Fortune (July 1)
“Consumer spending is weakening. The job market is getting worse for workers. And U.S. stock investors are loving it. The S&P 500 rose 0.52% yesterday, hitting an all-time high for the second day in a row.” The surging market suggests “investors don’t anticipate anything dramatic like a mass selloff.” Their optimism seems to be pinned on hopes that “the deteriorating macro picture” will convince the Federal Reserve to “cut interest rates sooner rather than later. And cheap money is usually good for stocks.”
Tags: All-time high, Consumer spending, Fed, Investors, Job market, Mass selloff, Optimism, S&P 500, Stocks, Surging, U.S., Weakening, Workers
Barron’s (September 4)
“Oil prices fell below $70 a barrel on Wednesday despite reports that OPEC+ nations are considering delaying a planned oil output hike in October.” One of the main drivers was ”weakening demand from China.” Other factors included the situation in Libya and “fears about a weakening U.S. economy.”
Tags: 70, Barrel, China, Delay, Fears, Libya, October, Oil prices, OPEC, Output hike, U.S., Weakening, Weakening demand
The Economist (July 9)
“Smaller rivals are assaulting the world’s biggest brands” causing some to wonder if billion dollar brands remain a viable strategy. Though “they make some of the world’s best-loved products,” large consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies are under assault. “For a time, size gave CPG companies a staggering advantage,” but their advantages are weakening and in some cases becoming Achilles heels. “The lumbering giants are finding it hard to keep up with fast-changing consumer markets.”
Tags: Advantage, Brands, Consumer markets, Consumer packaged goods, Fast changing, Lumbering, Rivals, Size, Strategy, Weakening
New York Times (November 14, 2013)
“After a surprising spurt of strong growth in the first half of the year, the Japanese economy seems to be running out of steam as exports and consumer spending show signs of weakening.” The annualized growth rate was dramatically halved, from 3.8% in the second quarter to 1.9% in the third quarter. However, the consensus suggest the rate will increase in coming quarters ahead of the consumption tax hike in April 2014.
Tags: Consumer spending, Consumption tax, Economy, Exports, Growth, Japan, Weakening
