ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 6, Episode 10 (10:32 in length), ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl talks to members on how geopolitics lately are affecting the economy.

• What are we looking at with Iran?
• What is informing discussion on where we go from here?
• How do policies get set? Where is there traditionally challenges?
• When was the last time Iran had a reform effort?
• Why is Pakistan involved?
• Is the U.S. capable of carrying out threats? Has this been seen in the past?
• Why are we even worried about crude oil being imported?
• What difference does this make for the United States?
• Oil is a traded commodity - does this do anything with per barrel pricing?
• What happens from here? How will Israel react to this cease fire?
• Is China playing a role???
• Where & when will this hit the U.S. economy?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question!

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 6, Episode 9 (10:58 in length), ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl talks to members about what besides oil is happening and what the ASA member should look out for.

• Construction - should ASA members be concerned?
• Is the data clear / positive within the construction sector?
• What is the average salary to live comfortably per state?
• Is remote work still motivation as where people are moving?
• What is affecting / driving residential growth?
• Where is the shift with Gen Z & millennials?
• Is there a surge with non-residential?
• Data centers - what is developing with these?
• Water - what is the demand? Is this a challenge to keep up?
• What is the controversy with data centers?? What makes people in the area testy?
• Retrofitting that is happening on the construction side - is this the death of offices?
• Office buildings are back - but made differently... why?
• Health care, why is this a big driver for the boomer generation?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question!

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 6, Episode 8 (6:15 in length), ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl addresses a member question on the multifamily construction landscape, exploring why sales are rising sharply and whether this trend is temporary or sustainable. He also discusses the oil and gas market.

• What is a stale mate?
• What will make either side budge?
• What are we seeing with the new Iranian leaders?
• Why aren't we seeing any response with the markets?
• What will stimulate residential housing?
• The 10 year bond - what is the magic number?
• Higher mortgage rates, & payments - what are people turning to?
• What is stimulating multifamily housing?
• The boomer is downsizing - is this a mass movement?
• Will we be talking next week about Iran?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question!

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast or on his monthly ASA members only webinar?

Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 6, Episode 7 (7:06 in length), ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl discusses the latest developments surrounding the conflict in the Middle East, the disruption of oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, and the growing economic implications if the situation continues.

1. How has the closure of the Strait of Hormuz affected global oil shipments?
2. Why is the U.S. military limited in its ability to protect tanker traffic in the region?
3. Which nearby countries — including Bahrain, Oman, and Kuwait — are most vulnerable to Iranian attacks?
4. Why the length of the conflict may be the biggest economic risk
5. Could oil prices surge into the hundreds if tensions continue to escalate?
6. How rising oil prices could fuel inflation concerns and affect Federal Reserve rate decisions
7. Could the conflict shape the economic narrative heading into the midterm elections?
8. What difficult choices now face the United States as it considers its next move with Iran?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question!

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast or on his monthly ASA members only webinar?

Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 6, Episode 6 (6:43 in length), ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl talks to members about how geopolitical conflict can disrupt global oil markets, the role of major oil-producing nations, and what ongoing tensions could mean for future oil prices, supply stability, and economic uncertainty.

1. Do we know what the impact of the war will be on the oil market?
2. Do we buy oil from Iran?
3. What damage can Iran do to the oil producers in the region?
4. What are insurance businesses saying?
5. Oil priced internationally — are we being vulnerable?
6. Oil prices falling — are those days over with? Is this a good thing?
7. What are the conditions for an oil glut?
8. What will the oil markets decide long term?
9. How might supply chain disruptions affect global energy prices?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question!

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 6, Episode 5 (7:59 in length), ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl answers the question "What Does the Recent Supreme Court Ruling on the Trump Tariffs Mean?"

1. Is everything we knew last year in sustention?
2. Tariffs are the oldest trick in the books - what has been the crux of this whole issue?
3. What are the two functions behind tariffs?
4. Overproduction & competing, what is the problem?
5. What was the challenge from the beginning?
6. How will the Supreme Court’s decision declaring the Trump Tariffs Illegal impact the economy?
7. Where does the consumer get shafted?
8. Who is getting a refund on the paid tariffs? Where is the money coming from?
9. Will tariffs be a topic in the upcoming weeks?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question!

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 6, Episode 3 (9:37 in length), ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl talks about big changes this week and why they are relevant.

1. The demand for healthcare - is this taking over all the other sectors?
2. Which sectors and jobs are at risk due to the threat of AI?
3. What did the job data report say?
4. Where is the greatest growth occurring in construction and demand for fabricated metal products?
5. Home sales decline - were we surprised about this?
6. What is the national average price of a home now in the United States?
7. Does national or local matter most to ASA members?
8. Where is there less demand for people to live?
9. What is the "boomer" looking for when it comes to the housing market?
10. Are we seeing predictable shifts?
11. Crude oil prices - are they falling?
12. Will there be less production globally? Or will there be more consumption?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question!

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast or on his monthly ASA members only webinar?

Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is out this week, but we are still back with a special economic update podcast hosted by Keith Prather: Managing Director at Armada Corporate Intelligence. In Season 6, Episode 3 (6:45 in length), Keith talks about the forecast for oil prices and how the winter storm came into play.

1. What are we seeing overall per barrel?
2. Oil prices surge to multi-month highs—what’s behind the spike?
3. Middle East vs. Venezuela — what’s behind the jump in oil prices?
4. Production being pulled back, are we producing a record amount of oil still?
5. What happens on a geopolitical bases?
6. What will encourage brand new production?
7. Ukraine - is a cease fire agreement in the works?
8. Will this allow more Russian oil to flow on the open market?
9. EIA forecast - what are the projections?
10. 2026 through Q4 - what are the predictions of price per barrel?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question!

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 6, Episode 2 (6:25 in length), ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl talks about the latest data and three things we should keep an eye on for the weeks and months to come.

1. Arrival of information from the new budget bill... what is this designed to do?
2. When will any of this get approved and when will we see it go into affect?
3. What is the biggest challenge in the construction sector?
4. Will there be any real change with what The Fed is planning?
5. Hawks vs. doves in The Fed - what is the difference of impact?
6. International reactions - what is so significant?
7. Trump vs. Europe - what kind of fallout will this have?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question!

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 6, Episode 1 (8:48 in length), ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl talks about oil production and the interference with Venezuela.

1. What is the important thing?
2. What does this mean for the U.S. economy?
3. Why does this all come down to oil?
4. What are the two kinds of oil and why is this significant?
5. Which crude oil has been more ideal for Venezuela?
6. Are they going to go back to balance production between the two oils?
7. Will this disturb the overall oil market?
8. What will the per barrel price be?
9. What is the speculation at this stage?
10. Will we see an immediate reaction to oil prices?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question!

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast or on his monthly ASA members only webinar?

Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 35 (8:24 in length), this marks the final episode of Keeping It Real with Dr. Kuehl for 2025. In this week’s podcast, ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl looks ahead to the coming year and asks an important question: what do we want from the economy in 2026?

1. Controlled inflation - have we be seeing all the ingredients that make up inflation?
2. Do we want inflation to stay where its at right now?
3. How do we get the consumer to stay as active as they are now?
4. Who are these active consumers??
5. Will things slow down after the holidays? What should we see come spring?
6. Relief on the labor front - how likely is this?
7. Why are jobs so hard to get now? How do we get better at this?
8. Will we see a calmer response to an election year?
9. Consumer attitude - are they actually worried about the future?
10. Why do all 5 of these things affect ASA members?
11. What can we really expect?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question!

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast or on his monthly ASA members only webinar?

Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 34 (8:21 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the new year & new data.

• October data - will that ever be analyzed or released?
• What 4 things have been preoccupying economists for the last year or longer?
• Inflation - what is the trick? Will it continue to be an issue?
• When we track inflation, what counts as "reducing" inflation?
• What are inflation numbers right now? What sector has jumped?
• Employment - what are job numbers looking like?
• Where are we seeing layoffs? Why?
• Growth... what has made the growth so spectacular this year?
• Will we see an impact on the holiday season?
• Reactions by the Fed & government - what are they saying?
• Decisions of 2026 - how often will they cut rates?
• Who will the next Fed share be? Why does this matter?
• Will the Fed cut rates in 2026? If so, when??

