The help-wanted-online index from the Conference Board is delayed w/ no new release date, but other indicators point to a continuation of the downward trend in job openings. (chart below is from last HWOL release)

Macro adjustments also show the index flat YTD, but not as loose; current levels are equivalent to Feb '22:

CHI Fed: national financial conditions are now flat YTD after revisions, showing essentially 2 years of progress wiped out:

The professor nails it, yet again:

The bar is so small that it's virtually invisible here - revolving credit increased a mere $152 million, which was an anemic 0.1% annualized rate; credit card growth has seen an erratic decline (though not balances themselves) since Jun '22 when inflation technically peaked:

Are Americans hitting the wall, or are banks? Credit card debt was virtually flat for Mar and nonrevolving debt didn't increase much either; could be b/c consumers finally have stopped seeking credit; could be b/c banks refuse to lend in today's environment; could be both:

There's another $100 billion or so that will be drained from the TGA at the NY Fed, which should easily happen before end of month, then we're back to ratcheting up the federal debt:

Probably nothing...

Number of credit card and auto loan accounts falling behind on payments is rocketing higher and mortgages are steadily rising too - note that the rate of increase (not the level) for credit card accounts is rising at the fastest pace since the financial crisis - food for thought:

Household debt explodes even higher by $212 billion in Q4, hitting $17.5 trillion for 1st time ever:

ISM: hospital PMI in Apr picked up slightly; positive report overall but it showed employment contracting; this is just latest indicator showing cracks in the labor market spreading; given that healthcare has been disproportionate source of job growth, this is very worrisome:

'Morons' might be overly charitable:

CoreLogic: home prices up 5.3% Y/Y in Mar, forecasted to rise 3.7% year ahead;1.2% M/M jump in Mar was much higher than the usual seasonal rise; Miami remains reigning champ for fasting price increases among largest metros; lots of FL markets still at high risk of price drops

Treasury cash drops another $19 billion on Friday, leaving a $153-billion cushion in the TGA; once that's gone, federal debt will hop back on the escalator:

It takes 40% of the median income (pre-tax) to buy the median price home - so that's over 50% of the median after-tax income:

ATL Fed: homeownership affordability fell again in Feb, giving up most of the gains in Jan as home prices continued surging and interest rates remained high - seeing as how both are even higher today, affordability has declined even further today:

NY Fed: supply chain pressure index tanked in Apr, indicating much more slack and lower price pressures - conditions today are better on net than pre-pandemic; if inflation were caused by supply chain problems, then prices should be lower today than they were in 2019...

Employment trends index fell again in Apr, and that was after Mar being revised down; the readings now point to job growth evaporating w/in the next 4 months:

This was a tremendous conversation with the great Charles V Payne in Feb, but the labor market trends which we discussed then are still present in the economy today, as evidenced by Friday’s job report:

Since bank term funding program ended mid-Mar, the discount window has been able to plug any of the small holes in the dyke, but there's still no sign that troubled banks have adequately cleaned up their balance sheets; they simply can't make enough loans at high interest rates: