Weekly Market Recap – January 7, 2022 The minutes released from the Federal Reserve’s December meeting show that high inflation is convincing central bank officials to rethink their policy path. Monthly economic statistics reported during the week, compared with prior releases, were as follows: construction spending +0.4% vs. +0.4%, consumer credit $20 billion vs. $17

Weekly Market Recap – December 31, 2021 As the year was winding down, pandemic news continued ramping up. The U.S. COVID-19 death toll for 2021 was roughly 435,000 compared with 385,000 in 2020 (a 13% increase). Although the holiday week that closed 2021 was a full 5 days long, it was short on economic statistics.

Weekly Market Recap – December 23, 2021 U.S. coronavirus pandemic statistics have been monopolizing the news. Nationwide, the seven-day moving average for COVID-19 related deaths reached 1,481 (up 22% from a week ago). New cases averaged 176,829 (a 40% increase from the previous week), and hospitalizations rose 3% to an average daily admission level of

Weekly Market Recap – December 17, 2021 COVID-19 statistics have dominated the news every day of the week. The Omicron variant has now been detected in all 50 states. Congress gave final approval to raise the debt ceiling by $2.5 trillion. Monthly economic statistics, compared with previous levels, were as follows: the producer price index

Weekly Market Recap – December 10, 2021 As the week came to a close, a series of deadly tornadoes began to strike the U.S. heartland with wind speeds up to 150 mph. The ensuing destruction across six states caused countless deaths and injuries as it leveled entire communities. Monthly economic statistics, compared with prior months

Weekly Market Recap – December 3, 2021 New COVID-19 cases in the U.S. are up 36% from a month ago. As of Friday, the Omicron variant had been detected in 10 states. The Fed’s intentions of addressing inflation may be evidenced by the Treasury yield curve flattening more; it is now at its narrowest in

Weekly Market Recap – November 26, 2021 On Friday, Omicron, the new COVID-19 variant took the oxygen out of newsrooms. Detected first in South Africa, this mutation is being described as potentially more contagious than the Delta variant. It is unknown whether the currently available vaccines will provide protection from it. The economic statistics for

Weekly Market Recap – November 19, 2021 President Biden signed the bipartisan $1 trillion infrastructure bill into law. The House passed the Build Back Better Act on Friday. The national count for new COVID-19 cases has risen 25% in the last two weeks. With travelers flying in record numbers recently, and more people planning for

Weekly Market Recap – November 12, 2021 A labor statistic that began getting more attention in spring 2021 is the “JOLTS” number (Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey). It enumerates new job creation and resignations, and the latter is in focus. Now dubbed the “Great Resignation” or the “Big Quit”, the measure reached a new

Weekly Market Recap – November 5, 2021 Congress finally passed the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill late Friday evening. Monthly economic statistics, compared with previous releases, were: construction spending -0.5% vs. +0.1%, factory orders +0.2% vs. +1.2%, balance of trade -$80.9 billion deficit vs. -$72.8 billion, consumer credit $29.0 billion vs. $14.0 billion, non-farm payrolls