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question!

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast or on his monthly ASA members only webinar?

Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 33 (8:20 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about data - specifically the hole from the shutdown.

• What really happened in October?
• November data change - is it changed from October or really in November? Will we ever know?
• National data vs. regional data... what is more useful?
• ASA members should concentrate more on which data?
• Unemployment rate varies per state - why is that?
• Data is only as good as the collection - why is this hard?
• Lag in collection of data - does it always have to be revised?
• Caution on AI - why?
• How to get accurate information on data when it comes to AI?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question!

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast or on his monthly ASA members only webinar?

Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 32 (7:36 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about “media hysteria” – all the bad & extreme news lately.

• Why have economic headlines been a lot more distressing than the actual article?
• Can you look at economic information glass half full, glass half empty?
• The U.S. GDP numbers are bigger than China, Germany, Japan, and the U.K. all together – what does that mean?
• What industry is really feeling the pinch of the current economy?
• Manufacturing, retail, AI, & automotive sectors… is there potential good news?
• Is national data useful or not?
• Variability around the economy – where ASA members should be looking…
• Will there be a massive impact of rate cuts?
• Are we going to see that extra project work make 2026 more dynamic?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 30 (8:20 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about inflation, what does it mean, why economists worry about it.

• Inflation comes in 3 different categories – what are they?
• What is creeping inflation? Do we worry about this kind of inflation?
• What is walking inflation? Do we get high rates in this category?
• What is galloping inflation? We rarely see this – why?
• What is the worst category of them all? Have we ever seen the worst of the worst?
• Is the 3% inflation rate we are at now what we aimed for?
• What can we see with gas prices & other energy prices? Are we looking at an oil glut?
• When can the U.S. oil producers make money?
• Inflation continues to rise – does this affect the Fed’s decisions?
• What happens if inflation gets more aggressive?
• Rate reductions in 2026 – should we be optimistic?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 29 (8:32 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the government shut down & how it affects economic data coming from an economist themselves.

• How do we deal with data?
• Each economist has different opinions – how do we trust data?
• What is data’s strength & weakness? Why is it so hard to get an answer?
• Data is only as good as the collection itself – why is this a problem?
• How do you find relevant data for what you are actually looking for?
• ASA field all local & regional data – do we care about national data??
• How to understand that there is no sophisticated way to lie rather than in statistics.
• Assess data in a selfish & personal way – how is it affecting YOU?
• The biggest challenge of them all – how do you know if the data you are getting is legitimate?
• ASA gets information from ASA – advocating for the industry – can we trust each other?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 28 (6:08 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the government shut down & what does this mean?

• Are shutdowns impactful? Do they recover quickly?
• Do government employees catch up with back pay? What groups are hurting most?
• What is the real problem with companies shying away from working with the government??
• The new BBB Bill – why should the construction sector tune in?
• Impact the economy next year – what is the monkey wrench now with this hold?
• Will this provision be mute? What is the latest news today?
• If a proper deal is made, will the shutdown end?
• Figuring out a budget after it’s become a crisis… why wasn’t this decision made a long time ago?
• Most of the data now sending positive signals? Unemployment low, GDP growth, is this guaranteed for the rest of the year?
• Are we on the cusp of a recession?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 28 (8:41 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the government shutdown and what that really means and some other world news. 

• Will this shutdown have an impact on the economy?    
• What do we really expect moving forward?    
• The last shutdown was in 2019 – what was the analysis after the fact?    
• Was there a lot of stress during that period even though there was recovery?   
• The last shutdown was not as clear cut as this time around – why?   
• What is the healthcare benefit concern?  
• What do we see from this point on? Who is next on the chopping block?  
• Other issues – Declaration of war – does anything change?
• Why are we categorizing things differently now? Will this change tactics?  
• Will this emphasis on the drug cartel extend to Mexico? 
• Troops in Mexico – would the U.S. be using sources to aid, or will we not get involved?  
• Where should the focus be? What is the best way to address this?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with hi weekly economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 27 (7:57 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the job sector.   

• Why are jobs the hardest thing to count and check? 
• Why do some jobs just fly under the radar?
• Uber, Lyft, Door Dash workers respond no to the question of “Are you working” – why is that?  
• Part time & self-employed people, how do we track them as working?  
• Training for AI… is this affecting hiring on people?  
• Are we seeing shifts in how people are getting hired because of the labor shortage?  
• Boomers are slow to retire – is this a problem when it comes to employment?  
• Gen Xers are retiring sooner than boomers – why?    
• Where does that workforce come from when you have an entire generation there?  
• As a country, why do we do such a bad job at training for the future?
• Ongoing labor issue – will this continue on for the years to come?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 26 (8:16 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about what other industries are worried about and talking about.     

• What are the three big things other industries are talking about as concerns?   
• Are other industries adjusting to tariffs? 
• When will they settle on a policy?   
• Why has labor become a universal issue?     
• How can we manage the workforce and have it not deteriorate?   
• The notion that technology (AI) is moving at a rapid pace – what are we supposed to do with it?   
• How do you integrate AI? How much do you spend on it?      
• How do you train these new people with AI being involved? 
• Is AI evolving and becoming increasingly useful?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Brianna Dovichi at bdovichi@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 25 (7:43 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the conversation of the Fed, the central bank, interest rates, and why it’s all misunderstood.

• What role were central banks created to fulfill that politicians avoid?  
• What does artificial inflation mean? 
• How can we control inflation?    
• Central banks do the dirty work – why?
• Threat of inflation – when will we see this accelerate?      
• What signs are we seeing that the economy is slowing down?
• Does this slowdown help with the holiday season coming up?
• Hawks & doves – what is the difference?     
• If the economy substantially slows down, will there be a JUMBO rate cut?     
• With job creation declining – will that indicate a rate cut?
• Why is the central bank such a complicated organization?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is out this week, but we are still back with a special economic update podcast hosted by Keith Prather: Managing Director at Armada. In Season 5, Episode 24 (8:27 in length), Keith talks to members about inflation, consumer & producer price index, and where inflation will be headed.

• The consumer price index – at retail levels are we seeing tariff pressure showing up?
• What industry sector was inflation spiked?
• Producer price index – what is happening on the tariff front?
• Section 232 – steel, aluminum, copper – are we seeing tariff pressure here?
• Impact from an industry perspective – what does this do to the federal reserve?
• Will we see inflation carry out next year?
• What is the fed leaning to do based on this assessment?
• What does the U.S. treasury plan to do with rates? Can we sustain any cuts?
• What would this do to mortgage rates within the residential sectors?
• GDP running hotter and ahead of expectations?
• Overly optimistic - are we picking up from all this new data?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 23 (8:20 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about once again – TARIFFS.

• Tariff on the imports of gold – why was this unexpected?
• What does this do to the gold thinkers? Are any of us really affected by this?
• Why does Switzerland the highest tariff numbers? What kind of trade surplus do they have?
• Why is India being blindsided? Are they facing high tariffs?
• Can we influence other countries to buy less from Russia?
• We are not seeing a consistent motivation for tariffs – but not unusual.
• The business community in the United States – what will the future look like?
• Change is always taking place – why is this change so difficult to adjust with?
• Third Quarter GDP – what is it looking like?
• Are we seeing a recession? Is it heading in the right direction?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 22 (6:42 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about what the tariff war looks like.

• Why was the effective tariff date extended?
• What is the hold up?
• Are the reciprocal tariffs even legal?
• What other tools are there to impose tariffs?
• The Emergency Economic Power Act – what is this designed for?
• The tariff negotiations aren’t always about economics – what other decisions are being made?
• Are other countries protected from these tariffs? What happens with consumer goods?
• Copper – new agreements? What is covered?
• Protecting the industrial sector – what do manufacturers want in way of help?
• Things change from one week to the next – how do we find stability?
• When will these rules be implemented? Can we adapt quickly?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 21 (8:48 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the new U.S.-Japan trade agreement, the significance of August 1st in the tariff timeline, ongoing business uncertainty, and what ASA members should watch for in the construction and commodities sectors.

