News & Updates

General Market News

• The Treasury yield curve steepened last week as investors weighed the possibility of longer-term elevated inflation. The 10-year yield was unchanged week-over-week, opening on Monday morning at around 1.48 percent. The 30-year yield rose about 5 basis points (bps) to open at 2.05 percent, while the 20-year yield gained 4 bps to around 1.98 percent. The 2-year yield was unchanged at 0.27 percent, and the 5-year yield lost about 5 bps to 0.94 percent. The 4-week Treasury bills sold off on Friday as investors eye a late October deadline for Congress to raise the debt ceiling.
• Global equities were lower on the week with domestic growth and international among the hardest hit. A slew of factors led stocks downward, but the largest appeared to be the increase in bond yields, which hurt growth sectors such as health care and technology. The top-performing sectors were energy, financials, and materials. These sectors benefited from rising rates and potential longer-lasting inflation.
• Domestically, uncertainty came from Washington regarding the path for future fiscal policy and raising the debt ceiling. Elsewhere, logistical problems at ports and a lack of drivers in the U.K. have led to rising energy prices globally. Should these issues persist, investors may have to contend with threats to both future earnings and stagflation. In the wake of these rising prices, OPEC will meet this week to discuss potentially raising output.
• On Monday, the August durable goods orders report was released. Headline durable goods orders increased by more than expected during the month, with the report showing a 1.8 percent increase in orders against calls for a 0.7 percent increase. This result was largely driven by an increase in volatile commercial aircraft orders. Core durable goods orders, which strip out the impact of transportation orders, increased by 0.2 percent against forecasts for a 0.5 percent increase. Core durable goods orders are often viewed as a proxy for business investment, so the continued growth in August was welcome despite the miss against expectations. This follows a 0.8 percent increase in core durable goods orders in July and now marks six consecutive months with core orders growth. Overall, this was a relatively encouraging report as it showed businesses continue to spend and invest—which is a good sign for overall economic growth in the month and quarter.
• Friday saw the release of the August personal income and spending reports. Spending increased by more than expected during the month, with the report showing a 0.8 percent increase in spending against calls for a 0.7 percent increase. This echoed the better-than-expected result for retail sales growth that we saw earlier in the month and was encouraging as it indicated consumers remained willing and able to go out and spend despite lowered consumer confidence levels. Personal income increased by 0.2 percent in August, which was in line with expectations. Personal income has been very volatile on a month-to-month basis throughout the pandemic, as shifting federal stimulus and unemployment payments have led to large monthly swings in average income. Looking forward, labor shortages and high levels of job openings should help support continued wage growth in the months ahead, which may support faster spending growth as well.
• We finished the week with Friday’s release of the ISM Manufacturing report for September. This widely monitored gauge of manufacturer confidence improved by more than expected during the month, with the index rising from 59.5 in August to 61.1 in September against calls for a decline to 59.5. This is a diffusion index where values above 50 indicate expansion, so this result indicates faster expansion for manufacturers than anticipated and left the index at a four-month high. Manufacturer confidence has remained well above pre-pandemic levels since the expiration of initial lockdowns last year and is a signal that manufacturing recovery continues in earnest (despite headwinds created by tangled supply chains and rising costs). High levels of consumer demand are expected to help support continued manufacturing growth in the months ahead, which would be a good sign for overall economic growth.

What to look forward to...

On Monday, the August durable goods orders report was released. Headline durable goods orders increased by more than expected, going up by 1.8 percent against calls for a 0.7 percent increase. This result was largely driven by a rise in volatile commercial aircraft orders. Core durable goods orders, which strip out the impact of transportation orders, increased by 0.2 percent against forecasts for a 0.5 percent gain. Core durable goods orders are often viewed as a proxy for business investment, so August’s continued growth was welcome despite the miss against expectations. Following the 0.8 percent increase in core durable goods orders seen in July, this report marks six consecutive months with core orders growth. Overall, the August report was relatively encouraging; it showed that businesses continue to spend and invest, which is a good sign for overall economic growth in the month and quarter.

On Tuesday, the Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index for September is scheduled for release. Consumer confidence is expected to increase modestly, with the index set to rise from 113.8 to 114.2. If estimates hold, the index would remain well above last year’s lockdown-induced lows, signaling healthy levels of consumer confidence. That said, we saw confidence decline in August due to rising medical risks, a slowdown in hiring, and rising inflationary pressure. Still, there is some evidence that consumer inflation started to cool in August, including the Consumer Price Index slowdown. Historically, higher levels of consumer confidence have supported faster spending growth. Any improvement for the index would be welcome, even if it’s only the modest uptick expected by economists.
Thursday will see the release of the initial jobless claims report for the week ending September 25. Economists expect to see 330,000 initial claims filed during the week, which would be an improvement from the 351,000 initial claims filed the week before (but slightly higher than the low of 310,000 initial claims recorded earlier in the month). Although we’ve made solid progress in getting initial claims down this year, the labor market recovery may be tested soon by less-supportive Fed policy. With many economists expecting the Fed to start tapering its asset purchases by year-end, the tailwinds from supportive Fed policies are set to diminish over the months ahead. Given the large number of folks still out of the labor force and the relatively high unemployment rate compared with pre-pandemic levels, employment and initial claims reports will continue to be closely monitored.

Friday will see the release of August personal income and spending reports. Spending is expected to increase by 0.7 percent, following a surprise 0.3 percent increase in July. The previously released August retail sales report showed spending on goods beat expectations, which helps explain the anticipated acceleration in spending growth. Personal income is expected to have increased by 0.2 percent in August following a 1.1 percent rise in July. Personal income growth has been highly volatile throughout the pandemic as shifting federal government payments have caused large monthly income swings. Strong wage growth is expected to offset the impact of more states pulling out from federal unemployment programs in August. Looking forward, labor shortages and high levels of job openings should support continued wage growth and increased spending.
We’ll finish the week with Friday’s release of the ISM Manufacturing index for September. This widely monitored gauge of manufacturer confidence is expected to decline from 59.9 in August to 59.5 in September. This is a diffusion index, where values above 50 indicate expansion, so this result would signal continued growth for the manufacturing industry. Last year, manufacturer confidence rebounded swiftly once initial lockdowns were lifted; even with a modest decline in September, the index should remain well above pre-pandemic levels. High levels of buyer demand supported manufacturing confidence throughout the year despite headwinds raised by supply shortages and higher prices. If estimates hold, this release will represent an encouraging signal that manufacturers remain confident despite industry headwinds. As is the case with consumer confidence, higher levels of business confidence have historically supported spending growth. If we get the high level of manufacturer confidence expected in September, this result will signal that manufacturing recovery remains on track.

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