Short Sellers have lost a combined $175.2 Billion by betting against the market this year
Source: barchart
US CPI has moved down from a peak of 9.1% in June 2022 to 3.2% today. What's driving that decline?
Lower rates of inflation in Fuel Oil, Gasoline, Gas Utilities, Used Cars, Medical Care, Electricity, Apparel, New Cars, Food at Home, and Food away from Home. Shelter and Transportation are the only major components that have a higher inflation rate than June 2022. Source: Charlie Bilello
US inflation a tad lower than what economists expected: US July CPI accelerates to 3.2% YoY from 3% in June vs 3.3% expected, BUT the first acceleration after 12 consecutive months of decline
Both Goods and Services inflation (YoY) slowed in July - but Services remain extremely high at +6.1%... Core CPI slows to 4.7% YoY from 4.8% in June as expected. Shelter costs contributed to about 90% of the increase in July CPI. Note that #Fed's favorite inflation indicator - Core Services CPI Ex-Shelter - remains sticky' as it reaccelerated in July (+0.2% MoM, and from +3.9% to +4.0% YoY)... Fed Swaps price in lower odds (20%) of another rate hike this year. Source: Bloomberg, HolgerZ, www.zerohedge.com
The cost of both buying and renting a house in America has skyrocketed since 2020
Buying a house now costs $2,700/month on average, up an alarming ~86% in 3 years. Renting a house now costs $1,850/month on average, also up ~25% in 3 years. Owning a home has become a luxury. Source: The Kobeissi Letter
The U.S. Now Has:
1. Record $17.1 trillion in household debt 2. Record $12.0 trillion in mortgages 3. Record $1.6 trillion in auto loans 4. Record $1.6 trillion in student loans 5. Record $1.0 trillion in credit card debt Total mortgage debt is now more than double the 2006 peak. Meanwhile, 36% of Americans have more credit card debt than savings while student loan payments are set to resume for the first time since 2020. This is all while mortgage rates just hit 7.1% and credit card debt rates hit a record 25%. Source: The Kobeissi Letter, Hedgeye
Financial demands of supporting a US family of 4 have surpassed what a single salary can adequately provide
Source: FT
In the US, interest rates on household items are skyrocketing
In just 1 year, the average interest rate on credit card debt has gone from 14% to 21%+. New car loan rates went from 4% to 8% while used car loan rates are at 12%+. Mortgage rates are at a fresh high of 7.2%, up from 2.7% in 2021. Will the US consumer be able to absorb all these debt servicing costs? Source: The Kobeissi Letter, Macrobond, IN
Moody's has cut credit ratings of several small to mid-sized US banks on Monday
Moody's said it may downgrade some of the nation's biggest lenders, warning that the sector's credit strength will likely be tested by funding risks and weaker profitability. This does not come as a surprise to us as US banks are facing several headwinds at the time being: 1) Inverted yield curve and lower trading / M&A activity weighing on profitability; 2) Deteriorating loan book quality due to Commercial real estate exposure but also US consumers starting to being hit by rising debt costs (credit card, mortgages, etc.); 3) Deposits withdrawals. Source: reuters
