2023 is now just another year in the history books, but it was interesting for a variety of reasons. Some of you subscribe to my "By The Numbers" weekly email, so you may be used to looking at the year through the lens of relevant numbers. But some numbers are worth reviewing one more time. Here are a few more of my favorites from 2023.

19%

In 2023, roughly 19% of Americans ages 65 and older were employed, nearly double the share of those who were working 35 years ago.

Source: Pew Research Center, December 2023

3.4%

The US unemployment rate falls to 3.4%, its lowest level since May 1969.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, January 2023

488

Trading days without the S&P 500 reaching an all-time high, the longest streak since the global financial crisis

Source: Bloomberg, October 2023

5.25-5.50%

The range of the Fed’s policy rate reached in July, the highest level since 2001.

Source: Reuters, July 2023

2007

The last time the yield on the 10-Year US Treasury Note hit 5%.

Source: Associated Press, October 2023

-0.1%

The Bank of Japan's negative interest rate on excess reserves held by commercial banks at the central bank. At this writing, Japan is the only major Developed Markets country with negative real interest rates.

Source: The Marshall Society, October 2023

$34,001,493,655,565.48

The total U.S. public debt as of December 29, 2023.

Source: Treasury.gov, December 2023

$1.7 Trillion

The U.S. deficit for 2023.

Source: Treasury.gov, January, 2024

$4.44 trillion

Projected tax revenue for the federal government in 2023. The primary source of revenue for the U.S. government in 2023 is Individual Income Taxes.

Source: Treasury.gov, December 2023

8.09%

The average rate of a US 30-year fixed rate mortgage in October, the highest level in over two decades.

Source: CNBC, October 2023