U.S. Data Says “Boom:” Part Base Effect, Part Transient, Part Real
Prologue The much anticipated economic boom has finally arrived! The NY Fed Weekly Economic Index exploded to the upside in late March and early April (see chart above). Retail Sales were up an amazing +9.8% M/M in March! That number is not Y/Y. The Y/Y number was +27.7%, but was greatly influenced by depressed Retail […]
Incoming Data Looks Robust – It’s A Mirage
Incoming PPI data marked the initial volley of the oncoming “siege” of inflation data. Despite reopenings, state Initial Unemployment Claims spiked as March ended. Either the reopening lags are longer than we thought, or disincentives from overly generous benefit payments are at play. If recent history is any guide, only part (25%) of the stimulus […]
Vaccine: That Pinhead of Light at Tunnel’s End
Pfizer’s vaccine announcement gave the equity market the vision and hope that some semblance of “normal” was closer than previously assumed; perhaps a light at the end of the tunnel. Reality is that, due both to the complex logistics of handling the Pfizer vaccine, the two shot inoculation process, and the voluntary system in America, […]