Is recession coming in US? Expert gives stark warning on high popularity of Labubus
Studies have shown that during economic downturns, consumers are more attracted towards dopamine-spiking splurges that don't break the bank — like lipstick, ice cream or movie tickets, labelled as "affordable luxuries" by experts. These creepy but cute mischievous Labubu dolls could be its latest iteration.
Productivity Tool
Zero to Hero in Microsoft Excel: Complete Excel guide
By Metla Sudha Sekhar
View Program
Finance
Introduction to Technical Analysis & Candlestick Theory
By Dinesh Nagpal
View Program
Finance
Financial Literacy i e Lets Crack the Billionaire Code
By CA Rahul Gupta
View Program
Digital Marketing
Digital Marketing Masterclass by Neil Patel
By Neil Patel
View Program
Finance
Technical Analysis Demystified- A Complete Guide to Trading
By Kunal Patel
View Program
Productivity Tool
Excel Essentials to Expert: Your Complete Guide
By Study at home
View Program
Artificial Intelligence
AI For Business Professionals Batch 2
By Ansh Mehra
View Program
'When we're seeing this kind of a craze in an uncertain economic climate — where consumer confidence is at best uneven and filled with anxiety — it's hard not to look at this and try to think, 'well, are people being rational?'' David Lang, Sacramento State Economics Department chair, told the New York Post. As tempting as it is to say 'hell no' — some economists beg to differ.
ALSO READ:
Can Trump invoke a federal takeover of Washington DC? Legal hurdles stand in US President's way
Labubu dolls are recession indicators?
'Most behavioral economists' answer to that would be — they're acting completely rationally,' Lang added. So pausing on the extra vacation or next designer bag buy, consumers instead might go for the 'accessory for the designer purse, which might be the Labubu.'
'And they feel like that's an acceptable, reasonable thing to do when they see the likes of Rihanna walking around with one attached to her purse,' Lang added.
Live Events
Labubu dolls, viral little monsters, have flooded the streets of the Big Apple and other cosmopolitan cities and are typically sold or $20 to $40. According to economists, believe the out-of-control spending spree for the trendy dolls could actually be a sign that a recession is around the corner.
First designed a decade ago by Hong Kong artist Kasing Lung and inspired by Nordic mythology, Labubu dolls have blown up in the past year, with people lining up before dawn on their release days and even sparking the occasional brawl. Their popularity skyrocketed overnight, after K-pop star Lisa was seen with a Labubu hanging from her purse.
ALSO READ:
Trump to hold presser after ordering homeless to leave Washington DC as federal takeover threat looms
'Labubus are not really just a toy, but more of a tiny, tangible flex that people get to walk around with,' the economist said.
As for the next recession, Lang said one is on the way — it's just a matter of when. Close to two million Americans are currently collecting unemployment, the most since the COVID-19 pandemic threw the economy into its last recession, new Labor Department data released Thursday revealed. The number of Americans who have been continuously receiving unemployment benefits rose by 38,000 to 1.97 million in late July, the data said.
Labubu dolls stolen from LA store
The theft of $7,000 worth of the dolls took place in Los Angeles on Wednesday at the store, One Stop Sales, located about 18 miles east of Los Angeles. The LA County Sheriff's Department told the AP that four suspects used a stolen Toyota Tacoma in the robbery, and the car has since been recovered.
ALSO READ:
FBI chief Kash Patel to marry his 19-year younger girlfriend soon? Alexis Wilkins gives surprise hint
One Stop Sales posted on Instagram that the thieves broke into the store at 1:30 a.m., taking all the inventory and 'trashing our place.' They shared CCTV footage showing the robbery on Instagram.
