Economics Matters — Blog/Podcast/Financial Riddler/MaxiFi Puzzler
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Elon Musk has more wealth than what percentage of American households?
a. 12%
b. 22%
c. 42%
d. 52%
e. 62%
And the answer is …
The answer, according to Senator Sanders, is 52%. Musk’s current wealth is $484 billion. By comparison, J.P. Morgan’s wealth, at its peak, was $1.9 billion in today’s dollars. Yet Musk’s wealth is only .25% of total US private wealth. A century ago, J.P. Morgan’s wealth comprised roughly .10% of total US private wealth.
What share of the 2 million US workers in 1800 worked in agriculture?
a. 23%
b. 43%
c. 63%
d. 83%
e. 94%
And the answer is …
The answer, according to the WSJ, is 83%. Today, we have 160 million workers of whom less than 2 percent work in agriculture.
What share of the S&P is comprised of the top ten AI companies, non of which have yet to make a profit.
a. 11%
b. 15%
c. 19%
d. 27%
e. 35%
And the answer is …
The answer is 35% if not somewhat higher. Hence, investing in the S&P is not a very diversified investment given that a) AI’s ability to make money remains to be seen, b) AI firms don’t have a fundamental advantage relative to one another, i.e., the industry will, overtime, likely be highly competitive, c) It will be very hard to sell ad placement via AI search engines. Yes, AI companies can charge advertisers to promote their products in the AI’s responses to queries. But that will lead user to switch to more truthful LLMs, and d) AI may run out of data from which to learn, may end of cannibalizing itself by training itself on other LLM’s answers.
What fraction of US energy derives from solar power?
a. 42%
b. 31%
c. 13%
d. 9%
e. 5%
And the answer is …
The answer is 9%. The FT suggests this may rise substantially thanks to the growing use of mega batteries — huge battery farms that store solar power for use at night and on cloudy days.
Since 2000, US equities have yielded an annual real return of 5.8%. What is the post-2000 annual real return on gold?
a. -1.4%
b. 1.9%
c. 2.5%
d. 5.8%
e. 7.4%
And the answer is …
According to Deutsche Bank, gold has yielded 7.4%!
Which country had the highest annual stock market return over the last century?
a. The US
b. Australia
c. Canada
d. Sweden
e. Switzerland
f. Japan
And the answer is …
The answer is Sweden. It’s 7.5% average annual real return slightly exceeded the US 7.2% real return.
What is the average cost of a family health insurance plan in the US?
a. $8000
b. $13,000
c. $17,000
d. $21,000
e. $27,000
And the answer is …
The answer is a whopping $27,000. This is, according to the WSJ, 6% higher than last year with the increase driven by higher spending on weight-loss drugs, hospitalizations, and chronic disease.
What share of marrying couples aged 18-34 is getting a prenup?
a. 4%
b. 7%
c. 12%
d. 19%
e. 40%
And the answer is …
The answer is a remarkably high 40%. Some interesting prenup stats are here.
Is manufacturing employment rising?
a. Yes
b. No
And the answer is …
The answer is no. It’s slightly lower than last year.
What share of US high school graduates is proficient in math?
a. 81%
b. 72%
c. 55%
d. 47%
e. 22%
And the answer is …
The answer is an appalling 22%. The reading proficiency share is higher — 35%.
Don’t quote senators — they make up stuff. I think the answer is closer to about 1/3 of the US not 52%. Still a lot but Bernie is likely exaggerating.