Nevada falls roughly in the middle ($103) along with Mountain Westers Arizona and Colorado ($99) among states for a C-bill’s value in getting you what you want for Christmas: | | |
Source: Visual Capitalist
As of March 2025
Looking closely at the map, there is an “Affordability Belt” that can be seen visually, in the Mountain West, Midwest, and South — including
- Nebraska and Kansas ($110)
- Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana ($112)
- Alabama, Kentucky and West Virginia ($110):
| | Table showing the middle 20 states (Nevada is 28th): | | |
Source: Visual Capitalist
As of March 2025
Takeaway: Many of the highest-income states, such as California, Hawaii, and Massachusetts, still rank among the worst for real dollar value.
For example, Massachusetts has a six-figure median income, but $100 only buys $92 worth of goods. States such as Iowa and Kansas have more modest incomes, on average, but a dollar goes almost 25 percent further than in MA.
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For those who missed it or are not on John’s Substack list (yet), this RCG Economics post notes how what was once the stuff of science fiction is fast becoming reality: Recent data and research suggests assorted tech
transformations could displace up to 92,000 Nevada hospitality positions by 2035.
Excerpt:
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Gobs more data and analysis here.
Toy Makers
As holiday shopping gets seriously under way, we give you this Census Bureau infomap showing how many toymaker brands are based in each state:
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Source: Politico
Despite hosting the lottery and boasting Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas was not selected to be among potential host sites. One of the main reasons, according to a comment by CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority Steve Hill, was that FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) couldn’t guarantee the financial return the relevant local officials wanted as a return on investment.
As for the cities with their names in the FIFA site hat, the U.S. federal government will assess and plan for mass fan movements as team and game schedules are translated into increased demand on heavily trafficked ground transportation corridors connecting cities such as Boston, New York, and Philadelphia and air routes linking New York and San Francisco, according to a comment by White House Task Force Andrew Giuliani in the Politico story referenced above.
That said, most World Cup planning will be left to the host cities across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. First-round matches will occur on June 27, giving metro managers and the business and hospitality community the next 6 months to plan for staffing, capacity, transit, and crowd control. Host cities via ESPN:
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As for economic benefit (or lack thereof), cities won’t know until months after the last World Cup whistle whether the planning, investment, security risks, and disruptions were worth the trouble. Las Vegas will be watching…
Canada has bet big: It provided more than $100 million each to Toronto and Vancouver for tournament preparations. Why? Wealthy EU, Pacific Rim, and Persian Gulf countries with direct flights to Canada may transport big spenders that will boost business and tax revenue. (Cities hosting teams from Uzbekistan or the Democratic Republic of Congo won’t be so fortunate.)
America’s Families
Newly released estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau’s historical America’s Families and Living Arrangements tables show that fewer than half (47 percent) of U.S. households in 2025 were married couples — a significant shift from 50 years earlier, when nearly two-thirds (66 percent) were.
Among married-couple households, the share with their own children declined over the past half-century. In 1975, more than half (54 percent) of married-couple households included their own children under age 18; by 2025, that share had declined to about 37 percent.
Other highlights:
- In 2025, there were 39.7 million one-person households, accounting for 29 percent of all households, up from 20 percent in 1975.
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Single person household trend graph — 1960 to 2023
Source: Statista
- The portion of householders age 65 and older rose from 1 in 5 in 1975 to over 1 in 4 in 2025.
- In 2025, more than half (58 percent) of adults ages 18 to 24 lived in their parental home, compared to 16 percent of adults ages 25 to 34.
- The estimated median age at first marriage increased to 30.8 for men and 28.4 for women, up from ages 23.5 and 21.1, respectively, in 1975.
Statistics come from the Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement (CPS ASEC), years 2025 and 1975.
International Migrants
Global migration more than doubled since 1990, reflecting growing international mobility.
Out of OECD countries, Switzerland had the largest share of migrants at 31.1 percent — a more than 12 percentage point increase compared to 1990 — as of 2024. Australia (30.4 percent) and New Zealand (28.2 percent) rounded out the top three.
The U.S. ranked 15th with an estimated 15.2 percent share of migrants.
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Data source: United Nations
Graph source: Visual Capitalist
As of 2024
Of the top 10 nations with a large ratio of immigrants, Germany had the largest raw number (11.7 million) in 2024, followed by Canada (7.0 million) and Australia (5.9 million).
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Data source: United Nations
Graph source: Visual Capitalist
As of 2024
The U.S. had an estimated 43.9 million migrants, the largest raw number of the nations ranked by Visual Capitalist.
In 2024 the number of international migrants worldwide stood at 304 million, a figure that has nearly doubled since 1990, according to UN data. The ratio of international migrants globally in 2024 was 3.7 per cent — a modest increase from 2.9 per cent in 1990.
| | This infomap nicely illustrates the world regions with the greatest share of immigrants: | | |
Note that Oceania, way down in the lower righthand corner of the map, holds 21.5 percent of the world’s immigrant. Its graph bubble is so small because its total population in 2024 was just 46 million.
This flow chart also is interesting (get a larger view and the full UN report here):
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As of 2024
Inside Out
Pop quiz: Name 5 elements that comprise Planet Earth.
Answers:
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Graphic source: Visual Capitalist
Data source: U.S. Geological Survey
As of 12/8/25 at 3 pm
Table:
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Table source: Visual Capitalist
Data source: U.S. Geological Survey
As of 12/8/25 at 3 pm
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On the Horizon
Marketwatch calendar:
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Data & Dialogue About the Economy
The Fact Pack is a monthly business e-report co-authored by Mike PeQueen of Hightower Las Vegas and John Restrepo of RCG Economics, which combines important metrics relevant to business decision makers and financial commentary on the current issues facing the economy.
See what's happening on our social media sites!
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Mike PeQueen
Hightower Las Vegas
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John Restrepo
RCG Economics
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