Consumer Retrenchment

From the Liscio Report:

What does this all mean? It suggests that the consumer retrenchment in this recession will be deep and long, and will probably continue into any recovery. The American consumer is no longer the world consumer of last resort, and that's an enormous change for both this country and the rest of the world to get used to.

It is changing world, and those countries that have built their economies on a foundation of exporting to other countries may find that it was a sandy foundation.