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- The Stealth Stimulus Has Begun - And It’s Already Reshaping the Economy
The Stealth Stimulus Has Begun - And It’s Already Reshaping the Economy
From mass layoffs and McDonald’s price shocks to Ripple’s billion-dollar milestone, new 1099 rules, and crypto tax crackdowns - here’s what you need to know before January hits.
Economic Ninja
December 10, 2025
Ninja News 12/10/25
December 9, 2025
🚀 XRP ETFs achieved $1B AUM with $897M inflows as of December 5, 2025, becoming the fastest to reach this milestone since Ethereum ETF according to S Value on-chain analytics platform.
📉 XRP price remains unaffected by ETF inflows due to overall market downturn, contrasting with Bitcoin's price rise during its ETF launch, because XRP lacks market leader status that Bitcoin holds.
💼 Institutional investors are using the market dip as opportunity to accumulate XRP at lower prices during ETF inflows, employing a contrarian approach to position building.
🏦 Vanguard Group's plan to enable crypto exposure across all its products signals pent-up demand for regulated crypto products among traditional investors, according to Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse.
⚠️ Gaps in crypto tax reporting on major exchanges create discrepancies requiring investors to independently verify their tax liability on exchange platforms to avoid confusion.
December 9, 2025
🍔 McDonald's menu prices have exploded with McChicken jumping from $1 in 2018 to $3.10 in 2025 (210% increase) and McDouble from $1.19 in 2014 to $4.59 (285% increase), vastly outpacing the government's reported 3.17% annual inflation rate.
📉 McDonald's CEO Christopher Capavinsky reported nearly double-digit decline in QSR traffic from lower-income customers during Q3 2023, a trend persisting for nearly 2 years, while higher-income consumers continued driving traffic growth.
⏰ McDonald's expects consumer health pressures in the US and top international markets to continue well into 2026, indicating prolonged economic challenges beyond typical short-term fluctuations.
🎯 The persistent 2-year decline in lower-income customer traffic at McDonald's signals a potential economic downturn where even fast food becomes unaffordable, serving as a barometer for broader economic health with far-reaching implications across industries.
📊 The massive disparity between McDonald's actual price increases (210-285%) and government's reported inflation data (3.17% annual) raises critical questions about the accuracy of official inflation measurements.
December 8, 2025
💰 Replacing the $1 bill with a $1 coin could save taxpayers $4.4 to $13.8 billion over 30 years because coins last 30 years while paper bills wear out in less than 6 years.
🪙 The US Mint ended penny production in 2024 after production costs reached 3.69 cents per penny, with 300 billion pennies already in circulation now being melted down for copper and zinc recovery.
💵 Eliminating the nickel could save taxpayers millions as economists identify it as the lowest value coin still in production relative to its worth, reducing waste and simplifying transactions.
📈 Setting aside nickels creates a win-win scenario: maintaining purchasing power if eliminated as currency, or profiting from metal value exceeding 5 cents if the Mint stops production, with potential to discover rare nickels providing a windfall without significant investment.
🏭 Government purchases of large nickel quantities driven by trade imbalances and a booming economy could push the metal value of nickels beyond current expectations, making stockpiling strategically advantageous.
December 8, 2025
📊 BFA chief strategist Michael Hartnett predicts all commodity charts will mirror gold's trajectory, with oil rebounding after a Russia-Ukraine resolution while China maintains a cheap yuan strategy.
🏦 Nation states are aggressively buying gold and other commodities, driving prices upward, though a mini panic in January 2026 may trigger a temporary 3-5% drop in gold and silver before the next rally.
📉 A stock market correction in January 2026 is expected as Q4 2025 forward guidance deteriorates, triggering a capitulation moment where stockholders sell shares during the market sell-off.
💵 The Fed will respond within 24 hours to the January 2026 correction by monetizing debt, lowering rates, and increasing lending ease similar to Great Depression tactics, flooding markets with liquidity.
