| S | M | T | W | T | F | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| « Oct | ||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||
| 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
| 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
| 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
Consumers are caught in an economic bear trap whose teeth include the slow housing market, subprime adjustable-rate mortgages, high debt ratios, and inflationary pressures on staples such as energy and food. Those economic daggers are straining household finances and taking a bite out of “discretionary” consumer spending — purchases of luxury durable goods and big-ticket items such as boats, cars and motorcycles. More…