U.S. credit card debt stands at a record of nearly $1 trillion
Collectively, Americans owe nearly $1 trillion on creditcards.
Total credit card debt stood at $986 billion at the start of 2023, unchanged from the record hit at the endof2022,accordingtoanewreportonhousehold debtfromtheFederalReserveBankofNewYork.
Typically, balances fall in the beginning of the year as borrowers start paying downdebt after thepeak holiday shopping season. “This is the first timein20 years we are not seeing a decrease,” according to New York Fed researchers, citing inflation and a highercostofliving.
Credit cardbalances are upalmost 20% from ayear ago, according to a separate quarterly credit industryinsightsreport fromTransUnion.
The average balance rose to $5,733 over that same period,TransUnionfound.
“As inflation rose to near 40-year-high levels, many consumers have used credit to help manage their budgets, leading to record- or near-record high balances,” said Michele Raneri, TransUnion’s vice presidentofU.S.researchandconsulting.
Souce:
https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/15/credit-card-debt-is-at-a-record-high-how-to-paydown-your-balance.html
DFW Airport adding sixth terminal as part of $4.8B expansion plan
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport just announced it is adding a long-awaited sixth terminalasa partofa massiverenovationproject.
Terminal F will be built over the next few years on thesouthwestsideoftheairport.
The plan also includes the potential for more growthandadditionalgates.
The airport says Terminal F will also have state-ofthe-art facilities and amenities, including modernized baggage handling and expanded concessions.
The plans for Terminal F were originally announced in 2019, but were put on hold due to thepandemic.
Constructionisexpectedtobecompletedin2026.
$2.72 billion will go to "reimagine" Terminal C along with "pier" expansions off Terminal A and Terminal C, and significant upgrades to roadways andterminalaccess.
Souce:
https://www.fox4news.com/news/dfw-airport-adding-6th-terminal-as-part-of-48b-expansion-plan
Target expects organized retail crime-fueled losses to jump by $500 million this year
Target is expecting to take a $500 million hit in profits this year due to missing inventory, and it's largely because of theft and organized retail crime, thecompanysaid.
"It's an urgent issue," CEO Brian Cornell told investors on Target's first-quarter earnings call Wednesday. "Not just for Target, but across the entireretailindustry."
In a statement, Cornell said that while it is "making significant investments in strategies to prevent this from happening," it expects "inventory shrink" to makeabigdentinprofitsthisyear.
On the earnings call, Chief Operating Officer John Mulligan described how "mitigation efforts," like stepped-up security staffing, adjustments to product selection, and anti-theft displays, are helpingtoreduceshrinkinstores.
But, Mulligan added, that layer of security does come at a cost to sales, as it adds friction to the customerexperience.Gettingthatbalancerightisa keypriorityforhisteam.
What would happen if the U.S. defaulted on its debt
Investors, executives and economists are preparing contingency plans as they consider the turmoilthatwouldresultfromadefaultinthe$24 trillionU.S.Treasurymarket.
The U.S. debt limit has been reached and the TreasuryDepartmentis findingwaystosavecash. Afteritrunsoutofmaneuvers,whatonceseemed unfathomable could become reality: The United States defaults.
Whathappensnext?
The far-reaching effects are hard to fully predict: from shock waves in financial markets to bankruptcies, recession and potentially irreversible damage to the nation’s long-held role atthecenteroftheglobaleconomy.
The probability of a default remains low, at least based on opposing lawmakers’ assurances that a dealwillbedonetoraiseorsuspendthedebtlimit and the long odds implied by trading in certain financial markets. But as the day approaches when the United States begins to run out of cash topayitsbills whichcould beassoonasJune 1.
Souce:
https://www.businessinsider.com/target-says-shoplifting-retail-crime-cause-milliondollar-profit-hit-2023-5
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/18/business/default-debt-what-happens-next.html
A huge chunk of the U.S. could see blackouts this summer
Two-thirds of North America could face blackouts over the next few months as summer heat increases demand for electricity, a report from a major electricity regulator has found. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation, which releases regular assessments of grid conditions, said in an outlook released thathugeswathesoftheU.S.,fromthewholeWestCoastthroughtheSouthwest,Midwest,Texas,andparts oftheSouthandNewEngland,facean“elevatedrisk”ofenergyshortfalls.
“Increased,rapiddeploymentofwind,solarandbatterieshavemadeapositiveimpact,”MarkOlson,NERC’s manager of Reliability Assessments, said in a statement. “However, generator retirements continue to increase the risks associated with extreme summer temperatures, which factors into potential supply shortagesinthewesterntwo-thirdsofNorthAmericaifsummertemperaturesspike.”
The report actually contains some good news: None of the regions highlighted are particularly high risk, and, with good luck and normal temperatures, the grids should be able to handle regular demand this summer.(Lastyear,muchofthegridintheMidwestandsmallpartsoftheSouthwaslabeledat“highrisk” of shortages inNERC’s report.) “Wearenot predicting theseconditions tooccur”with totalcertainty, John Moura,NERCdirectorofreliabilityassessmentandperformanceanalysis,told.
Souce:
https://gizmodo.com/summer-electricity-blackouts-nerc-2023-power-grid-1850450228