• The U.S. agreement with Japan – Is it a good deal for either side?
• What are the implications for the United States?
• Tariff numbers manageable when it comes to Japanese goods?
• What happens August 1st – why is this a significant date?
• Will we know if tariffs will be held?
• Business the last 10 years – uncertainty beyond tariffs.
• Uncertainty costing billions of dollars in profit – what are we seeing happen continuously?
• Recognizing attempts to counter that uncertainty – are ASA members more subject to uncertainty?
• What has to take place immediately in the construction sector?
• Are commodities being affected by delays?
• How will businesses get stability?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 20 (6:17 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about what’s going on in the Middle East, what that is doing to the oil price, and the projection for the rest of the year.

• Has this oil change been as dramatic as we thought it would be?
• The war between Israel & Iran – how much did oil price jump due to this?
• Why did it fall back again? Where is it lingering right now?
• Why hasn’t the price per barrel reacted??
• What are the 3 reasons that oil prices haven’t jumped?
• What does the U.S. being oil independent mean?
• The other oil producers have been stepping up production – why?
• Why hasn’t Iran been doing the things that they can do?
• Why is the U.S. suddenly do something nice for China & Iran? What is the rationale?
• What is the bottom line with these oil prices? Will they rise or fall?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is out this week, but we are still back with a special economic update podcast hosted by Keith Prather: Managing Director at. In Season 5, Episode 19 (9:19 in length), Keith talks about the shock of data in the most recent press conference from the Federal Reserve.

• Were we expecting interest rates to change?
• What is the Federal Reserve prediction for the rest of this year?
• What % growth rate? What was everyone expecting?
• Where are we trending right now for growth rate?
• What was happening to the GDP numbers estimates for 2025?
• What do they see % wise for 2026 & 2027?? What is the problem?
• Are tariffs going to cause an inflation problem that just hasn’t hit yet?
• When will this inflation wave hit? What will inflation rates spike to?
• What is the outlook for the second half of the year? Will this change the Fed?
• When it comes to trade & business– what is the one component we need to worry about?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is out this week, but we are still back with a special economic update podcast hosted by Keith Prather: Managing Director at Armada Corporate Intelligence. In Season 5, Episode 18 (8:58 in length), Keith talks about how this attack tampered Iran’s command & control on the military – he also talks about economic stats for the month.

• How long will these attacks go on for?
• Overnight oil surge of 8% - is this due to the attack?
• Are these attacks as significant as they were the last time this happened?
• Historically with events like this, will there be volatility in certain industry sectors?
• What will happen to the production side of things? Should ASA members be on the lookout?
• What should we expect in the next few weeks?
• What were expectations for the GDP numbers?
• What are analysts looking at? When will tariffs hit the market?
• How much longer do we have to wait to see what the tariff impact is? Will there even be an impact?
• Will we have agreements by end of July?
• What will happen if these agreements get appealed?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 17 (8:02 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about what else… TARIFFS.

• The difference between the media vs the real world when we hear about tariffs.
• Why do we need tariffs? Why did all of this start?
• Why should ASA look at tariffs in a more “holistic” way?
• Looking at non-tariff barriers (NTB) – could this be more effective with protection?
• NTB’s for consumer safety, are we seeing more discussion on this?
• What will happen to the GDP if we see NTB’s happen?
• Acceleration on current tariff policies – what will happen to the GDP growth in this scenario?
• Uncertainty, no one knows the rules – why is the construction sector in deep water because of this?
• These restrictions get lifted all at once, how likely is this to happen?
• When will we know the outcome? How much longer will this go on?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 16 (8:33 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about making sense of the trade laws.

• Why was the U.S. Court of Law designed?
• Can decisions be appealed?
• Can court be ignored? Are they national & federal law?
• Will there be repercussions? Legal response?
• What is the key issue as far as the Court of Law is concerned?
• What would be considered an emergency? Is this designed to deal with tariffs?
• Will this go on for a while?
• What else can the president use / execute when it comes to these appeals?
• What do sections 122, 301, & 338 of the trade acts mean? Will they be used?
• How high can tariffs get and for how long??
• What is the business community doing? Do they know what’s happening?
• Is the market responding with confusion?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 15 (7:46 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the effects of trade deals and tariffs, along with other important economic trends and issues currently influencing the economy.

• What is the new deal with China?
• What will happen in the next 90 days?
• What are we asking China to do about certain drugs? Specifically with fentanyl.
• When does this get renegotiated and what will be the result?
• Will tariffs go back up to dramatic heights?
• The Great Brittan trade deal – is this a wedge?
• Talks with Japan & South Korea – will we see something happen in June?
• Recession – is this still being talked about as a possibility??
• Will we get an import surge?
• What are we going to do about the labor shortage?
• How does this labor shortage really affect ASA members?
• How do we get people who are retired, to unretire? Why is this a conversation?
• Bottom line – there are a lot of moving parts but now we see overall economic adjustment, but what’s next?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is out this week, but we are still back with a special economic update podcast hosted by Keith Prather: Managing Director at Armada. In Season 5, Episode 14 (11:56 in length), Keith talks to members about our first trade deal in the post April 2nd tariff negotiations. He breaks down what is really coming out of this trade to ASA members.

• What are the direct benefits between the U.K. & the U.S.?
• Export opportunities - A healthy lift for that sector.
• How is the automotive industry being hit?
• What happens to Americans who already own British made cars?
• Manufacturing – what has been challenging & what is the problem?
• Will supplies of steel and aluminon adequately supply our needs? Will this be stabilized?
• Will there be a secure supply chain of production when it comes to big pharma?
• The flow of goods between the U.K. & the U.S. – will it be fast?
• Will we have alliances? Is there a trusted relationship?
• Why does this deal may or may not look like the deals we get
• out of some of the Asian countries?
• What are the differences between the Asian deals and the U.K. deals?
• What does the U.S. really want to come into the states?
• Will the 10% base tariff really go into place?
• Will domestic suppliers get hurt at all during this Asian trade? What will the U.S. do?
• Is this trade a template on how trades / deals will be moving forward?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is out this week, but we are still back with a special economic update podcast hosted by Keith Prather: Managing Director at Armada. In Season 5, Episode 13 (5:59 in length), Keith talks to members about three pivotal economic shifts expected to hit in 2025.

• What shock wave happened in the first quarter of 2025?
• What drove this shock wave? What activity did we see?
• How much of this spilled over into April?
• April 2nd – reciprocal tariffs… what are the resulting impacts?
• What is happening with the new orders in China?
• What are we expecting to hear in July?
• Will there be an announcement on a new tax bill? Would this be a catalyst?
• A permanent cease fire deal with Ukraine & Iran – will we
• have more growth and change?
• What should ASA members expect in the second half of the year?
• Inversion of inventory… should we be concerned?
• The latest global manufacturing data – over preforming expectations, what data was weak?
• Good retail data, good jobs report, wage growth, what does this mean for the consumer environment?
• What are we going to see in May? Are things being overblown?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 12 (6:31 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the latest developments in trade policy, tariffs, and how these changes are shaking up the U.S. manufacturing sector.

• Is there any movement when it comes to trade and tariffs?
• Is the economy truly suffering, or is it just reacting?
• Are we moving too fast on policy shifts?
• Outside products – how is this affecting the manufacturing sector of the United States?
• What do we do to bolster that sector?? Has there been any conversation?
• What are the next steps with tariffs? Are the orders permanent?
• What conversation is currently happening in congress?
• Overall economic sphere – how big is the reaction?
• Inflation, recession, consumers, job numbers… what’s the latest data?
• What should we know? Will things be different next week?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is out this week, but we are still back with a special economic update podcast hosted by Keith Prather: Managing Director at Armada. In Season 5, Episode 11 (8:15 in length), Keith talks to members about the latest tariff decisions.

What was the reciprocal tariff?

What did the U.S. think would happen? What did the Federal Government actually do?

What is the effective tariff rate?

