Jerome Powell, Chairman of the Federal Reserve System, is delivering his comments on the US monetary policy outlook at a press conference following the FOMC’s decision to hike the policy rate by 50 basis points in FOMC’s May meeting.Key quotes“Disruptions to supply larger, longer-lasting than anticipated.”“Ukraine war likely to restrain …
Read More »US supply issues, inflation weighed on ISM services
Data released on Wednesday showed the ISM Service Sector dropped unexpectedly to 57.1 in April. Analysts at Wells Fargo point out that while supply remains a problem for service-producers, a pullback in demand and hiring were the top factors weighing on activity during the month. Key Quotes: “Activity in the …
Read More »Nasdaq retreats to worst low since 2008 crisis
US equities and stocks plunged on Friday, with the Nasdaq marking its worst month since October 2008 and the S&P notching its worst month since March 2020 at the onset of the Covid pandemic.The tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 4.2% on Friday, dragged down by Amazon (AMZN), which dropped nearly 15% after …
Read More »Could PCE Data Drive Looming Critical FOMC Meeting?
The Fed’s favorite inflation gauge slowed in March, in its first retreat in more than one year, according to a report issued Friday in the run-up to next week’s meeting of the policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee.PCE data gives a reading of the Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index that excludes …
Read More »Chicago PMI stumbles in April
The Chicago Business Barometer, also known as the Chicago PMI, fell to 56.4 in April from 62.9 in the prior month. Economists had expected little change, with analysts polled by the Wall Street Journal forecasting a 62 reading. The index is 14.4 points below it’s reading from April 2021. The …
Read More »UoM Consumer Sentiment Index Falls In April
According to the final version of the University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment survey, the headline Consumer Sentiment Index for April came in at 65.2, a tad below the flash estimate released earlier in the month of 65.7. Consumer exuberance can translate into greater spending and faster economic growth, implying a …
Read More »US Annual Core PCE Inflation Falls Below Expectations
Core PCE inflation fell a little more than expected in March, but the Employment Cost Index jumped in Q1. The latest Personal Income and Spending figures for March will instill confidence about the underlying strength of the US economy. Annual inflation in the US fell to 5.2% in March according …
Read More »America’s Q1 GDP much stronger than what data suggests
The US economy contracted at an annualized rate of 1.4% during the first quarter, data showed on Thursday. According to analysts from TD Securities, GDP growth was impacted by large setbacks in net exports and inventories. They point out that the details of the report were actually much stronger than …
Read More »Despite US GDP Contraction, Three Reasons Support USD’s Strength
Recession is generally defined by two consecutive quarters of economic shrinking. The US economy squeezed by 1.4% in the first quarter of 2022, so it would only take another one to have an official downturn. Not so fast – not a recession, nor the dollar. The US economy grew by …
Read More »US economy shrinks by 1.4% in Q1
The annualized pace of US real GDP growth in Q1 2022 came in at a negative 1.4%, according to data released by the US Bureau of Economic Analysis on Thursday. That was a big miss on expectations that the economy had grown at an annualized pace of 1.4% in Q1 …
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