A mild recession or a return of inflation are both possibilities in the coming months, depending on how conflicting federal monetary and fiscal policies and other economic factors play out.

“While the Federal Reserve is putting the brakes on inflation by raising interest rates, Congress and the president are continuing to stimulate the economy with fiscal policy deficit spending,”  said John Connaughton, professor of financial economics for UNC Charlotte’s Belk College of Business. “After 16 months of increasing interest rates, the conventional wisdom would suggest that the economy should be slowing, or we should be seeing signs of recession. But so far this has not occurred.”

Connaughton, who released the North Carolina Economic Forecast Third Quarter Report during a virtual presentation Thursday, Sept. 7, put the chance of a recession in 2024 at 50-50, but said that a resurgence of inflation cannot be ruled out.

“It is quite possible we will see a mild slowdown during the fourth quarter of 2023 or the first quarter of 2024, but if federal fiscal spending continues unabated, the economy may continue to grow, with inflation coming back in 2024,” he said. The potential return of inflation would be led by government spending rather than by consumers and business, he said.

Recent data suggest the U.S. economy is stronger than most economists believed just three months ago, according to the report.

“As recently as September 1, 2023, the Atlanta Fed GDPNow tracker indicated that third quarter U.S. GDP is likely to increase by 5.9%,” Connaughton said. “That is hardly indicative of a recession.”

Gross Domestic Product Analysis
For 2023, North Carolina’s real (inflation-adjusted) GDP is forecast to increase by 2.4% over the 2022 level, the report indicated.

Connaughton expects an output increase for 13 of the state’s 15 economic sectors during 2023. The sectors with the strongest expected growth rates include:

• Information: 11.2%
• Retail Trade: 5.6%
• Educational and Health Services: 4.9%
• Hospitality and Leisure Services: 4.6%
• Business and Professional Services: 4.4%

Expectations are that two sectors will experience declines during 2023:

• Construction: -3.7%
• Nondurable Goods Manufacturing: -2.0%

Employment
Of the state’s 14 nonagricultural sectors, 12 are forecast to see employment increases during 2023. The sectors with the strongest expected employment gains are:

• Mining: 5.6% 
• Educational and Health Services: 3.6% 

North Carolina employment is projected to reach 4,950,400 persons by December 2023, a 2.0% increase over the December 2022 employment level. The state is expected to add 96,900 net jobs in 2023. The state unemployment rate declined during the first half of 2023 to 3.3% in July and is expected to increase slightly to 4.0% by December 2024, according to the report.

2024 Preview
Looking ahead to 2024, the report forecasts modest growth. North Carolina employment is expected to add 53,400 net jobs, reaching 5,003,800 persons by December 2024, a 1.1% increase over the anticipated December 2023 employment level.

Considering North Carolina’s Gross Domestic Product, the real (inflation-adjusted) growth rate for 2024 is projected to increase by 2.4%. All 15 of the state’s economic sectors are expected to experience output increases during 2024.

The North Carolina Economic Forecast, which debuted in 1982, is released quarterly. The full report and a recording of the presentation will be available at belkcollege.charlotte.edu/forecast.

The North Carolina Economic Forecast is supported by LPL Financial. The fourth quarter report will be released in December.

September 2023 Economic Forecast Report

After the exit of Apple Store, Michael Kors, and Buckle, another major retailer recently left the bankrupt Northlake Mall, and its receiver is now suing them.

According to case #3:2023cv00566; Spinoso Real Estate Group, DLS, LLC v. AE Outfitters Retail Co. et al, recently filed in the US District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, Spinoso is now alleging that American Eagle breached its lease by closing up shop and leaving their space inside the mall on April 29.

The mall went bankrupt and the court appointed receiver Spinoso Real Estate Group back in 2021, according to the Charlotte Business Journal.

As of now, Northlake Mall claims an occupancy rate of 85%, including numerous pop-up stores. This is a notable increase from 74% recorded last February, as per recent documents from the North Carolina Business Court.

The mall recently made the decision to bring Spirit Halloween to the Northlake Mall, a move that’s usually only seen in declining big box strip malls:

 

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Today Circle K will be hosting a Circle K Day redo in Charlotte due to the original Circle K Day being postponed out of an abundance of caution of Hurricane Idalia.

From 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on September 7th, all Charlotte-area customers can save 50% on food and beverages. Then to continue the celebration, customers will get 30 cents off per gallon of fuel between 4 and 7 p.m.  

Charlotte locations will also be handing out a limited quantity of fuel discount cards offering daily savings of 10 cents per gallon through the rest of the year.

Find your nearest Charlotte-are Circle K using the Store Locator on circlek.com. 

The results of a new national survey reveal some interesting aspects of Charlotteans, compared with residents of other major cities, including that we’re prouder of our current lives, we’re more apt to listen to advice, and that we’re much more likely to consider ourselves ‘feisty’ and ‘bold’.

The survey, conducted by Wakefield Research, asked 1,200 adults in each of 12 DMAs (Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York City, San Diego, Seattle, Miami, D.C., Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Houston and Boston) a series of questions about how they see themselves and recent life choices.

“If we allow it, society will constantly reinforce that we are not enough; that we’re supposed to achieve a certain level of success or follow a specific lifestyle,” said Meghann Seidner. “But, the truth is, we are more than enough. We believe in digging deep to understand what makes us tick and celebrating what uniquely makes us who we are; in following our own inner compass.”

The results of the survey indicated that:

• 91% of Charlotte residents are proud of the life they lead (compared to 88% nationally)
• Charlotte residents were almost twice as likely than Chicago to identify as “feisty”.
• Charlotte residents were also twice as likely than LA to consider themselves “bold”
• 41% of Charlotte residents are more likely to listen to a friend or family member when facing an important life decision. (compared to 39% nationally)
• 82% of Charlotte residents have made a lifestyle change in the last 12 months specifically to pursue a personal goal or ambition (compared to 77% nationally)
• 88% of Charlotte residents agree that the place they were raised had a significant impact on who they are today (compared to 87% nationally)

Do you think the results of the survey accurately represent Charlotteans? 

Do you consider yourself proud, feisty, and bold? 

The Eagles, after over 50 years of worldwide tours and selling millions of tickets, are about to kick off their final tour – “The Long Goodbye“.

They’ll perform first of thirteen shows with Hall of Famers Steely Dan on September 7, 2023, in New York, and will put on one of their last shows right here in Charlotte on November 7th at the Spectrum Center.

Tickets for the Charlotte show are now on sale here.

1. The Eagles have announced a farewell tour dubbed “The Long Goodbye”.

They have announced 13 initial dates, with the kickoff set for Sep 7 in New York.

“Everything has its time, and the time has come for us to close the circle,” says the Hotel California rockers. pic.twitter.com/fmHwMikm0S

— BFM News (@NewsBFM) July 7, 2023

Over their extensive career, the Eagles have played over 1,000 concerts worldwide, consistently ranking in the Top 10 of Billboard and Pollstar. With more than 150 million albums sold, six #1 albums, five chart-topping singles, six Grammy Awards, and inductions into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and the Kennedy Center Honors, the Eagles are truly musical icons.

Their albums, Greatest Hits 1971-1977 and Hotel California, are the best-selling and third best-selling U.S. albums in history, respectively, boasting combined certifications of 64-times Platinum.

Are you excited about the upcoming tour?

Introduction

Are you struggling to find the perfect gift for the special people in your life? Why not try DC experience gifts? According to several scientific studies, money is better spent on experiences as opposed to tangible or material things.

While experimental and material purchases all cost almost the same amount of money, the results are quite different. Satisfaction with tangible items decreases over time. But DC experience gifts, on the other hand, offer satisfaction that increases over time.

Let’s go through the following sections to discover more about the tips and benefits of giving experience gifts.

Benefits of Experience Gifts

If you get them right, experience gifts can make great presents for the people you love. Many individuals are loving to gift or receive experiences because of these key benefits:

Experiences Are More Awesome

The ability to create lifetime memories is undeniable when you gift an experience. As long as you choose an experience you know your loved one has been dreaming of or wanting to do, it’ll create lasting memories.

It doesn’t matter whether they have not gone or done it because it is too expensive or they have been too busy; giving your loved ones experiences will undoubtedly take their happiness to the next level.

Experiences Make Relationships Strong

When you give someone an experience, it’s important to ensure it can accommodate two or more individuals. The current relationships suffer from obsessions with social media, smartphones, and many other types of sophisticated technologies.

Life becomes more enjoyable and meaningful when you share experiences with others. Experiences could even recharge relationships that required refreshing. Gifting an experience present can be truly rewarding and a perfect way to spend time together.

Experience Gifts are Perfect for Your Loved Ones Who Seem to Have Everything

It can be agonizing when you try to figure out what to purchase for someone who seems to have everything. Instead of another material thing, how about giving someone a concert ticket, golf lessons, a sunset cruise, or a skydiving experience?

Is someone on your list a foodie? Set them up for a cooking class! Helping them learn something new will make them adore you throughout their life.

Tips on Giving Experience Gifts

You need to give a thoughtful experience. For instance, it could be really embarrassing to give a wine-tasting gift to an individual who never takes alcohol. Let’s look at additional tips:

• If you are not sure what they love, try to find out the gift receiver prefers.
• Do not overthink it. Go for that experience you believe the receiver will really enjoy.
• Try to give experiences in which all costs are covered as much as possible. This prevents the recipient from extra expenses that mightn’t perfectly fit their budget.

Gift experiences are worth your time and money. Find thoughtful DC experience gifts for your loved ones and take your gifting experience to a new level.