The Capitalist Investor - Episode 145 Credit Card debt is rising at the biggest quarterly increases in history. How long can debt continue to fuel the economy and when will the American consumer finally pull back their spending habits? The big question is whether demand will come down naturally or in limbo with the Federal Reserve hiking interest rates. With inflation rising, it’s not just hurting consumers, it’s also hurting businesses with their input prices rising. What does that mean for the economy & stock market? All of this & more is discussed in this week’s “The Capitalist Investor” podcast episode.[04:18] Dangerous Credit Card Debt[14:17] Ford Expecting Another $1B in Costs Because of Inflation[22:46] Cancelled – Employees & Electric CartsDangerous Credit Card DebtIn 2021, only about 10% of credit card holders carried a balance for over a year. Now in 2022, roughly 60% of credit card holders are carrying their balance forward for over a year. That means a lot more people are relying on debt and their credit cards to make it through life.The issue comes when the time comes to eventually pay the piper. The economy can’t live on debt forever and consumer’s can’t continue down this path. The big question comes from figuring out whether or not demand will naturally come down as consumers are forced to stop spending debt or whether or not demand will come down because of the Federal Reserve hiking interest rates and offloading their balance sheet. Maybe it’s a combination of both.No matter what, it’s important to figure out how this will resolve itself and how it will be reflected in the economy & the stock market.Billions of Losses & Employees CancelledInflation doesn’t just impact consumers, it also impacts businesses. As costs rise, businesses have to decide whether or not they are going to absorb that cost or pass it along to the consumers of their products or services. Ford just announced that their costs have risen almost $1B in the past quarter because of the supply chain issues that increased their input prices.But this isn’t just happening to Ford, it’s happening on a much bigger scale to almost every business in America. Ultimately, the biggest concern is what the future looks like for the supply chain as demand from the consumer comes downThis week on our “Cancelled” Segment, we take a look at Electric Carts. Yes, Electric Carts, not Electric Cars. Businesses like the Walmart’s of the world & Target’s of the world are looking at delivery services through Electric Carts.This will make the shopping experience more efficient by making it quicker and easier for shoppers to get their products, while also eliminating some overhead costs for the businesses.Is this another example of the free-markets designing technology to replace workers because workers have ultimately become expensive? We discuss on this week’s “Cancelled” segment.Connect With Mark TepperTwitter: @MarkTepperSWPFollow Mark on LinkedInSend Mark a message hereThe SWP Connect YouTube ChannelConnect With Derek GabrielsenTwitter: @DerekGabrielsenFollow Derek on LinkedInSend Derek a message hereCheck out Derek’s YouTube channel!Connect With Luke LloydTwitter: @LloydBoyLukeFollow Luke on LinkedInSend Luke a message hereThe SWP Connect YouTube ChannelConnect With Tony ZabiegalaTwitter: @TonyZabiegalaFollow Tony on LinkedInSend Tony a message hereThe SWP Connect YouTube channel!Send your questions and comments to us at info@SWPConnect.com
