Lawndale Tribune AND lAwNDAle News The Weekly Newspaper of Lawndale Herald Publications - Inglewood, Hawthorne, Lawndale, El Segundo, Torrance & Manhattan Beach Community Newspapers Since 1911 - Circulation 30,000 - Readership 60,000 (310) 322-1830 - December 15, 2016 Santa’s Sleigh Spreads Cheer to Lawndale Santa Claus is alive and well in Lawndale, making the rounds through the city and finding out who has been naughty or nice. Photo courtesy of the South Bay 25 Club Goodbye to a Good Year, Hello to an Even Better One By Rob McCarthy If you’re hoping for a happy new year, 2017 won’t disappoint. Two weeks still remain of 2016, and it was a good year for people living in the South Bay. Unemployment continued to dip and the stock market is moving into record-high territory since the presidential election last month. It’s a cliché, but America’s business is business again with Republicans taking charge of the federal government starting on January 20. Because jobs are plentiful, salaries are rising and that makes people from the South Bay to Morro Bay to the Bay Area feel much more secure about the future. Consumer confidence is rising and you know what else is expected to rise next year? Disposable income—a.k.a. walking-around money--for making home improvements, getting the car repaired, or taking a trip. The U.S. dollar is strong against other currencies, which means a summer vacation to Europe or Mexico, South America or Southeast Asia will be cheaper and your money will go further in the summer of 2017. Some Americans will decide against traveling abroad because of global terrorism and attacks directed at Westerners, but moneywise it’ll be a bargain. Why is 2017 shaping up to be strong for the dollar, the nation and California’s economy? Pro-Business Policies President-Elect Donald Trump and GOP congressional leaders share goals of cutting taxes and easing regulations, which would boost business investment. When and if tax cuts are passed by Congress, Trump’s proposals to boost infrastructure spending would kick in, benefitting construction employment and income as well as the sectors and companies that support construction. Economists believe the boost would be shortterm unless spending reductions accompany those tax cuts to corporations, some middleclass taxpayers and the very wealthy. The U.S. economy in a best-case scenario might grow at four percent next year, economists think. That compares to a more modest two percent growth that occurred in the past few years under the Obama Administration, though the U.S. financial sector took a full eight years to climb back from a global recession exacerbated by the collapse of banks and the mortgage industry. Word on the Street Is… The big players in the financial markets are betting that Donald Trump will live up to his campaign promises and boost government spending, cut taxes and roll back regulation and environmental protections. Since the election, every major financial market index has reached record highs. The U.S. market rose last week, recording very strong gains a full month after the election. The S&P 500 has soared 5.6 percent since November 8. Financial and energy stocks have rallied sharply. Let the Good Times Roll The consumer confidence report for November by the Conference Board was the highest in nine-and-a-half years. A preliminary December report from the University of Michigan climbed sharply to the highest level since December 2006. Consumers expect a positive impact of new economic policies following President-Elect Trump’s victory five weeks ago. Consumers feel more confident today and over the next six months than they have in years, largely because the labor market is at full employment, the stock market is at record highs, and incomes are rising. The Dollar Delivers There is speculation shared among economists and business leaders that a Trump presidency will mean wider budget deficits and more inflation. That would create a sharp curve for the U.S. dollar to negotiate after climbing back against currencies of our trading partners, including the European Union and Mexico. The Euro fell last week to less than 1.06 in value against the dollar--its strongest position in 14 years. The dollar has rallied against most emerging market currencies and especially the Mexican peso, which has declined 52 percent in value against the U.S. dollar in two years. The risk of a trade war between the U.S. and China and perhaps between the U.S. and Mexico is another reason for the advancing value of the dollar, according to a just-released report for California. Home a Loan Interest rates on short-term loans for everything from Hondas to home electronics are increasing because the economy is stronger and expected to bulk up next year. The financial markets were already factoring in an increase in rates by the Federal Reserve Board before the November election. Borrowers who want to buy a home or a finance a remodel of an existing one could be spared the rate jump that’s coming. “Remember that long-term rates do not necessarily rise in reaction to the Federal Reserve moving short-term rates upward, but the expectation that the economy will accelerate in 2017 is readjusting the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds, especially under a Trump presidency where higher growth is anticipated,: said regional economist Mark Schniepp. “Rates are still very low by historical standards – and they are not likely to move sharply higher in 2017. The forecast has rates rising to 2.8 percent in 2017 and 3.5 percent in 2018.” We’ll Pay More for Goods, Services Inflation is just below two percent in Southern California, and everybody expected that figure to head higher in the next two years regardless of which candidate won the presidential election. Call it a case of too much of a good thing for the economy, for California, for the nation. The U.S. and state’s economy enters its ninth year of recovery starting January 1. Long economic expansions like ours strain existing resources like labor, machinery, transportation and distribution. What happens See Good Year page 8 Inside This Issue Certified & Licensed Professionals.......................2 Classifieds............................3 Community Briefs...............2 Finance..................................6 Food.......................................5 Hawthorne Happenings....3 Legals................................ 6-7 Pets........................................8 Police Reports.....................3 Sports....................................4 Weekend Forecast Friday Rainy 61˚/45˚ Saturday Sunny 58˚/44˚ Sunday Sunny 60˚/47˚
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