That's just hyberbole. We sold nearly $200 billion in goods and services to Canada in 2004.
In 2004 the biggest growth segment of the economy has been the $25,000 and lower segment, which is why stores like Family Dollar, Dollar Tree and others have experienced unrivaled growth.
More hyberbole. There have always been more low wage jobs than high wage jobs. 2004 was a record year for the sale of cars. Look out your window and count the SUVs.
When people are poor or perceive their incomes going down, extreme low price and second hand goods stores flourish. During real good times they wither. If people perceive their lot in life as improving, they'll jump the gun and go ahead and buy name brand. They haven't, that says something about the Joe Sixpack out there.
Increased sales of new houses and cars as well as increasing tourism counter your agument. A rising tide lifts all boats even dollar stores.
Yes, with zero financing and don't pay for it for 6 months, it's all credit. As for SUVs it's actually been a rather bad year. You're the one basing on hyperbole. Look out the window?
We have had a record in bankruptcies over the past 4 years with only one drop last year (.8% in personnel filings) and have hit the record in consumer debt, much of which will never be paid off. Meanwhile business bankruptcies are up some 4%
Data compiled by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts show that the number of bankruptcy filings (dominated by personal filings) dropped by about 1 percent during the 12 months that ended June 30, 2004, from 1.65 million to 1.63 million. The decline marked the first time since 2000 that there were fewer bankruptcies filed than in the previous 12 months. The total number of non-business bankruptcy filings for the 12-month period ending June 30, 2004 was 1,599,986, down 0.8 percent from the 1,613,097 cases filed during the 12-month period ending June 30, 2003. Business filings during the same period dropped to 35,739, down 3.9 percent form 37, 182 in the previous 12 months. But Chapter 11 (business reorganization) filings rose 4.2 percent, from 10,602 in 2003 to 11,048 as of June 30, 2004. Chapter 7 (liquidation) cases rose .10 percent to 1.16 million. The number of public companies filing for Chapter 11 protection during the same period fell by about half, from 99 to 51. The largest corporate filing in the period was by Mirant Corp., an energy producer and supplier, which listed $19.4 billion in assets. (This was the only company to file bankruptcy during the past year that ranks in the top 50 bankruptcies since 1970). The second-largest public filing was made by insurer Trenwick Group, which listed $5.3 billion in assets. A major accounting and consulting firm, Pricewaterhouse Coopers, predicts that just 110 companies will file for bankruptcy protection in calendar year 2004, which would continue a decline in the bankruptcy rate. In 2003, 133 companies filed, which itself was a decrease of nearly half from 2001, when a record 257 companies filed. This decrease has been attributed to more favorable borrowing rates, continued general economic improvement, and improved corporate governance practices. Pricewaterhouse Coopers also believes that the size of companies involved in bankruptcies will fall in 2004. The major rating agencies have reported that bond default rates this year have been at their lowest since 1999.
One out of every 73 U.S. households filed for bankruptcy in the calendar year 2003, a record high (despite historically low interest rates). This compares with one bankruptcy filing for every 144 households in 1993, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute. For the calendar year 2003, a record 1.6 million bankruptcy cases were filed, up 5.2 percent from calendar year 2002 and nearly doubling the 812,898 filings in 1993. This growth is consistent with the growth in household debt, which reached $8.9 billion last year relative to disposable income. Consumer bankruptcies were filed during 2003 at a rate of 185 per hour, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute. Utah had the distinction of having the highest per-household bankruptcy rate -- one out of every 47 -- followed closely by Tennessee, Georgia, Nevada and Alabama. Alaska had the lowest rate in 2003 -- just one filing for every 189 households, followed by Vermont, North Dakota and New Hampshire.