Financial News & Insights

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK Equity markets rebounded this week as the U.S. administration delayed its decision on auto tariffs for six months. Housing starts and retail sales data for April support the narrative of healthy domestic spending this quarter. That said, externally oriented indu

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK Effective today, the U.S. increased tariffs to 25% on $200bn worth of Chinese imports.The threat to extend a 25% tariff to virtually all Chinese imports “shortly” remains. This comes even as the two sides continue negotiations to reach a trade deal. The U.S. ove

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK Apart from vehicle sales, recent data paint a positive narrative for consumer-related industries at the start of spring. Real consumer spending and pending home sales surged in March, while consumer confidence improved in April. Payrolls were up 263k in April, m

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK The American economy grew by 3.2% in the first quarter of 2019, comfortably beating market expectations. However, the strength was driven by inventories and net exports, while domestic demand growth weakened. The housing market continues to be an economic weak l

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK Spring is coming to the U.S. economy after a tough winter. An impressive  bounce back in retail sales in March indicates that consumer spending will bounce back in the second quarter after a disappointing start. First quarter GDP growth is released next week, an

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK Inflation pressures remain benign, as headline consumer prices rose just 1.9% year-on-year in March, and core prices came in at 2.0%.These numbers reinforce the Fed’s ‘patience’stance that was reiterated in its March FOMC minutes. US-China trade negotiations are

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK Progress on U.S.-China trade negotiations helped support risk appetite this week, with equity prices and yields up. February retail sales fell 0.2% month-on-month, but an upgrade to January made it more palatable. On the other hand, the job market bounced back i

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK The U.S. economy expanded at a slower pace than previously reported in the fourth quarter (2.2% vs. 2.6%). This left annual average growth at just below the 3% mark, though Q4/Q4 they were just able to hit that psychological marker. Housing starts declined in Fe

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK The Fed’s dots showed that it only expects to hike rates once more by the end of 2020, sending Treasury yields lowermid-week. On Friday, weakness in March manufacturing surveys in Europe, Japan, and the U.S. sent longer-term U.S. yields low enough to invert the

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK Our updated economic forecast anticipates a slowdown in global growth to 3.2% in 2019, roughly at trend. A weak handoff from 2018 and start to 2019 motivates much of the downgrades in advanced economies, while growth in emerging markets is anticipated to perk up