Ebay is probably as good or better an economic indicator than anything the government statistics mills churn out. From Jeff Thomas at internationalman.com:
I’m often asked how I see the warning signs that allow me to gauge the timing of the coming economic crisis.
Although careful research into an economy can result in a relatively accurate prognostication, the timing is always the most difficult aspect to pinpoint.
However, a good indicator is to track how others within the economy are surviving the situation. This tells us much more than their questionable claims that they’re doing just fine.
One very telling way to do this is to follow their extravagances. In prosperous times, they’re likely to buy expensive toys. Then, as they increasingly feel the pinch, they’ll sell off those toys first, before resorting to selling their more essential possessions. For example, someone will sell off his beloved sports car before he sells the more essential family SUV. Or he’ll get rid of the vacation house before he puts his primary home on the market.