What changed in the treasury market??

Why do ASA members need to care about what happens?

What kind of crisis happened on Tuesday and what was forced in place?

Most countries have a 10% based tariff except China… why?

What are we noticing with the volatility in the treasury market?

What was the latest CPI and producer price index rates? Is this conflicting?

Why do we still have all this volatility?? Will there be a recession?

What will the second quarter bring? Should we be worried?

Are we seeing any stability in other markets?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 10 (9:10 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about tariffs and tries to discuss where we are with the tariff policies.

• Do tariffs actually accomplish what is being sought all by themselves??
• Tariff policies – is this a simple and easy concept?
• What is the problem with not having access to what is being tariffed?
• What does the United States need to start producing?
• What happens when a tariff is imposed? When will a tariff be lifted?
• Should tariffs be permanent?
• How do you reassure an American company that this is not a temporary deal?
• What is the bigger plan?? What are the next steps?
• What is the United States struggling with setting up an industrial policy?
• Are tariffs easy to get around?
• What do we really want? What is the intent?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is out this week, but we are still back with a special economic update podcast hosted by Keith Prather: Managing Director at Armada. In Season 5, Episode 9 (6:48 in length), Keith talks to members about the latest automotive tariffs.

• What does the automotive agreement have to do with tariffs?
• What will this agreement mean until the negotiation in 2026?
• What happens in the automotive industry with the parts that are sourced globally?
• What % of all finished vehicles are imported into the United States? What % of the vehicle components are outsourced?
• Will there be a lot of transitions moving forward?
• What has to take place to get new facilities up and running?
• Overall % of the market that is quickly taken care of by U.S production will be slow… why?
• Will the tariff impact raise pricing on vehicles?
• Is there any guarantee that the tariff requirements will soften?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 8 (6:23 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the general issues of uncertainty for businesses.

• Tariffs – are they still the number one thing that’s being talked about?
• What are businesses really concerned about?
• Can ASA members adjust to just about any kind of change?
• Change is not unusual, but do we have an opportunity to react to it?
• Are tariffs the number one thing to worry about?
• What really keeps ASA members awake at night? Workforce? Regulation? Taxation? Inflation?
• Will tariffs deteriorate? Will there be a policy in place?
• What is the playing field going to look like?
• Something will have to change…what will be negotiated?
• Looking ahead, will we still be dealing with this by summer and fall?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 7 (6:54 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the impact tariffs have and what is really going on.

• Have tariffs always been the go-to tool?
• What were they originally used for?
• Negotiation & trade – How does this play into tariffs as an incentive?
• Tariffs on Mexico & Canada, how long will this go on?
• Does this back and forth help businesses or hurt them?
• Immigration & the border – are we seeing this negotiation all around the world and not just the U.S.?
• Tariff %, what are we seeing?
• Trump being very communicative on decisions, does this help anything?
• Will we see a lot of reprieves this year?
• Tariffs are on again, off again… what advice does Chris have for ASA members?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 6 (8:16 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the latest changes in the economy.

• Trump is putting independent people in charge, what are everyone’s goals?
• Treasury department goals… what is happening? Will these govern the department no matter what?
• Getting control of the long-term bond market, why is this important to ASA members?
• Residential housing controlled by interest rates – why does this relate to the long-term bond market?
• High yields, high mortgages, what changes will we see?
• Why have the yields gone up so dramatically?
• How can we get the yields down in the U.S.?
• Are treasury bonds still in demand?
• Banking sector slowed down, what activity will we see from the treasury department?
• Doug Bergum – why should ASA members keep interest on him?
• Pay attention to who is in charge of what… will this be a good things?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 5 (8:47 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the new presidential updates.

• What are the challenges with a new administration?
• What two things are a priority?? Are these fundamental?
• Compliance cost… how has that number changed from ten years ago to today?
• What can regulatory activity really do? Can we see it moving forward?
• What to do with USAID? What is it? Why is it spending so much money?
• What is the origin of USAID? What has changed since then?
• How do you reform something without destroying it?
• Focus on emphasis on the energy sector – why is it so important now?
• Data centers, high tech, how do we stay consistent with other goals and businesses?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 4 (9:29 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about a basic update on the residential & nonresidential sector, considering the accuracy that things could change.

• Residential & non-residential construction sectors - how fast are the rates growing?
• What is driving this construction sector?
• Data centers & technological advances, how are those affecting the nonresidential sector?
• Residential sector booming in some parts of the country vs. others… why??
• Why are people moving? Where is there a decline of population?
• ASA members – where is the growth tracking?? Where will it be?
• What to follow when development is concerned… three main drivers: what are they?
• What are the challenges for these three drivers?
• Are we going into a successful period for business expansion? Will there be hits and misses?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is out this week, but we are still back with a special economic update podcast hosted by Keith Prather: Managing Director at Armada. In Season 5, Episode 3 (6:43 in length), Keith talks to members about where things are with tariffs.    

• Tariffs on the EU & brick nations… where are they going?
• Tariff increase affecting automotives, industrial, manufacturing, and construction goods?  
• Blanket tariffs on these countries, what can we expect?   
• What have we seen in the past with tariffs? How many tariffs were approved?  
• Three different waves of exclusions on tariffs, why?      
• What exclusions would be focused on in this next wave? 
• Will tariffs create harm on the competitive section of the supply chain?     
• What is the tariff process? Has this changed at all?
• When will we see the first tariff hit?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 2 (10:02 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to ASA members about what we can be optimistic about and what to be worried about going into the new year… specifically with the business side of things.

• Regulation… the cost of compliance is out of control. Are businesses really struggling?
• Compliance contradictory… why?     
• The notion of the growth of the market, what is driving it? 
• Advancement with data centers and AI, is this good news? 
• Is there progress with consumers?
• What will we question in the next six months?  
• What is concerning the business community?    
• What will happen with trades and tariffs?  
• Chip development, what does that mean?  
• Labor… immigration restrictions, will the economy go into crisis?    
• Are there shifts in shipping containers overseas?
• What is the bottom line? Do we actually know what will happen?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 5, Episode 1 (6:14 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to ASA members about the new administration and how much is “leftover campaign” and what is realistic?  

• Does almost any change in the economy impact ASA members?   
• What are the big four issues that determine strategy going into the new year?
• What is happening with the tariff policy?? 
• Tariff ideas were negotiation tools… will we see the same thing?    
• Overall regulation… why has regulation exploded in the last decade?    
• Do regulations contradict each other?    
• Immigration comes down to an indirect effect… what does construction have to do with this? 
• Will ASA members be affected by the construction sector in 2025?  
• Are we going to have any interruptions with the supply chain?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is out this week, but we are still back with a special economic update podcast hosted by Keith Prather : Managing Director at Armada. In Season 4, Episode 38 (9:45 in length), Keith talks to members about the Fed’s recent decision and what the implications are for ASA Members.   

• Rate cutting trend for 2025… are we still seeing that?  
• What will the interest rate environment be like in 2025? 
• When will we see that 2.9% terminal rate??   
• Real GDP trajectory changed, what are they saying now?   
• Where is government spending in relation to the GDP?    
• ASA distributors should be happy… why?     
• What does the unemployment rate look like for the next three years?       
• Inflation is higher than expected… what is the new projection?    
• What is the secret when it comes to tariffs?     
• Was this decision actually bad news?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is out this week, but we are still back with a special economic update podcast hosted by Keith Prather: Managing Director at Armada. In Season 4, Episode 37 (8:32 in length), Keith talks to members about the supply chain.    

• The port strike… are we still expecting to see this on January 15th? 
• What do we know about negotiations on this strike?       
• Tariff risk, is that speeding up?    
• From 2016 – 2020, what were the effects of tariffs?  
• Imposing and impacts of tariffs, what does that do to inflation and the supply chain?    
• What steps should ASA members take to protect the supply chain?  
• The Red Sea and targeted ships, why has the U.S. only been playing defense?  
• Who can sail through the Red Sea? Why has this stripped global capacity freight?     
• Inbound freight price is up 80-95% year over year, why??   
• Should we see this threat come down with commercial freight in Q1?
• As of now, products are still flowing… should we still be concerned?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is out this week, but we are still back with a special economic update podcast hosted by Keith Prather: Managing Director at Armada. In Season 4, Episode 36 (8:15 in length), Keith talks to members about what we can expect going into 2025 so far. 

