Archive for September 2023

We closed out the month of September with a week for the bears, as we avoided a government shutdown and face the realities of a slowing economy. Consumers are feeling less confident in the economy, while new home sales came in slimmer than expected.

Other important economic data points provided mixed signals this week including bearish leading indicators, a slow existing home sales market, and strong labor data in initial claims. Overall, we remain partially bearish and partially bullish on this unique environment, as we see the end of the rate hiking cycle coming closer to an end.

Despite a variety of bearish inflationary data including CPI and PPI, we saw equity markets close higher for the week as of Thursday. Inflationary data rose more quickly than expected as energy prices weighed heavily on both consumers and producers in August.

Equity markets declined this week, with August’s ISM Services and Manufacturing Indexes coming in higher than a month ago. Initial jobless claims came in much lower than expected, and Apple faced challenges from Chinese iPhone restrictions on government workers. The upcoming September FOMC meeting is expected to maintain rates, but market sentiment could quickly shift with a surprise in August CPI data.