Consumer Finances

Credit-Card Companies Brace for a Downturn
https://www.wsj.com/economy/consumers/credit-card-debt-delinquencies-economy-a8d7c825
Americans are still spending, but firms are putting away money to cover potential losses and tightening lending.

Millions of Student Loan Borrowers Are Behind on Payments
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/21/business/student-loan-borrowers-payments.html
They’re seeing their credit scores drop, which will make it more difficult to buy a car or rent a home. And that has implications for the already slowing economy. 

Fixing America's Broken Immigration System

The immigration fix hiding in plain sight
https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/409420/trump-immigration-judges-biden-policy-bipartisan
Biden got immigration wrong. But there’s something both parties can agree on.
 
The Immigrants America Needs
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/the-immigrants-america-needs-policy-reform-8bf8c942
Limit asylum claims, reduce welfare and open the door to highly skilled foreign nationals.
 
Related:
https://vivekjayakumar.blogspot.com/2024/12/too-much-immigration.html
https://vivekjayakumar.blogspot.com/2024/11/the-complicated-economics-and-politics.html

Will Germany Overcome Domestic and International Challenges?

Is Trump Right About Germany’s Surplus?
https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/germany-trade-surplus-on-track-to-shrink-without-trump-tariffs-by-dalia-marin-2025-04
After years of condemning Germany's large current-account surplus, Donald Trump is hoping that the specter of high US tariffs will impel the country to change its ways. But Trump's approach reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of trade imbalances and ignores that Germany's surplus is already on track to shrink.
 
Germany’s Make-or-Break Moment
https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/friedrich-merz-coalition-can-overcome-economic-democratic-challenges-germany-by-daniela-schwarzer-2025-04
As US President Donald Trump shatters the West’s unity and upends the world economy, Germany must step up quickly to protect its interests and those of Europe. Fortunately, the incoming coalition government, led by Friedrich Merz, seems up to the task, so long as it demonstrates the resolve to follow through with fundamental reforms. 

The Bumbler-in-Chief and His Coterie of Sycophants

How Trump Worship Took Hold in Washington
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/04/28/how-trump-worship-took-hold-in-washington
The President is at the center of a brazenly transactional ecosystem that rewards flattery and lockstep loyalty.
 
Is Trump a Tyrant or a Savior? Maybe Just a Bumbler
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/is-trump-a-tyrant-or-a-savior-maybe-just-a-bumbler-policy-administration-8e86f5f5
The goals of his second term are ambitious. But so far the execution has been strikingly incompetent. 

Historical Perspective: US Mortgage Rates

Historical mortgage rates: How do they compare to current rates?
https://finance.yahoo.com/personal-finance/mortgages/article/historical-mortgage-rates-164750874.html 

Profile of Nvidia’s Jensen Huang

Jensen Huang: the man who powers AI
https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/books/book-of-the-day/2025/04/jensen-huang-man-who-powers-ai-nvidia
The entrepreneur’s microchip company Nvidia has fueled a tech revolution, but his success is built on failure and suffering. 

China – The World’s EV Superpower

Major Advances in E.V. Batteries Announced by Chinese Company
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/21/business/catl-battery-china.html
CATL, the world’s largest maker of batteries for electric vehicles, described breakthroughs that could make E.V.s more competitive with gasoline-powered cars.
 
All The Ways BYD Is Leaving Tesla in the Dust
https://youtu.be/_tCIVEfCdGM
 
How BYD, Nio and Other Chinese EVs Compare to Tesla
https://youtu.be/9DLwtGw5yZY