• Shifts in policy direction with our new President – will this cause challenges or opportunities?   
• What % will the economy grow? Is this strong compared to past averages? 
• On a global basis, why is there a headwind?? 
• Inflation… will this remain at a 2.5% rate? Is this % ahead of the Feds’ estimate?   
• The unemployment rate… will wages still be sticky next year?   
• Expansion and growth, meaning increased areas in spending… why does this matter to ASA members?    
• What will happen to the price of oil?
• Tariff risk… what do we know about this?     
• Do tariffs really make a significant difference? 
• What is happening with bond rates? Critical to the construction sector… will it grow? 
• The U.S. dollar will hit a mixed environment… what does that exactly mean?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 35 (6:53 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about what we know and what we want to know now that the election is over.   

• Can we expect Trump to do some of the same economical things as he did the first time around in office?     
• Tariff Policies… are we still expected to see a certain percentage of them?   
• Immigration, what is the challenge?   
• What is the difference between immigrants and refugees? 
• How do we protect the border but still bring in people that we need? 
• What do we do with regulatory burden?    
• Compliance costs… they are real. Are they contradictory?    
• Taxes… will they be extended?   
• Would there be tax cuts no matter who won the election?   
• Debt is out of control… what must be done?    
• What is the challenge with the GDP?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 34 (6:29 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about politics… Three main points about the big campaign for members to make note of.  

• What does this presidential election mean to an ASA member?   
• What is rooted in the political year?  
• Is all this conversation overblown? Should we take it with a grain of salt?     
• Trade and tariffs… will these actually get put in place?     
• Would anything get accomplished with a tariff?     
• Majority of business issues are state and local… why does that matter to ASA members?    
• Who determines those main business issues? Is it the President?  
• When the political campaign is over, what happens to the economy?
• Why should we watch out for the upper third and the middle third of income earners?
• One more week and we will see what happens!

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 33 (6:36 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about politics… why are we seeing hyperbole?     

• Why has the presidency become deliberately weak back in the days of the founding fathers?  
• What comes down to the nitty gritty with politics? 
• What is most important to businesses within the political view? 
• What is out of control of the presidency?   
• Who will control the states & local politics?   
• Why do things get overlooked when it comes to the big campaign?  
• Control of congress – will this be a narrow call?      
• What is the presidency limited to?   
• What changes will we actually see? Will the promises be forgotten?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 32 (7:51 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about geopolitics. It is not new news, but it is influencing the global economy. Chris tells us why.    

• What will happen if the issue with oil in the middle east gets worse?     
• Have any of the disruptions (hurricanes, middle east, etc.) have any impact on the oil prices?  
• Why do we produce oil differently than we have before?      
• How many barrels per day do we need to bring in? Are we on target?      
• Why is the price at the pump changing?    
• Is any of this good news?      
• Are we reducing dependency on fossil fuels?    
• Why is China and Taiwan an issue? Will there be an invasion?   
• Why did that provoke the United States on naval operations?      
• The European economy – how does that relate to us?   
• Will they have a recession? What is the latest data? 
• The dock strike that didn’t happen – does that help everyone out?   
• Are we in a bd place geopolitically or not?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 31 (8:35 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about national news of the dock strike – the union suspended the strike until January to allow time to negotiate a new contract.   

• The real issue is still on the table – job security.    
• Why do the clerks need to adapt to technology?      
• Why are we still so vulnerable with the supply chain?    
• Oil prices went up – should we have seen this coming?   
• “Oil glut” - what does that mean for the U.S? 
• Are we on the path for a stagflation?     
• How long can we dodge these bullets for?    
• 30 days until the election – will there be a huge change?    
• What will happen in Congress?   
• What’s ahead for these crises? Can they be avoided?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with a special economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 30 (5:03 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the huge national news of the dockworker strike that will greatly impact ASA members if it happens.

• The contract that covered the longshore union ended in August – negotiations were not optimistic.    
• When was the strike authorized?      
• Was the White House involved?  
• What will this strike do for the east coast and west coast ports?   
• How long will this strike last? What have we seen in the past?     
• Early shipping… was this expected? Will there be a reaction from the retailers?   
• What will the damage be for this strike if it drags into months?   
• Will there be any diversion?     
• Will this impact production within all sectors??  
• Why is the main problem “work protection” and not money?  
• What does AI have to do with this?     
• What is there to be done??

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 29 (6:30 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the latest interest rate changes – what it means, and what it doesn’t mean.     

• Why did the Fed lower rates 0.50% instead of 0.25% as mentioned?    
• How did the markets react? Was anyone shocked?      
• How many more points come after this cut??     
• Are there still concerns about inflation and the economy?     
• What / who is affected by the interest rate reduction?     
• Will this be a big deal for the consumers?     
• How fast do things react to this reduction?
• Will rates go up at all anymore?  
• Why will the dollar most likely weaken? Is it a good thing for the United States?    
• Will there be less import competition? What will we see for exportation?
• What should we expect for the rest of the year and long term for interest rates?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 28 (7:21 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the reaction to the job report numbers last week.      

• What is the Fed going to do with interest rates in the next weeks?  
• The big question is, how much will the Fed cut rates?   
• Will this be the first of more than one cut?? 
• Job numbers – good and bad news?      
• What was the expectation for the job numbers?    
• What is the issue? Have we seen stabilization?      
• We are seeing less hiring, why?    
• What sectors are holding caution?    
• Construction activity… how are they reacting?      
• Wages are still growing, what does that mean?     
• Is there any signal for the Fed to do what they want to do?     
• Are we headed for a soft landing??

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 27 (7:01 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about all the possible outcomes for the job report that is going to be released this afternoon.    

• What does a bad jobs report entail?    
• Are we on the more optimistic side?
• Where will there be ammunition if there is a bad jobs report?   
• What does a good jobs report entail?     
• What would give the Fed incentive to delay lowering rates?    
• What would the biggest impact be with a good report?      
• What is the trick with interest rates?? Is there an instant response?    
• What does a neutral jobs report entail?     
• Is being neutral an even bigger incentive to the Fed?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 26 (6:58 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the latest inflation data that came out today (8.30.24).     

• Has inflation changed at all?     
• Is inflation differing around the world?       
• What are the expectations in Europe? Does it impress the United States?
• Why are the rates coming down so fast in Europe? What happened?  
• What is the biggest driver with these inflation numbers?     
• What are the Central Banks looking at??      
• What is “normal” for unemployment rates now?   
• What is the signal to slow the economy down??    
• GDP for Q3 is hovering – what are the predictions for Q4?      
• Rate cuts in September – is this a possibility??    
• Radical change for rate reduction – should ASA members be concerned??

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 25 (6:52 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the biggest threat that is rising lately… the supply chain.     

• What new developments will be appearing in the next month or so that will put a strain on the supply chain?     
• Will these developments impact inflation and the Fed’s decisions?      
• Strike action… the strike of the east and gulf coast ports… what is happening?      
• When will this strike happen? And how long will it last?      
• The rail shutdown in Canada… why are they affected?    
• Is there labor concern in the transportation sector because of all of this?    
• What will happen if there is a settlement?   
• Why was shipping season so early this year?      
• Are retailers affected?
• Should ASA members be concerned? Will this have impact on housing???

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 24 (9:06 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the latest explanation from the global market sell-off that happened last week and why we shouldn’t panic.      

• Why did the Japanese market crash from this global sell-off? What triggered the rest of the markets?      
• Where are we today with the market? Have we regained what we lost?    
• When does this calm down?     
• Is AI overblown?     
• Where are job numbers at?     
• Long term unemployed – is now the time to come back to work?     
• Why are layoffs critical to watch?   
• What does all this mean for interest rates? Will rates be cut?   
• Will the Fed be able to smooth the waters?       
• What are the warning signs that still concern us?   
• Where is there political uncertainty?
• Is the underlying data still positive when it comes to pointing away from a recession??

