Good morning,
Equities extended their recent positive run last week as markets took a fed hike of 0.75% and a negative Q2 GDP print from the US in their stride. There was a slew of earnings also, with big names Amazon, Apple, and Alphabet all reporting. I saw a number of market commentators refer to the results as ‘better-than-feared’ which nicely sums up the positive price action to some results which, on the surface at least, appeared to be less than impressive.
A few weeks back, we wrote about the technicalities of who and what decides that there is a recession in the US. The conversation has come to the fore a little bit quicker than anticipated following the latest GDP release (more details below). Irrespective of what ‘the powers that be’ ultimately decide upon, it certainly doesn’t feel like a recession in the US when we look at the jobs market. This Friday’s monthly job report will likely show another 250,000 plus jobs created with an unemployment rate still below 4%. On the other hand, personal savings rates in the US are now at 5.1%, which is the lowest since 2009. Consumers have been resilient as a result of the excess savings during the pandemic, but higher inflation appears to be biting. Does this mean the US is in a recession? We’ll have to wait and see.
Finally, a gentle reminder that as of today, updates to the Insurance Distribution Directive apply. This update includes the requirement for Financial Brokers to determine and document a customer’s sustainability preferences. If you have any questions, please do get in touch.
