Mail delivery slowing down in the U.S.
Inflation accelerating in Venezuela.
Slowing mail delivery is not just in your imagination….
8/26 – Washington Post – Post Office can’t even meet its own lower standards as late mail soars – The Post Office reduced its goals for delivery time on first class mail. Now an internal report shows a 50% jump in late delivery during 2015 even with the more lax standard.
So if you have been thinking that delivery around Southern California is taking a few days longer than it used to, your thinking is correct.
The U.S. Post Office has dropped next day delivery of local mail, according to the article. That change would explain some things I’ve noticed lately.
If it seems you have had several pieces of important mail not show up when it should, turns out your customers weren’t fibbing that the check was in the mail.
It is not just your imagination or vague memory that service used to be better.
What happens when government really, really messes up the economy…
8/26 – Bloomberg – Venezuela is Adding More Zeros to Its Currency to Deal With Hyperinflation – The economy in Venezuela is edging towards hyperinflation. That means the currency in circulation isn’t working.
The largest bill in circulation, 100 Bolivar, is worth US$0.14. Expectations are that new bills will be released at the end of the year. Denominations expected are 500 and 1,000 Bolivars. If that happens, the largest bill in circulation would be worth US$1.40 at today’s exchange rate.
Picture yourself on the weekly trip to the grocery store paying in fourteen cent bills. Might need a thousand bills to pay for groceries.
The Venezuelan government stopped reporting inflation last December when it hit 69%. Guesses are it could be 150% at the end of 2015. The tidal wave of hyperinflation hasn’t hit, but that devastating wave is visible on the horizon. It is getting closer.
I previously discussed hyperinflation in Zimbabwe here and here.