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 23 (8:56 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the latest news on the global stock-sell off and if there is a direct impact on ASA members.     

• What are the implications of this stock sell-off?      
• The big AI revolution had investors pause, why?      
• ASA members seem to be interested in AI – but where are the implementations and expectations?  
• Tech sector being hit hard – what triggers it?     
• What exactly is going on??   
• Why were expectations high?     
• Manufacturing had a huge investment period… what two things happened? 
• Internationally, are the markets shaken up?  
• Is there a long-term decline in market value? 
• Will all this affect The Fed’s decisions for rates?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 22 (8:56 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the latest news on quarter numbers and the big tech collapse.      

• What were the second quarter numbers like?    
• That word “recession” … do we still need to worry about it?    
• What was the main motivator for this quarter’s growth?     
• What should we be concerned about?     
• What provoked the big tech collapse?    
• AI… what does that have to do with anything?      
• Is AI a New Revolution?   
• Will this “collapse” be a new segway moment?
• What new trepidations are there in certain sectors of the economy?     
• Why are we still concerned about the supply chain?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 21 (8:35 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about the newest news on inflation.    

• What were the latest Consumer Price Index Numbers?
• 2% being the Feds target… did we hit that?     
• What is CPI when measuring inflation?    
• What is the PCE? Is it more accurate than the CPI?      
• When will PCE data on inflation be released?     
• Inflation numbers came down predominantly because of a drop in what sectors?     
• What is important to ASA members with these specific decline in numbers?   
• What variations are we seeing when it comes to the housing sector?   
• Jobs… Wages continue to go up, are we still worrying about inflation?  
• What does the Fed say about all of this? What is the consensus view?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 20 (7:21 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about a member question / comment regarding China.

• Why is China so highly spoken about in politics?
• How can we react to China when they have the second biggest economy in the world?    
• What is the difference between a command economy and a market economy?
• What is China’s number one priority?
• What happens when China overproduces something?     
• Could a possible solution be to use the funds collected through tariffs to provide grants and incentives to domestic manufacturers of the same or adjacent products?
• How do we become more competitive in the global marketplace?
• China buries tons of their “cheap” money into their products so that they can be dumped into western economies at prices that are incomprehensible. Why don’t we find a way to use their money to level the playing field?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 19 (5:57 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about tariffs and the roles they play and why there is a likelihood that there will be more of them.

• What is a tariff?   
• Why is this economically controversial?  
• What is the purpose of a tariff / tax?       
• Why is China involved? What kind of economy do they have?
• How do tariffs make our industry competitive?
• What does the U.S. plan to do when buying from China?   
• What happens to the payer of that tariff?    
• What do other countries do when they face a tax??    
• What is the upshot?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 18 (8:27 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members about international politics and what implications it has on the U.S. economy.    

• Why were all four international elections a surprise to the U.S.?     
• The Mexico election, what is a “super majority” in the Mexican congress?      
• What is at the top of Mexico’s list and why is it a concern for the U.S.?      
• The Indian election, why are they in jeopardy?    
• How will India keep their coalition parties engaged?
• The South Africa election, what shifts are happening?      
• The European Parliament, why is Europe shifting to become the “populist right”?    
• Why do these elections become complicated from a business view?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 17 (7:19 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members on the overall delays within each sector and if data really supports this trepidation or if it’s a reaction.     

• Construction companies are delaying projects until later in the year, why?    
• What are the four concerns in ALL sectors when it comes to these overall delays?   
• When will interest rates come down?     
• Does this election year have anything to do with concern in priorities?    
• Workforce… what are the newest suggestions and discussion?       
• What do we do about China and Russia?   
• What are we expecting by the end of the year?    
• Will all concerns be taken care of?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 16 (6:49 in length), Dr. Kuehl gives his thoughts about the direction of copper in relation to our industry. An ASA member mentioned that commodity numbers were noted relatively flat, but they have had increases north of 20% in recent weeks.    

• What is copper heavily influenced by?     
• Has copper been reliable when it comes to investment?    
• Where is copper predominantly used? Is there a high demand?     
• Who is the largest consumer of copper?     
• Moving forward, where do we see copper production going?     
• What does the DRC have anything to do with copper?   
• Are we going to see secure copper activity?    
• What will the remainder of the year show with copper prices?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

Season 4, Episode 15: Welcome back to Keeping it Real with Dr. Kuehl. This week Dr. Kuehl focuses on an up-front update with the economy and what to look out for.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 15 (7:10 in length), Dr. Kuehl gives a quick report up front on what is going on in the economy.     

• Why is there concern with wealth transfer?      
• What is the government noticing with boomers and money?   
• Looking ahead at growth, what does Q2 & Q3 look like?     
• What should we look at when it comes to growth numbers?   
• What is one of the main drivers of the economy the last 3 years?      
• We see growth, but are seeing a deterioration in gasoline… what does that mean?    
• Labor supply… what is the reaction to it?      
• Are ASA members affected by the labor shortage?   
• Where is the next generation of bankers going to come from?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 14 (7:26 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about the latest news on job numbers.   

• Why were we predicting such growth this year when looking back at last year’s GDP and employment numbers?      
• Why did we finally get the decline? What is this decline showing?     
• Is there a balance of job opportunities?    
• What is going on with the labor shortage?   
• What are companies reacting to when hiring?       
• What does this all mean for interest rates? 
• Is there an urgent need to drop interest rates with the other overall drops?   
• What are the top four drivers for the economy? Are they strong or weak right now?   
• Do we need to think ahead on how to cope with a slower economy?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 13 (7:36 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about what our industry is seeing/predicting for wages and personnel engagement for 2024.     

• Worker shortage, are there any surprises?     
• How are we dealing with the worker shortages?      
• Is there any data on whether salaries are on the rise, steady or declining?      
• Where does AI come into play?       
• Any ideas on average percentages of increase?       
• How fast are wages growing?      
• Will our industry remain employee starved?        
• Where will we see layoffs if there are any?      
• Immigration, refugees, and the skilled. What is the solution?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 12 (5:48 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about the unexpected economic updates from the last few weeks. 

• No more job creation prediction… what happened?    
• Is inflation back? Do we have it under control?   
• What is still driving inflation?      
• What happened to the oil prices within literally one week?
• What does “dynamic production territory” mean? 
• What is the bottom line with all this unexpected change?   
• Can we accurately predict some things for the economy come summer?  
• What part of the population is skewing expectations??    
• How are all of the sectors doing? Do we see growth?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 11 (8:07 in length), Dr. Kuehl answers a question regarding the plumbing forecast for 2024.  

• Plumbing is connected to a lot of other sectors… what is the biggest driver?      
• What is a consideration that matters when looking at this forecast?     
• What are the challenges?   
• Recession… Is there anything pointing towards it?      
• What other drivers will be significant when it comes to the plumbing sector?     
• Why are certain regions worrying about water?       
• Is this a sector where consumers get excited about innovations in plumbing?      
• What are the predictions looking like for 2024?    
• What can we expect from the plumbing numbers? Can we continue to see growth?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 10 (8:09 in length), Dr. Kuehl answers a question regarding oils, gas, and fuels.   

• Will oil prices per barrel level stay in the 70s and 80s? 
• Is the United States at a place where we could take care of all our needs with our own production?     
• A gallon of gas is half crude oil… what does that affect? 
• The other half of fuel is production… what is the refinery cost?      
• What is the biggest problem with the refinery capacity? 
• What does the affect of investor hesitation have on gas prices?   
• Will we still be 70% - 80% dependent on fossil fuel by 2070? 
• The consumer is pushing in other directions… why?   
• Prices will go up… but with a lot of variations.
• What fuel price is going to be the most volatile for ASA members
• Is there good news for crude oil demand and supply?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 9 (8:47 in length), Dr. Kuehl answers a question regarding mortgage rates and if we will see them ever come down or at least level out.   

