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I'm not sure I buy (heh) into this. I usually buy things because I need them, or want them in the moment. I'm not gonna postpone buying a washing machine becaus

by zppln 4y ago

I'm not sure I buy (heh) into this. I usually buy things because I need them, or want them in the moment. I'm not gonna postpone buying a washing machine because it might be cheaper next month. I'm not gonna pass on getting wasted because drinks are cheaper next month. I'm not gonna starve myself because food might be cheaper next week.

runako 4y ago
> I usually buy things because I need them, or want them in the moment. Consider yourself extremely fortunate to be able to manage your purchases this way, but also consider that this is not the norm.
woodruffw 4y ago
These are market trends, not individual behavioral trends. We know that people do spend money during periods of inflation, because they understand that the relative purchasing power of their money is decreasing. The contrapositive of that is that they don't spend as much during periods of deflation, because their relative purchasing power is going up. (There's also an error in assigning unit purchases like washing machines as a proxy for consumer behavior: consumers select within a purchasing category more frequently that then opt out of categories. In other words: deflation and inflation can determine how much you're willing to spend on a washing machine, rather than breaking your commitment to already purchase one.)
dragonwriter 4y ago
> I'm not sure I buy (heh) into this. I usually buy things because I need them, or want them in the moment. I'm not gonna postpone buying a washing machine because it might be cheaper next month. There’s a reason n=1 samples aren't usually the basis for general descriptions of behavioral trends.
- temp2022acc 4y ago
  N=2 with me but yeah I can understand. Obviously that's why economic niches still exist and broad models only explain broad trends.
DontchaKnowit 4y ago
Yeah but this is small potatoes. Imagine you're managing a $300 million family fortune. If your money is going to be worth more next month, why invest now? Also think about how tricky itd be to manage a business. Your supply is getting less expensive in $ terms monthly, but also the value of your goods in the market is going down each month. Weird situation.

by zppln 4y ago

runako 4y ago

> I usually buy things because I need them, or want them in the moment. Consider yourself extremely fortunate to be able to manage your purchases this way, but also consider that this is not the norm.

woodruffw 4y ago

These are market trends, not individual behavioral trends. We know that people do spend money during periods of inflation, because they understand that the relative purchasing power of their money is decreasing. The contrapositive of that is that they don't spend as much during periods of deflation, because their relative purchasing power is going up. (There's also an error in assigning unit purchases like washing machines as a proxy for consumer behavior: consumers select within a purchasing category more frequently that then opt out of categories. In other words: deflation and inflation can determine how much you're willing to spend on a washing machine, rather than breaking your commitment to already purchase one.)

dragonwriter 4y ago

> I'm not sure I buy (heh) into this. I usually buy things because I need them, or want them in the moment. I'm not gonna postpone buying a washing machine because it might be cheaper next month. There’s a reason n=1 samples aren't usually the basis for general descriptions of behavioral trends.

temp2022acc 4y ago
N=2 with me but yeah I can understand. Obviously that's why economic niches still exist and broad models only explain broad trends.

DontchaKnowit 4y ago

Yeah but this is small potatoes. Imagine you're managing a $300 million family fortune. If your money is going to be worth more next month, why invest now? Also think about how tricky itd be to manage a business. Your supply is getting less expensive in $ terms monthly, but also the value of your goods in the market is going down each month. Weird situation.