US Economics Weekly Fears of Ratemaggedon are overdone Fed Chair Jerome Powell fuelled fears of a Ratemaggedon with a hawkish performance in his press conference. But even with both wage and underlying price inflation running at near 40-year highs, we... 28th January 2022 · 7 mins read
US Employment Report Preview Omicron to drive temporary drop in payrolls We suspect that the surge in absenteeism linked to the Omicron variant caused non-farm payrolls to fall by 200,000 in January. But with new virus cases now falling sharply, that hit is likely to be... 27th January 2022 · 4 mins read
US Data Response GDP (Q4), Durable Goods (Dec.) The acceleration in GDP growth to 6.9% annualised in the fourth quarter, from 2.3% in the third, mainly reflects a record surge in inventories, which will be partly reversed in the first quarter of... 27th January 2022 · 2 mins read
US Commercial Property Data Response RICS Commercial Market Survey (Q4) Market sentiment picked up in Q4, driven by widespread improvements in conditions across sectors. Respondents are also becoming more upbeat about the next 12 months, with forecasts for rents and... 27th January 2022 · 2 mins read
US Economics Update Fed lines up March rate hike The Fed’s announcement that it will “soon be appropriate” to raise interest rates and the numerous hints dropped by Chair Jerome Powell in the post-meeting press conference all but guarantee that a... 26th January 2022 · 3 mins read
Energy Data Response US Weekly Petroleum Status Report The surge in oil demand included the first signs of a recovery in transport-related gasoline demand. Although, we doubt demand will remain this buoyant for too long as economic growth is set to slow. 26th January 2022 · 2 mins read
US Housing Market Data Response New Home Sales (Dec.) New home sales had a strong end to the year, as the record low number of existing homes on the market drove the sale of homes which were still under construction. That lack of existing supply will... 26th January 2022 · 2 mins read
US Commercial Property Data Response NCREIF Property Index (Q4 2021) The NCREIF index saw its strongest ever quarterly price appreciation in Q4, with values up by 5.1% q/q, driving a quarterly return of 6.2%. That took annual returns to 17.7%, led by industrial, where... 26th January 2022 · 3 mins read
DM Valuations Monitor Tech sector valuations may have even further to fall Even though the valuations of technology stocks have, in general, already fallen sharply in recent weeks, we suspect they may decline further over the next couple of years. This is one reason why we... 25th January 2022 · 8 mins read
US Housing Market Data Response Case-Shiller/FHFA House Prices (Nov.) Case-Shiller reported annual house price growth falling for the third consecutive month in November. And with rising mortgage rates set to stretch affordability to its worst since 2008, we expect... 25th January 2022 · 2 mins read
US Chart Pack Omicron impact short-lived The surge in Omicron infections means more people were self-isolating in early-January than at any time since the beginning of the pandemic, although the impact that will have on employment and output... 24th January 2022 · 9 mins read
Global Markets Update Fed tightening & the outlook for US corporate bonds Our baseline forecast envisages that US corporate bond spreads rise only slightly as the Fed raises interest rates over the next couple of years. But we think the risks to this forecast are skewed to... 21st January 2022 · 4 mins read
FX Markets Weekly Wrap Fed guidance could revive the rally in the US dollar The trade-weighted US dollar seems set to end the week a bit higher, reversing some of its recent decline. But the dollar strength has mostly been against G10 currencies; despite the fall in US... 21st January 2022 · 9 mins read
Asset Allocation Update We doubt US equities will underperform across the board We forecast that equities in other developed markets (DMs) will outperform US equities over the next couple of years. By contrast, we expect equities in many emerging markets (EMs) to underperform... 21st January 2022 · 6 mins read
US Economics Weekly Omicron reaches plateau, leaving Fed free to hike We expect the Fed to deliver some heavy hints at next week’s FOMC that it is planning an interest rate hike in March. With the Omicron wave now past its peak nationally, there is little to hold the... 21st January 2022 · 7 mins read
US Housing Market Data Response Existing Home Sales (Dec.) Despite a 6% m/m fall in existing home sales in December, 2021 marked an impressive year for existing home sales, with sales 11% higher compared to 2020. But looking ahead, a backdrop of rising... 20th January 2022 · 2 mins read