New: The Week in Charts📈
-'Don't Let Them Sell You a Bond Fund'
-Saving Social Security
-Is the Consumer Finally Pulling Back?
-Falling Fertility Rates
-Welcome to the Casino
-Buy In May and Stay
-Workers Are Happier Than Ever Before
-And More...

youtube.com/watch?v=jiSMRR…

US Federal Government Spending as % of GDP...
1950s: 17%
1960s: 18%
1970s: 21%
1980s: 22%
1990s: 21%
2000s: 20%
2010s: 23%
2020s: 27%

Video: youtube.com/watch?v=2v289F…

The Interest Expense on US Public Debt hit $1.05 trillion over the last 12 months, another record high. With debt levels spiraling upward and interest rates set to remain higher for longer, this will continue to escalate.

Video: youtube.com/watch?v=2v289F…

The US labor market is cooling:
-Highest Unemployment Rate since Jan 2022 (3.9%)
-Slowest YoY growth in jobs since Mar 2021 (1.8%)
-Fewest Job Openings since Feb 2021 & lowest Quits Rate since Aug 2020
-Lowest wage growth since May 2021 (3.9%)

Video: youtube.com/watch?v=qRCh3M…

A diversified portfolio can weather tough storms. Check out the full episode of Signal or Noise to learn more about how investors fared through crises like the Great Depression and the dot-com bubble. youtube.com/watch?v=1XBryw…

Total Returns, Last 20 Years...
Berkshire Hathaway $BRK.B: +572%
S&P 500 $SPY: +593%
Nasdaq 100 $QQQ: +1,180%

Wholesale used car prices are now at their lowest levels since March 2021, down 23% from the peak. Should lead to continued declines in retail prices in the coming months.

Incredible: Amazon's AWS revenue over the last 12 months ($94 billion) was higher than the revenue of 466 companies in the S&P 500. $AMZN

Video: youtube.com/watch?v=qRCh3M…

Monthly mortgage payment needed to buy the median priced home for sale in the US...
April 2020: $1,480
April 2021: $1,690
April 2022: $2,400
April 2023: $2,550
April 2024: $2,890 (record high)

That's a 95% increase over the last 4 years.

Video: youtube.com/watch?v=qRCh3M…

Global Central Bank Update:
-Peru cut rates for the 8th meeting in a row, 25 bps decrease to 5.75%.
-Brazil cut rates for the 7th meeting in a row, 25 bps decrease to 10.50%.

Beyond Meat, Net Income...
2024(Q1): -$54 million
2023: -$338m
2022: -$366m
2021: -$182m
2020: -$53m
2019: -$12m
2018: -$30m
2017: -$30m
2016: -$25m

IPO Price (May 2019): $25/share
All-Time High Price (July 2019): $239/share
Price Today: $7/share

$BYND

S&P 500 stock buybacks are projected to hit a record $1.075 trillion in 2025, a 16% increase from this year's total.

The interest rate on new federal student loans is expected to rise to 6.5% in July, up from 5.5% currently and the highest level we've seen since 2008.

Bad News Is Good News? (The Week in Charts)...