A quote from legendary Costco CEO Jim Sinegal.The importance of investing in your customers.And the importance of corporate culture.

  5. Jun 15

    Post 371: Why Most Policymakers Are Not Good Leaders and Macy’s Joins The K-Shaped Recovery

    Hybrid car sales are soaring. And the Japanese dominate the category.Macy’s and the K-Shaped economy. If you can’t beat em, join em.Kraft Heinz has had 17 straight quarters of volume decline. And so decide not to split the company in two.Core inflation for May in the U.S. was the highest since last September. And falling prices that are really rising.In Financial Ructions The U.S. jobs report for May was strong. But more than 100% of the net jobs created were part-time. And yet again ye ole birth-death model comes to the rescue.Book Review: Onward by Howard Schultz We cover five more chapters (I don’t cover all chapters in the book). The importance of the intangibles is stressed. Putting your ego aside.Having passion for the business and the customerHeritageTwo reasons why the vast majority of policymakers are not good leaders. And the importance of teamworkFar too often the tail of Wall Street wags the dog of corporate America.And the best time to fix your business model is when it's working.

  6. Jun 8

    Post 370: Younger People Priced Out of U.K. and Canadian Housing While Gold Surpasses the U.S. Dollar as World’s #1 Reserve Asset

    In the U.K. the armed forces are being prescribed Wegovy, and Viagra.More on governments’ contributions to Canada’s housing affordability crisis.Dollar General continues to grow its sales with higher-income consumers trading down.UK Stacations.Brits morning drinking at airportsA look at how much housing in the U.K. became unaffordable since 1997.Oil consumption is rising But its intensity in GDP is falling.Hilton Hotels is seeing continued growth. And across all of it’s brands from high-end to value chains.In Financial Ructions The US Dollar’s influence in the global monetary system peaked in 2015.The U.S. Dollar index peaked in 2025 but is still higher than pre-COVID.Gold is now the world’s number one reserve assetA look at how California’s proposed billionaire wealth tax is already negatively impacting the state. And some alternative proposals.Payroll numbers have fallen in four of the last five months. But don’t worry, payroll for government jobs is still going up.Book Review: We continue our review of the Starbucks book Onward and we see: The importance of having a passion for the customer value proposition rather than focusing on your share price.How Corporate culture is crucial for long-term success.Why CEO Howard Schultz wanted to get rid of the breakfast sandwich.

  7. Jun 1

    Post 369: Even Ozempic Can’t Keep Canada Out of Recession

    Generic versions of weight-loss drugs are now on the market.Costing less to lose more.Hormel is a U.S. food-processing company based in Minnesota.Sales improved slightly but it’s all price: volume is still negative.We take a look back at the maker of Spam.Sharks vs. Coconuts cage match.Lululemon makes some changes to its board of directors.While its share price continues to struggle.Weight-loss drugs have become so popular that they are blowing holes in the budgets of some municipalities and public health plans.House prices in Canada have been outpacing income for many years.And now a whole generation is priced out of the house market in some markets.Chicken prices are soaring in Canada.And so are World Cup soccer tickets.Car prices have risen so much that Americans are buying fewer of them.Costco continues to chuck along and are a beneficiary of the weight-loss drug craze.In Financial Ructions:Despite Canada being subjected to the lowest average tariff rate in the U.S. vs. any other G7 country.It’s the only one in a technical recession.Related: Jobs in Canada for younger people are hard to find.Book ReviewWe start a new book: Onward: How Starbucks Fought For Its Life Without Losing Its Soul.We take a slightly different approach to the review.Right away we see the importance of focusing on the customer rather than the share price.

  8. May 25

    Post 368: Energy Shock, Mortgage Shock, and a Stretched Consumer

    The fallout from the Iran war in terms of rising energy prices may just be beginning.US gas prices are up 45% from last year.Canadians renewing their 5-year fixed rate mortgages in 2026 will see the biggest shock yet to their monthly payments.More Americans are moving from California and New York to Texas and Florida.Wendy’s same-store sales have declined in the U.S. for five straight quarters.Its share price is back to where it was in 1993.McDonald’s has had four straight quarters of positive comparable store US sales growth.Although consumer sentiment is worsening and the next quarter will not be as strong.And a look back.Walmart continues to drive impressive same-store sales growth in the U.S. although their most recent print is the lowest in two years.And they too are seeing cracks in consumer sentiment.Lowe’s eeks out a comparable store sales gain.But notes that this is the most difficult housing market since the Great Financial Crisis.Campbell’s Soup has only seen one quarter of adjusted sales growth out of the last ten.It is walking back some price increases on chips and like Pepsi/Frito Lay, they will be surgical about it.Its share price is back to 1994Core inflation in Canada (excluding energy) continues to tick lower.The main risk is that it’s due to a struggling economy.The percentage of Americans making withdrawals from their pension plans for hardship reasons has tripled.In Financial Ructions:The yield curve continues to increasingly uninvert.It’s a bear steepener which doesn’t usually lead to a recession.Although we had a nasty one in the early 1970s.We look at the supply of base money relative to M2.And why inflation soared in the early 2020s.Judy Shelton makes the case for a shrinking Fed balance sheet and lower interest rates.Book ReviewWe complete the last two chapters of the great book False Dawn by George Selgin.Monetary policy was highly accommodative during World War II.But not after the war ended, despite yield curve control still being in effect.We must learn the lessons of the Great Depression and resist resorting to the New Deal playbook.And a shout out to Hayek.

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

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  • Creator
    Paul Musson
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    57
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Paulitical Economy™
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    Paulitical Economy™