October 2003

Stuart Hoffman

Have you bought a new house or refinanced your home? Have you just bought a new car? Did you just spend more to send your kids back to school than you did last year? At the same time, is your company still downsizing and continuing to put off business investments? If “yes,” you're in good company.

Finances at the personal, state, and national level seem a bit schizophrenic. On the one hand, new houses and cars are hot; on other the other hand, the weak job market and high household debt levels are impacting Delaware households. Likewise, our State has fared well versus other states and the nation as a whole, yet Delaware's key industries–manufacturing, financial services, and business services–continue to struggle along with the US economy.

At the national level, we've gone from a surplus to facing a $600 billion deficit next year, over 5% of the GDP; business investment is still limited; job loss continues, with over 600,000 more lost in 2003; and we're facing an $87 billion bill for the next phase in Iraq. Yet homes sales have set records, the real GDP may hit 4% this quarter, and consumers are spending.

So what does this mean for your pocketbook? What does it mean for your business? What does it mean for Delaware's economy? The nation's economy? Where are we really headed?

Stuart G. Hoffman, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist, the PNC Financial Service Group, will set us straight!

You've probably seen quotes from Stu in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Barron's, and Business Week or seen him on CNBC or CNN or heard him on The Wall Street Journal Radio Report and CNN News Radio. Now you can see and hear him live and in person! Stu will share his economic expertise with us.

Beverley Baxter