🏠 Introduction of 50-year mortgages will trigger hyperinflation in housing markets, becoming the new benchmark and creating worse inflation than when Roosevelt introduced 30-year mortgages during his presidency.
💰 The population will redirect stimulus checks and cheap money into crypto and commodities during January 2026, recognizing the value of earthly assets like gold, silver, water, oil, and land.
December 7, 2025
📊 US employers announced 1.17M job cuts from January-November 2025, representing a 54% increase year-over-year from 761,000 cuts in the same period of 2024, marking the second highest total in 16 years after 2020.
📈 November 2025 saw over 71,000 job cuts, up 24% YoY, marking the highest November total since 2022 and only the third time since 2008 that monthly cuts exceeded 70,000 (occurring in 2008, 2022, and now 2025).
📱 Verizon's CEO declared mass layoffs in 2025 as inevitable and announced plans for further layoffs in 2026, signaling sustained workforce reductions in the telecom sector.
🏦 The Federal Reserve's rate-cutting effectiveness is limited because banks may refuse to lend during widespread layoffs due to job loss fears and ongoing inflation pressures, breaking the traditional monetary policy transmission mechanism.
💼 Recessions create business opportunities through acquiring inventory from closing companies at discounted prices, such as purchasing heavy equipment from failing contractors or buying palm trees to resell below retail prices.
December 7, 2025
🎯 The One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed July 4, 2025 raises the 1099 reporting threshold to $2,000 (indexed for inflation) and reinstates original 1099K thresholds of $20,000 and 200 transactions, with changes retroactive to 2022 and effective in 2026.
📉 Payment platforms like Venmo and PayPal are no longer required to report transactions below the $20,000 and 200 transaction limits, substantially reducing administrative burdens for employers, businesses, and independent contractors.
💡 The 2026 threshold changes create a green light for launching side hustles by establishing a separate bank account, obtaining a business license or LLC, and growing the venture debt-free with cash.
✅ The reinstated thresholds represent good news for small businesses and side hustles as they eliminate reporting requirements for smaller-scale independent contractor payments below the $20,000/200 transaction benchmarks.
December 7, 2025
🚗 WhistlinDiesel arrested for tax evasion involving a Ferrari registered with Montana license plate claimed as movie prop business expense to avoid taxes, with his accountant contacting officials upon discovering the tax investigation and being told to not change anything, suggesting potential entrapment.
💰 The Economic Ninja paid over $25,000 in tax for his GT3 despite it qualifying as business expense for his YouTube channel, choosing compliance over legal risk.
📊 The Economic Ninja discovered irregularities between crypto exchanges and actual trades, prompting creation of crypto tax course to help others avoid government issues.
🏢 Entrepreneurs and business owners can legally pay little to no tax through company formations and strategic planning, unlike individuals attempting tax savings by moving or starting companies abroad.
📚 The Economic Ninja plans course with CPA teaching how to legally write off personal expenses as business expenses, a strategy exclusive to entrepreneurs who understand the system.
December 6, 2025
🌐 Crypto Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) launches April 1, 2026 as an international standard requiring exchanges to report trading histories to governments, including offshore platforms, closing major global tax transparency gaps.
⚖️ Individuals bear full legal responsibility for tax code compliance even when using a CPA, as accountants only defend how information was reported on forms, not the accuracy of information provided to them.
🎯 Governments will prioritize high-profile cases first before pursuing broader enforcement due to insufficient staffing to target all taxpayers simultaneously, creating a phased enforcement approach.
📊 IRS has been tracking crypto transactions for an extended period, with exchanges like Coinbase and Gemini reporting to the IRS in ways that may not align with individual taxpayer expectations of their tax obligations.
💡 Legal wealth preservation requires proactive effort through identifying tax write-offs and loopholes with proper planning, enabling individuals to generate income while managing tax liability within legal boundaries.
This includes 2 new courses designed to help you save on taxes.
Go out and crush it!
The Ninja is OUT!
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