Hacker News new | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submit login

No, let's say all.

Depending on the report you read, between one third and one half of americans couldn't come up with $2,000 in an emergency if they needed it. The cost of most goods could not rise or people would starve.

The stock market going up makes no difference to a majority of america.




More people own stocks than you seem to believe: http://factmyth.com/factoids/about-half-of-americans-own-sto...


And what is their average exposure? If you have 10k in a 401k and it goes up by 100x, that's great, but not enough to immediately retire.

If you have 50k in a 401k and your funds double (a more reasonable increase, but still absurdly well)... so what? The point is, the stock market is a terrible metric of how their wealth is doing for a great many people. Enough people that drastic upward movements will only affect the prices of higher-end items because it will not immediately inject cash into people's lives who are living paycheck to paycheck (or nearly are) and need to buy food.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: