Economic data released this morning is supportive of a wage cost spiral

by Player896

Morning economic data:

• November retail sales (m/m) -0.6% vs -0.2% expected; October retail sales were +1.3% m/m
• Empire Fed manufacturing survey -11.2 vs -1.0 expected
• Philly Fed manufacturing survey -13.8 vs -12.0 expected
• Weekly jobless claims down 20k from last week; 211k vs 234k expected
• November US industrial production -0.2% vs +0.1% expected

Manufacturing activity and retail sales are spiraling lower, however jobless claims actually fell on a week over week basis. These data points are supportive of a wage-cost spiral.

For those who are unfamiliar with what a wage-cost spiral is:

1. High prices push workers to demand higher wages
2. Higher wages impose higher costs on businesses who are forced to raise prices in an attempt to offset those costs
3. High prices push workers to demand higher wages…
4. And on and on…