THEY EARN, THEY PAY, THEY SPEND

To rank in the top 5% of earners in the USA, you required an adjusted gross income level of $160,000 or higher (data from 2007 tax returns). This group paid 61% of all federal income tax for the year and is estimated to account for 37% of all spending by consumers (source: IRS, Moody’s).

GLOBAL BUSINESS

47% of the sales of the S&P 500 companies in calendar year 2009 were made outside the United States. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index of 500 widely held stocks that is generally considered representative of the US stock market (source: S&P).

FEELING BETTER

Retail purchases by Americans in July 2010 totaled $363 billion, an increase of $19 billion from the $344 billion of retail purchases in July 2009 (source: Department of Commerce).

IN THE YEAR 2037

Social Security announced on 8/06/10 that the trust fund backing the payment of Social Security benefits would be zero in 2037 and that the payment of benefits would drop to 75% of their originally promised levels through the year 2084 (source: Social Security Administration).

ALMOST DOUBLE

With 2 months remaining in fiscal year 2010 (i.e., 10/01/09 to 9/30/10), the government is projecting spending of $3.6 trillion for the 12-month period. During fiscal year 2001 (i.e., the first fiscal year during the presidency of George Bush # 43), total government spending was $1.9 trillion (source: Treasury Department).