Category Archives: Economic News

Economic Update 5-06-2024 U.S. stocks turned the corner on a negative April, with gains last week. Softness early in the week appeared related to poor consumer sentiment and the looming Fed decision, as well as the attached message. On Wed., … Continue reading →

In this week’s meeting, the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee kept the Fed funds range unchanged at 5.25-5.50%, where it has been since last July. There were no dissents. Despite no action, messaging remains closely-watched for future signals. The formal … Continue reading →

Economic Update 4-29-2024 U.S. stocks rebounded last week, as the busiest week of the quarterly earnings season took more of the market’s attention. Per FactSet, nearly half of S&P 500 firms have now reported results, with over 75% with a … Continue reading →

Economic Update 4-22-2024

Economic Update 4-15-2024

Economic Update 4-08-2024 U.S. stocks fell back last week, seeing more volatility than in the recent few months. By sector, energy stocks rose 4%, followed by communications up over a percent. The majority of other sectors lost ground, oddly led … Continue reading →

Economic Update 4-01-2024 U.S. stocks continued their run of positive weeks, with the S&P 500 again reaching record highs. However, breadth has improved, with outperformance from the equal-weight version of the index and small caps outperforming mega-caps. Value and more … Continue reading →

Economic Update 3-25-2024 U.S. stocks continued a run of positivity, with the mid-week FOMC decision of leaving rates unchanged being far from a surprise, but the dovish press conference commentary boosted market sentiment, relative to the more hawkish tone that … Continue reading →

At their March meeting, the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee kept the Fed funds range unchanged at 5.25-5.50%, where it’s been since last July. There were no dissents. The formal statement today was barely changed from January, when it was … Continue reading →

Economic Update 3-19-2024

Economic Update 3-11-2024 U.S. stock sentiment was seemingly again driven by the back-and-forth of whether Federal Reserve rate cuts would be coming sooner rather than later. Fed Chair Powell’s testimony to Congress last week included that the short-term rate was … Continue reading →