• Will we ever see 1-2% mortgage rates?      
• Will rates even go back to where they were a few years back? 
• What will be the upper end and what will be the drop down?
• Fundamentally, the Fed rate decisions are made how??    
• All other rates are based on what? Is it automatic?
• The Feds conversation thus far on rate reduction has been what?
• What two things would sway the Fed away from rate reduction?    
• Where does inflation still exist? Why is it hard to bring down?  
• What is the BIS? Do they have an influence on rates?
• When will we see a rate reduction? Are we seeing any consensus?
• Is it realistic to see mortgage rates in the low 6%?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 8 (8:08 in length), Dr. Kuehl answers a question that refers to the top four challenges for construction in 2024.     

• Two pieces of good news, and two pieces of bad news when talking about construction in 2024.     
• The big inhibition when it comes to construction is what?   
• Construction projects are on hold… why?      
• The consistent problem is the labor shortage, will it get better?    
• Infrastructure money… is it being put to good use?      
• When states received money from the Pandemic, what choices were made on what to do with it in terms of opportunity?   
• What sectors have been growing most consistently in the last year?      
• Do these sectors expect to continue to grow?
• What is the number one and two things that consumers spend on?    
• Construction regionally… what pattern are we seeing? 
• Projects are there, but liquidity is the problem, will this impact ASA members?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 7 (8:05 in length), Dr. Kuehl answers a question that refers to 2024 manufacturing, and if this is the year that we will recover?   

• Has manufacturing ever stopped being great??    
• What % of total manufacturing value in the world does the United States dominate?   
• What country challenges the United States when it comes to manufacturing?    
• What the United States produces is high quality, expensive, and high value. Will that change?   
• How many people are actually working in manufacturing? What is the reality?    
• Going into 2024, where is the shift when it comes to trade relations?
• Trade relationships – who have we always favored?
• The producer or the consumer?   
• With more production coming into the United States, what are the pros and cons?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 6 (5:58 in length), Dr. Kuehl answers some member questions on the topic of consumer trends, and the question of a recession in the second quarter.

• Are we seeing a return to a more frugal consumer?      
• The consumer numbers for the start of 2024, how are they?
• Is the consumer slowing down? Are they aware of the debt they are carrying?      
• What does the consumer look at? When is there a worry / impact / reaction? 
• When does consumer spending start to slow down in the year?    
• Will there be a recession in the second quarter?    
• Are we doing anything that will suggest a recession at ALL this year?      
• Are we still seeing all the drivers of the economy robust and strong?      
• What are the four drivers / pillars of the economy?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 5 (8:23 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about the latest inflation news. What does it mean, and what does it not mean?   

• Why were inflation numbers higher than expected? 
• All kinds of inflation, what do they each mean? Core inflation? Headline inflation?     
• What do the Fed’s pay attention to?
• What are the two assumptions when it comes to inflation?  
• Where are PCE numbers at? Is this where the Fed wants it to be?
• What does the slight increase in inflation
• numbers this week really mean?    
• The labor shortage – has it contributed at all?
• What scares the Fed??       
• Will the Fed lower rates in the second half of the year? Even if these inflation numbers continue to rise??     
• What affects ASA members the most with these reactions?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 4 (8:31 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about the big why on the inaccuracy when it comes to economists forecasting the economy.     

• What were economists getting wrong in 2023?
• Why are the expectations so different than the outcome?     
• Why do we see economic data in a negative position, but we always seem to escape it?
• How is the economy reacting??   
• Rerouting due to the Red Sea… what does this have to do with the automotive sector?? 
• Labor supply issues… a chronic issue, but no action to deal with it?
• How do we keep these issues from reoccurring each year?
• How do we become more preventative? Why is this challenging for our industry?
• What will happen to the economy with new congress & political figures this year?
• Is there still enough health in the economy to continue to grow?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

In Season 4, Episode 3 (6:45 in length), Keith Prather answers a member question in regards to the Red Sea and will it boost rates for shipping and will we feel this impact in the global supply chain. Are we seeing what we saw in 2021 and 2022?

• What is the fear of the global supply chain shutdown?    
• Globally, why are we in shock? 
• What is the impact when it comes to rates and cost of shipments?   
• The drone strike in the last 10 days… what are the challenges of moving shipments in and out?
• How long will it take to fix this transit time? Q2, Q3?     
• 25% of global capacity has been stripped… where is the impact being felt?     
• Even though this does not affect the U.S. directly, why should we be concerned?      
• What does clean tanker activity mean and why does it matter? 
• What do we need to do as distributors?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 2 (7:28 in length), Dr. Kuehl answers a member question “Do you have any data for alternative energy (I.e. natural gas reclamation) projects?”    

• What significant changes are taking place as far as the energy sector is concerned?      
• Reclamation and new & improved technologies… how do they relate?     
• What drives the conversation on alternative energy vs. fossil fuels?      
• What is the most significant change when it comes to energy?    
• How would oil producers adapt to changes? Has anything changed?    
• Will we see oil prices stabilize? No matter what happens this year??       
• What drives alternative energy prices?   
• Where is the alternative energy index vs. where the fossil fuel index is at?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 4, Episode 1 (8:16 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about employment – regarding what we saw in 2023 and what we can expect in 2024.      

• What data was released just this morning (Jan 5th, 2024) regarding employment numbers?    
• Transportation is very active – what contributions does this have to jobs?
• The unemployment rate is still low, what does this mean for 2024?    
• Good news and bad news?    
• Employers are not thrilled with unemployment rates – why?  
• Wages continue to accelerate faster than inflation… what is the downside?     
• Double edge sword – what are both ends?      
• What will we see ALL year when it comes to wages?     
• Will we see more layoff activity?    
• Will ASA members be affected by any of this??    
• What should ASA members be on the lookout for?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In this last episode of 2023, Season 3, Episode 38 (7:36 in length), Dr. Kuehl comments on the U.S. Steel acquisition and as you know - this is intensely controversial. New developments have been happening almost every hour… 

• Why has this steel acquisition sparked controversy in both political parties?     
• What is at risk with this acquisition?
• The question was who is going to buy them? Not when, but who.     
• Who needs to be protected?
• Will there be a ripple in the employment sector?
• If there is no effort to stop the merger, what should ASA members be on the lookout for?  
• Will this merger really help U.S. Steel with advanced projects?    
• Nippon steel and U.S. steel have been working together – what is the outcome?   
• The upshot for ASA members is what???

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question   

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 37 (7:36 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about the top five issues for the business community in regards the economy going into the new year.

• What is 2024 going to be like?
• Election year – what will that do to the economy?  
• What five things matter?   
• Is the Fed done raising rates?
• Will inflation reappear?  
• Are we going to start dealing with a high unemployment rate?
• From the construction side of things, will there be a lot of infrastructure?   
• Will we start to see shifts in oil, gas, food, etc.?
• Subjected to change… like always!

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question   

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 36 (7:34 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about the more recent developments when it comes to the economy.   

• What were the quarterly numbers? What does Q4 look like?  
• What was driving Q3 numbers?  
• Is there anything to look forward to in 2024? 
• A recession... Will it ever happen?  Is the economy “crashing” or “slowing”? 
• Is the Fed done with rate hikes?? Finally?? 
• Where are the jobless claims numbers at? What is the unemployment rate? 
• Housing sector changes... 
• Mortgage rates dropped for the 5th straight week 
• The 30-year fix was close to 9%, what is it now?
• New homes sales, increasing?? 
• Is the housing market stabilizing? 
• How are ASA members responding to these sector changes? 

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question    

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net. 

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 35 (7:23 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about being adaptable to all changes and tells members where our industry is during all this change.

• What happens every day in the economic world?
• How often do trends really change?
• What can economists actually predict? What impact does this have?
• The more information we get, the more we need to consider what it means.  
• What can we expect from the construction sector? How accurate is it? 
• The desperate circumstances when it comes to commercial real estate - what is the analysis?
• There is slowdown, but where is our industry at in this slowdown? Is it growing??
• Where is the oil and gas sector at? Booming??
• Being adaptable, pivoting with change... why is it such a challenge in economics? 
• What is the lesson of all of this? 

 Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question    

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net. 

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 34 (7:07 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about how all the predictions within the last few weeks didn’t happen at all. Specifically, regarding the latest GDP numbers.  

• What were the original predictions for GDP numbers? 
• What are the big issues for consumers? 
• Going into the more intense holiday season, should members be encouraged? 
• Why are we getting such a consumer surge when everyone thought it would slow down? 
• What is the overall performance of the manufacturing sector? Why should ASA members know about this?? 
• Are wholesalers buying again? Why does that help the purchasing index?  
• At the moment, will this last exceptionally long? Will we see retreat in the beginning of next year?  

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question    

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net. 

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 33 (7:18 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about the Fed’s reaction to CPI numbers, and what the current outlook on inflation is. Can ASA members finally take a breather? 

• Why were the GDP numbers so unexpected this week? 
• What is the reason for the Fed to not pay attention to the CPI numbers? 
• What does that have to do with inflation?? 
• What do you really get out of CPI numbers? What can you assume? 
• What does the Fed look at when it comes to an outlook on inflation? 
• Inflation VS. Recession... what should we be worried about more? What is the difference?? 
• Are we going in the right direction? Finally??? 
• Will the Fed raise rates? Should we rule out another quarter point?  

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question    

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net. 

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 32 (6:49 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about the Israel crisis and how that will impact the global oil scene.

• Why was no one expecting this attack? 
• What has this attack done to the oil market? 
• Have the oil barrel prices changed at all? 
• What was the expectation for the oil market in reaction to this attack? 
• Where is the hesitation on what Israel will do next? 
• Where do Middle Eastern countries go from here? 
• Will we see a change in oil prices next year? 
• What is the bottom line? Are we seeing an oil crisis? 

 Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question   

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net. 

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 31 (8:31 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about what industrial areas of the economy are growing and which ones aren't.  

• What is going on in the industrial sectors as defined by the Federal Reserve? 
• What is the upshot with accuracy rate? 
• Which industrial sectors are doing well? Which ones are not? 
• What will we see in the first quarter of next year? 
• Aerospace... what is the biggest problem with this industry? 
• Machinery... stable but when will we see these inventory numbers get healthier? 
• Primary metals... in the dumps, why? What can we see moving forward? 
• Construction & manufacturing... ASA members should know: where is the trend line at? 
• Bottom line? Where is the industrial sector at? 

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question   

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net. 

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 30 (10:46 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about the most recent updates on oil and gas which is a very important topic to ASA members.  

• All oils are higher in price than what was predicted... why?  
• Will prices drift back into the 70s? What factors would affect that estimate? 
• Demand and supply... why have the predictions been off? 
• What has been happening with China & the United States demands? 
• What is the reasoning for thinking that our demand would have gone down? 
• Why has the supply side of things been confusing?  
• Where does Russia come into play with oil output? Is it a backfire situation? 
• Good news on the horizon for the United States? 
• Predictable / unpredictable weather... why is it an issue? Does it affect supply? 
• Why are investors still shying away from the oil sector?? 
• Is there a silver lining to any of this?  

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question   

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net. 

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 29 (8:17 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about the UAW Strike and how this has affected the economy as a whole.  

• What is rumor and what is reality? What do we know so far? 
• What changes are the UAW asking for?  
• What is the real issue as far as the Union is concerned? 
• Where will production be focused? Will they be losing more production to other parts of the world? 
• What country is more predominantly a manufacturing country? 
• Why are robotics a concern?  
• South Korea and Japan, where do they play a part for the United States? 
• How is consumer spending currently? Are we seeing weakness?  
• All three automakers on strike... what should we expect?  

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question  

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net. 

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 28 (4:21 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about the Central Banks and the Investment Community.     

• Why have we avoided a recession as long as we have?
• What sectors are continuing to boom?     
• Will there be a pause in raising interest rates?
• What announcement came from the Investment Community in the past week?     
• What is the consensus view now on rates?   
• Where is the economy going within the next year?     
• What is the biggest concern from a growth and inflation perspective?  
• Are there other concerns in the world that will impact supplies and inflation?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 27 (8:16 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about what is happening with the labor market.      

• Good news or bad news…? What are the latest labor market numbers?       
• What is the major issue? Why is it affecting the labor force?     
• Why is retirement scaring people for the future of jobs?   
• What is the Feds perspective and why is it complicated?      
• What are the new employment numbers? Higher or lower than the last few months?     
• Inflation is still a problem, what does the unemployment rate suggest?     
• What is the big question for a lot of businesses?  
• Halloween – what does this holiday do for the retail side of things & the rest of the year?    
• Overall, what will we see for the 3rd and 4th quarter?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 26 (9:28 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks about a few different topics: the big news coming out with Russia and Putin, and then the U.S. labor shortage.     

• What does the death of Prigozhin mean to Putin?    
• Does this death weaken Putin?    
• Should the U.S. be nervous for what’s to come with Putin & Russia?     
• What are the chances of Putin turning to nuclear weapons?  
• Why are we seeing a pullback this year for the labor shortage?       
• What three reasons have been suggested for that pullback?      
• The Fed is still not comfortable with the inflation rate, how does it relate to the job market?       
• Where do ASA companies land within this shortage issue??

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 25 (9:12 in length), Dr. Kuehl answers a member question “What happens if China’s economy collapses?”     

• Is the Chinese economy really going to collapse?     
• What is happening with China? Are there misconceptions?   
• Why did China put into place a “100% lockdown” for COVID?     
• What did that lockdown do to the economy? Was there success?       
• What happened when that lockdown was lifted?? 
• Why have we seen significant pay raises in China?   
• No consumer surge in China… why not?    
• What is the reality with exporting and the Chinese economy?
• Deflation – what is the Chinese government going to do?       
• Is it a matter of vanishing or weakening?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 24 (9:45 in length), Dr. Kuehl talks to members on what happened to that so-called recession we were supposed to see. Has it really gone away? Or will we see it again?        

• What were the predictions on recession during the first quarter? What are we looking at going into the third quarter?  
• What sectors have been growing in the last year?
• Regional variation… where is there growth and where is there not?   
• Where are we at with inflation and The Fed?
• What are the PCE numbers? How relevant are they?   
• When do the central banks lower rates?     
• How are the unemployment numbers?   
• Will we escape this recession?       
• Will we see a recovery when it comes to manufacturing output?       
• Holiday season coming up… what effect will it have on the economy this year?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 23 (8:39 in length), Dr. Kuehl answers a pressing member question “Can Dr. Kuehl address the potential upcoming strikes with UPS, YRC, etc. What impact it will have on everyone?”  

• How is negotiation going with the Teamster’s vs YRC?    
• How have certain changes affected LTL companies?    
• What has “authorized” a strike?      
• Strike was averted… what comes next?  
• What is the problem now with shippers due to the strike?  
• What is the consensus view?       
• Why are the Teamsters at a disadvantage now?
•  Will this be a last-minute settlement??       
• Is there a possibility of an extended negotiation?    
• What is the issue with the ILWU now and how does it relate to this strike?
• What is the bottom line???
• Will we have a full-blown strike?

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.

ASA Chief Economist Dr. Chris Kuehl is back with his weekly economic update podcast. In Season 3, Episode 22 (9:30 in length), Dr. Kuehl answers two member questions that go hand in hand: “How much do you think the fed will raise interest rates in the next year?” And “Will mortgage rates go down this year? Is it better or worse to buy a house in a recession?”      

• What is the neutral rate of interest?  
• What are the conversations on changing this rate?   
• What would it mean to the Fed policy if this rate changes?     
• At what stage has the Fed’s activity kicked in?      
• What are the latest inflation numbers showing?     
• What is the challenge with PCE?     
• Are we seeing mortgage rates going down any time soon?    
• Is the housing market responding to the recession?
• What tends to happen with rates and prices in a recession? Where is the first place we would see this?   
• What is the silver lining in a recession??

Ask Dr. Kuehl a Question

Have a question or topic for Chris Kuehl that you would like answered on this podcast? Email it to Bri Baresel at bbaresel@asa.net.