What drove the strong growth in GDP at the end of 2023? Consumer spending.
What drove the strong growth in GDP at the end of 2023? Consumer spending.
The U.S. economy had a strong fourth quarter in 2023, with gross domestic product rising 3.3% from the previous year while inflation continued to cool. The bump in GDP reflects, among other things, increased consumer spending on both goods and services.
Some of the things we bought more of in the last three months: hotel stays, meals out and software.
Canton Games in Baltimore sells vintage video game consoles and cartridges, and a lot of customers are drawn to the games they played when they were kids, said staffer Ophelia Heyes. She is too; her favorite is Super Mario World.
“You could play, like, the first bar of music from that and I will be, like, instantly just enamored,” Heyes said.
Most of the store’s video games run for between $10 and $20, though some rare ones can go for closer to $100, and people have been stocking up in cold weather, Heyes said.
In the hierarchy of needs, software like video games can meet a pretty important one.
“Once you have your basic necessities filled, I think one of the first things I go to is, what am I going to do that’s fun?” she said.
A few blocks south of Canton Games, right by the harbor, there’s Kooper’s Tavern, which features eight kinds of burgers starting at $15.
General manager Collin Burger said snow and cold weather have been bringing people to the pub.
“That obviously drives business to places where the atmosphere is warm and inviting, and there’s a fireplace,” Burger said.
Across the street is the Sagamore Pendry Baltimore, a luxury hotel built out on a pier.
On a tour, manager Amanda Santiago points out a vending machine … for champagne.
“She only takes tokens,” Santiago said. “So you can buy them from the front desk. It’s $25 for a split, but she stays open all day and all night.”
In the high season, rooms at the hotel start around $500 per night, Santiago said, and lots of people come for the pool and the drinks.
But in the fall, the hotel finally saw the return of business travelers.
“That Monday-through-Thursday corporate traveler is absolutely a pillar of our business success,” Santiago said.
Business this year is going well so far, she said, because another local business is doing well: People have been coming to see the Baltimore Ravens in the NFL playoffs.
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