Index of Consumer Sentiment surged in early May

The Index of Consumer Sentiment surged in early May to its highest level in fifteen years. All of the May gain was in the Expectations Index, which also rose to its highest level since 2004, while the Current Conditions Index was virtually unchanged and well below the cyclical peak set […] Read more »

Trump should say less on trade. The stock markets will thank him

… I’m not saying President Donald Trump’s decision to take on what he sees as America’s decadeslong disadvantage with its trading partners, friends and competitors alike, was a bad one. Even Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and some of his fellow Democrats have been surprisingly supportive of the administration’s tough […] Read more »

When Americans go to the polls, they look to the past – not the future

Where will Americans want to go in 2020? C Z/shutterstock.com J. Edwin Benton, University of South Florida There’s one question that almost every American voter asks him- or herself when casting their vote for president. Has the incumbent’s – or the incumbent party’s – past performance in office been sufficient […] Read more »