In The News 12.27.22 Infrastructure Security, Wage Growth, and Protecting Your Money

Four power substations vandalized in Washington, knocking out power for at least 14,000

The Takeaway: The three incidents come less than a month after someone opened fire on a substation in North Carolina, knocking out power to some 45,000 people. The "deliberate" attack raised concerns about the vulnerability of the U.S. power grid to sabotage, as many substations are protected by little more than chainlink fences. The Treat to infrastructure and way of life will impact economic activity and certainty, both are needed for economic growth. Investment in securing infrastructure are necessary for future economic growth.

Putting the brakes on runaway wage growth could help avoid a recession in 2023, but it won't be easy

The Takeaway: The article argues that inflation is being caused by wage growth and to avoid a recession, wage growth has to decrease. My view is different, wages are up because cost of goods and services are up. The reason being are mostly driven by lack of resources and supply shocks. We have not recovered from the production shortages that Covid introduced. Additionally, oil remains relatively high with high uncertainty of future prices due to the ongoing Russian war. Wages have increased by 5.2% in Q3 of 2022, compared to an average of 2.2% historically. Inflation is still high at 7.7% for November 2022.

Six Ways to Protect Your Money in 2023

The Takeaway: The New Year is a great time to revisit your goals. I will be spending the next couple of days checking my portfolio allocations, savings and investment targets, and shopping for places with higher interest rates to park my emergency savings. I am also interested in finding ways to improve my tax allocation by taking advantage of deductions and credits.