The post's caption read: 'Today we got robbed, and they took all of our inventory, trashed our store, we are still in shock, if you guys can share this post please and help us find these [thieves].'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
10 minutes ago
- Time of India
Breaking news live updates, August 12: Rahul Gandhi lauds INDA bloc MPs for support in 'movement against vote theft'
00:17 (IST) Aug 12 US stocks are drifting around their record heights on Monday as Wall Street waits for an upcoming update on inflation. The S&P 500 fell 0.1% and is just below its all-time high set two weeks ago. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 171 points, or 0.4%, as of 2:30 p.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.1%, coming off its own record. The highlight of this week for Wall Street is likely to arrive on Tuesday, when the government will report how bad inflation was across the country in July. Economists expect it to show U.S. consumers had to pay prices for groceries, gasoline and other costs of living that were 2.8% higher in July from a year earlier, a slight acceleration from June's 2.7% inflation. Inflation has remained above 2%, even if it has improved substantially from its peak above 9% three years ago. And the worry is that President Donald Trump's tariffs could push it higher. That in turn is raising fears about a potential, worst-case scenario called 'stagflation' where the economy stagnates but inflation remains high. The Federal Reserve has no good tool to fix both at once, and it would need to concentrate on either the job market or inflation first. But helping one of those areas by moving interest rates would likely hurt the other. A top Fed official, Michelle Bowman, said on Saturday that she believes the job market is the bigger concern. She is still backing three cuts to interest rates by the Fed this year following this month's stunning, weaker-than-expected report on the U.S. job market. Trump himself has also been angrily calling for cuts to interest rates to support the economy. Other Fed officials, led by Chair Jerome Powell, are more hesitant. Powell has said he wants to wait for more data about how Trump's tariffs are affecting inflation before the Fed makes its next move, and Tuesday's update on the consumer price index may offer a big clue about that. Strategists at Stifel are warning that stagflation may already be on the way, with spending by U.S. consumers slowing, and they warn that it could cause the U.S. economy to slow to a crawl by the second half of the year. That in turn could create a reckoning for investors after they sent stock prices soaring to records from their low point in April. 'Rate cuts cannot save an overvalued S&P 500,' according to the strategists, led by Thomas Carroll and Barry Bannister. One way companies can make their stock prices appear less expensive is to deliver bigger profits. Micron Technology climbed 3% Monday after raising its forecasts for profit and revenue in the current quarter, which will end later this month. The maker of memory for computers said it's benefiting from higher prices for its products. AMC Entertainment rose 2.9% to shave its loss for the year so far, which came into the day at 26.4% after it reported better results for the spring than analysts expected. The theater chain said moviegoers paid more for their tickets per person than ever before, while also spending more on food and drinks. TKO Group Holdings climbed 8.2% after reaching a deal to distribute the full slate of its 13 marquee UFC numbered events, along with 30 'Fight Nights' on the Paramount+ streaming platform. Paramount Skydance's stock fell 1.6%. Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices advanced after a U.S. government official confirmed that the two agreed to share 15% of their revenues from chip sales to China with the U.S. government. The two had said in July that Washington would allow them to resume sales of their advanced H20 and MI308 chips, which are used in artificial intelligence development, in China but didn't reveal the 15% cut. Nvidia added 0.2%, and AMD climbed 0.7%. On the losing side of Wall Street was after the AI application software company warned it may report an operating loss as large as $124.9 million for its first quarter. CEO Thomas Siebel called the first-quarter sales results 'completely unacceptable,' and its stock tumbled 25%. In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed amid mostly modest movements across Europe and Asia. In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury held at 4.27%, where it was late Friday.
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
10 minutes ago
- First Post
'We'll see what happens': Trump dodges question on extending August 12 China tariff deadline
US President Donald Trump on Monday dodged a question about whether he would extend the August 12 deadline for imposing higher tariffs on Chinese goods, saying 'we'll see what happens' read more US President Donald Trump on Monday dodged a question about whether he would extend the August 12 deadline for imposing higher tariffs on Chinese goods, saying 'we'll see what happens,' while praising China for its cooperation in ongoing trade talks with the US. 'We've been dealing very nicely with China. As you have probably heard, they have tremendous tariffs that they're paying to the United States of America,' Reuters quoted Trump as saying at a news conference at the White House. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'They've been dealing quite nicely,' he said, adding that he had a good relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping. A tariff truce between the US and China is set to expire on August 12, though the Trump administration has signaled the deadline could be extended. More from World PM Modi to visit China: Why the trip matters amid Trump's steep tariffs on India Without an extension, US tariffs on Chinese goods are expected to surge to 145%, while Chinese tariffs on American products could reach 125%. The two countries agreed to a 90-day pause in their trade dispute during talks in Geneva this May, allowing time for further negotiations. A follow-up meeting in Stockholm in late July ended without any announcement on extending the truce. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington is making progress and expressed optimism about reaching a deal with Beijing. With the clock ticking, Trump on Sunday night called on China to quadruple its purchases of American soybeans and noted that doing so would help reduce America's trade deficit with China. 'China is worried about its shortage of soybeans,' Trump wrote on Truth Social in a message directed to Xi Jinping, China's leader. 'Our great farmers produce the most robust soybeans,' he added. With inputs from agencies
Indian Express
10 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Trump signs order extending China tariff deadline for 90 days, official says
US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order extending a pause in sharply higher US tariffs on Chinese imports for another 90 days, a White House official said. A tariff truce between Beijing and Washington had been set to expire on August 12 at 00:01 (04:01 GMT), but the Trump administration had hinted the deadline could be extended.
