What we’re reading (7/18)
“Red-Hot U.S. Economy Expected To Cool From Here” (Wall Street Journal). “The U.S. economy’s 2021 growth surge likely peaked in the spring, according to economists who expect to see a slower but still-strong expansion into next year. Widespread business reopenings, rising vaccination rates and a big infusion of government pandemic aid this spring helped propel rapid gains in consumer spending—the economy’s main driver. But that burst of economic growth is starting to ebb, economists say.”
“Biden To Reappoint Jerome Powell As Fed Chair, Say Economists” (Reuters). “U.S. President Joe Biden will reappoint current Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell for a second four-year term starting February next year, according to an overwhelming majority of economists polled by Reuters this week.”
“Still Working Remotely? Your 2021 Taxes May Be More Complicated Than Your 2020 Return” (CNBC). “Of those who were still doing their jobs remotely in late 2020, about 30% said they were working in a different state than where they had lived and worked pre-pandemic, according to a survey done by the Harris Poll on behalf of the American Institute of CPAs…[d]ifferent states have different approaches for when they expect you to report income earned there, and the rules don’t necessarily mean you’ll be paying more overall in taxes because most states provide a tax credit to eliminate double taxation (although that isn’t always the case).”
“Nobody Knows If Beefing Up The IRS Will Really Pay Off. We Should Do It Anyway.” (Washington Post). “Anyone who pays attention knows that the IRS staff has been shrinking for years, that it’s almost impossible for an average person to get IRS people on the phone to answer questions, and that the IRS back-office is a total mess. All this ought to be fixed, regardless of whether it produces financial gains for taxpayers. What I hadn’t realized until I delved into the Treasury’s May report was how much IRS audits of big companies — those with more than $20 billion of assets — have fallen in recent years.”
“Musk Waxes Lyrical On Cybertruck, Says It Looks Like It Was ‘Made By Aliens From The Future’” (NBC News). “[Musk] wrote [on Twitter], ‘To be frank, there is always some chance that Cybertruck will flop, because it is so unlike anything else. I don’t care. I love it so much even if others don’t. Other trucks look like copies of the same thing, but Cybertruck looks like it was made by aliens from the future.’”
