News and Analysis

COMPLACENT: The US government’s ‘checking account’ is approaching critical levels (see chart). A deal to raise the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling is needed soon. It will ultimately...

RESILIENT: The US economy has dodged long standing calls for its slowdown and a recession so far. Consumers still have pandemic savings. Corporate profits been resilient. PMI's at...

A new crypto craze is driving blockchain activity While blue chip cryptoassets Bitcoin and Ethereum drift sideways as they hold onto market-leading gains, several altcoins are...

ANOMALY: S&P 500 and Europe’ Stoxx 600 seen a very low volume May so far. With Japan’s Nikkei 225 a notable exception. This has confounded market skeptics, as it has come...

Summary Market tip-toeing towards taking more risk Investors turning less defensive as rate cuts on the horizon. Cuts typically start next bull market. Stocks move ahead of...

HELP: Lower long-term US government bond yields have been a big help for equities this year. They have boosted the present-value-of-future-cashflows and pushed stock valuations...

SUPPORT: Consumption dominates the US economy, at 2/3 of GDP, and its resilience the biggest reason it’s not in recession. The good news is consumers still have significant...

HEALTHCARE: S&P 500’s second largest sector is down this year, held back by ‘big pharma’ after its large 2022 outperformance. The Inflation Reduction Act hastened pricing...

“Too big to fail, too important to ban.” How a former skeptic became a Bitcoin advocate This week, in place of our usual weekly crypto roundup, we bring you a special post. On...

El NINO: There is now an estimated 90% chance of an El Niño weather phenomenon later this year. This could bring further supply disruption to volatile global agricultural and...