Archive: Economic and Financial Digest
November 13, 2019 | Economic and Financial Digest
Will Factory Slump Kill The Expansion
Throughout most of the year the U.S. economy has withstood a torrent of headwinds, including escalating trade tensions with China, a severe global slowdown, geopolitical turmoil and headline-grabbing political controversy that continues to bedevil the administration. These adverse developments have taken a toll on business confidence and delivered a blow to exports and manufacturing activity, […]
October 31, 2019 | Economic and Financial Digest
Will Trade Wars Topple the Economy?
With the same certainty of death and taxes, the financial markets are perpetually challenged by a wall of worry. More often than not, the challenge is overcome when worries create opportunities that beget rich rewards for risk-takers. By all accounts, that premise has been on full display since the end of the Great Recession. The […]
August 27, 2019 | Economic and Financial Digest
Recession Watch
Is the longest expansion in American history about to expire? A time-honored financial indicator recently sparked more interest in that question, but concerns over the economy’s direction had been growing for several months. True, the headline data suggest there is little to worry about. After staging a deceptively strong 3.1 percent growth rate in the […]
August 19, 2019 | Economic and Financial Digest
Buying Insurance
At their open market committee meeting on July 30-31, the Federal Reserve cut short-term interest rates by 0.25%. Although the markets anticipated the move long before the Fed made their official announcement, the cut represents an important change in position from the hawkish stance seen as recently as December of last year. At the press […]
July 15, 2019 | Economic and Financial Digest
Time to Celebrate
The U.S. economy is celebrating an important milestone this month, having entered the longest expansion in its history. According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, the official arbiter that identifies the start and end of business cycles, the Great Recession ended in June 2009, making this July the 121st month of growth, surpassing the […]