With the coronavirus pandemic serving as a backdrop, 2020 was a record-breaking year in many ways. And some of the economic records that fell were, shall we say, less than ideal. In fact, the impacts of these records will almost certainly ripple through the economy as we move into 2021.
Here are three records that fell last year that didn’t get nearly as much attention as they should have.
It’s time to bid a fond farewell to 2020. Good riddance and don’t let the door hit you in the butt on the way out!
Of course, the New Year also means it’s time for — resolutions.
Confession: I’ve never been good at resolutions. In fact, I refuse to make them. Why set yourself up for failure? But get this; now I’m not only supposed to make resolutions for myself. I have to make them for my pets!
Ummm – no.
So far, the US has escaped negative interest rates as a matter of central bank policy. Back in May, many thought a Fed move to negative rates was a real possibility. Of course, much of the world has operated under negative rates as a matter of policy for years. The European Central Bank (ECB) launched negative rates in June 2014. The Bank of Japan (BOJ) introduced negative rates in January 2016. Both are still maintaining a negative rate policy today.
While the Fed has resisted the temptation of a negative rate policy so far, that doesn’t mean Americans have escaped the reality of below-zero real rates. In fact, the world is awash in negative-yielding debt.
The US government is stimulating everybody. Just not you.
Congress finally pulled together a stimulus deal. Both houses of Congress passed the $900 billion measure. It ranks as the second-largest “stimulus” bill in history, only behind the CARES Act passed earlier this year.
Have you heard about the guy who’s spent five years in federal prison because he won’t give up the location of about 500 gold coins he found in a historic shipwreck?
Yes. Five years.
How many years would you spend in prison for millions in gold?
I love music. A good song can comfort, inspire or motivate. There are a lot of really good songs out there. I found one the other day. I’ll get to that in a minute. But first, I have to say there are also some real duds.
Now it’s time to talk Christmas!
I know. A lot of people started with Christmas the day after Halloween. This absolutely drives me crazy. Why do we just skip over Thanksgiving? Thanksgiving is a magnificent holiday! I mean, it’s important to give thanks. And who doesn’t want to eat large amounts of delicious food and watch football? But in this day and age, Thanksgiving gets completely run over by Christmas.
Well, it’s another Black Friday and I didn’t go shopping.
That’s my tradition.
When governments started locking down the economy in response to coronavirus, the Federal Reserve sprung into action. First, it slashed interest rates to zero. Then it quickly launched what we’ve dubbed QE infinity. In effect, that meant printing trillions of dollars out of thin air and pumping them into the economy.
Meanwhile, the US government did its part, passing a massive stimulus bill – pumping trillions of dollars of borrowed money into the economy. Of course, the Fed monetized a big chunk of that debt via QE infinity. So, in effect, the federal government joined forces with the central bank to pump trillions of dollars out of thin air into the economy.
I had a friend in high school who was always finding money. He’d frequently be walking along, look down, and spot a quarter or a dime at his feet. And it wasn’t just pocket change. He’d frequently find paper money too. I was with him when he picked up a $100 bill lying on the ground in the mall parking lot.
