Some stats from the Armstrong blog:

Government spending decreased significantly as well by 1.4%, with federal expenditures down 5.1%. National defense spending declined by 8%, while non-defense spending decreased by 1%. State and local government spending posted its slowest growth since Q2 of 2022 at 0.8%. Government-driven spending is one of the main components of GDP calculations, but a reduction in government-driven spending in an economy should be viewed positively.

There was a notable rise in business investment at 21.9% as capital is flowing to the US. This is a noteworthy difference, following a 5.6% decline in the fourth quarter of 2024. Nonresidential investment rose 9.8% in the first three months of the year, led by a 22.5% rise in equipment spending.

Trump’s tariff policy is not to blame for the current state of the economy. War, inflation, debt, poor government policy, and collapsing confidence predate Trump. The Fed’s policy is not to blame either as their policy is almost irrelevant in the grand scheme.

Socrates warned of a massive global shift in 2015 as the sovereign debt crisis cycle turned and public confidence began to decline. The computer identified 2020.05 (May 2020) as a major Economic Confidence Model (ECM) turning point, and needless to say, 2020 was certainly a turning point in every aspect of the global economy. The stagflation we see now began, globally, post-pandemic. Once confidence breaks, stagflation is guaranteed to follow.

 

I remember his ‘BIG Bang’ talk back in 2015 and thought it was a nothing burger. Joke was on me.