New President has set high expectations. What will be the answer to the proverbial question that will be asked in the 2012 election: “Are you any better of now than you were four (4) years ago?” Would there be any concensus on the qualitative and quantitiatve indicators? If so, which ones?
The following graphic provides macro level trends and projections from 1920 thru 2010. May help answer the question: Are we any better off than Americans were in 1920? 1930? 1940? …. 1990? 2000? … 2010?
It’s the Economy Stupid!, Oct 16-22, 2008. Good.
Following economic indicators provided by the U.S. Treasury – includes percent change in Gross Domestic Product (GDP), unemployment rate, personal savings, productivity, prices, and inflation to name a few.
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As for specific indicators to watch: Consumer confidence and debt indicators.
An effective Obama adminsitration will strive to increase the impetus of Americans to save.
Economic and political policies that increase the ability of household to hold on to more of their money would help to stabalize the economy.
The biggest threat the current crisis poses to the “typical household” is the total inability of workers to survive in the event of an unfortunate firing. This goes hand in hand with the various stimulous packages that he plans for the middle class and to small business.
So another indicator to watch would be an uptick in the number of startups and small, non-public firms.
Of coure small business is less stable, but a modern worker must be prepared to move jobs several times in his lifetime. If this preparation is managed correctly, it has the dual effect of forcing busness to respond better to the needs of their employees lest they lose them. A larger pool of comeptent potential employers, even on a smaller scale would do wonders for the health and morale of the American workforce.