It’s a slow economic news week, so don’t be surprised if I play hookie tomorrow or Wednesday.In the meantime, now that we have July’s inflation data, we can update some “real” consumer well-being indicators.First, real average hourly wages for nonsupervisory workers rose 0.1% in July to a new all-time high excluding April through June 2020: 
It has risen 3.8% since its pre-pandemic all-time high, and 3.0% from its June 2022 post-pandemic low (when gas prices were $5/gallon).Meanwhile, Motio Research has updated their monthly calculation of real median household income through June. It is also at an all-time high excluding the months of March through August 2020: 
Note this includes pandemic stimulus payments as well as wages, which is why it surged during the early months of the pandemic.Finally, real aggregate payrolls for nonsupervisory workers – the best measure of the collective buying power of America’s middle and working class – declined -0.1% in July from its all-time high in June: 
Although, per the BLS, Hurricane Beryl did not affect the employment or unemployment numbers for July, there is some indication that it *did* impact the number of hours worked, which declined -0.2%. This decline in hours explains why aggregate payrolls declined, even though real wages per hour worked increased.If real aggregate payrolls fail to make a new high in the next couple of months, that would be cause for some concern, since the peak in this metric is a short leading indicator for recessions.But all in all, real income in July continued the recent run of good news.More By This Author:But For Beryl, Housing Construction Would Have Warranted Hoisting A Yellow Caution Flag For Recession Real Retail Sales The Highest So Far This Year, But Still Negative YoYIndustrial Production: Negative Number, Important Negative Revisions
