Notes on the Week Ahead

I’ve been running my own econometric model of the U.S. economy for almost 30 years now. The basic structure is simple. You start by forecasting the components of demand, that is to say, consumption, investment, trade and government spending. This gives you an initial projection of real GDP growth. You then feed this into labor market equations, along with some demographic assumptions, to forecast the growth in jobs, the unemployment rate and wage growth. All of this, along with assumptions about energy prices and the dollar, then drive forecasts of inflation. Given this outlook for growth and inflation, you make an assumption about the path for the federal funds rate and then run forecasts of other interest rates. With all of this in hand, you can forecast productivity, corporate profits, the federal budget deficit and household net worth. And then you go back to the start to see how all these changes impact your original demand forecast. You repeat the process until you arrive at a reasonably consistent solution.

The most urgent task facing investors in the wake of the 2024 elections is figuring out how much of the Trump agenda, as broadly outlined on the campaign trail, will be put into effect.

A full and literal implementation across taxes, trade and immigration could have unwelcome consequences for the economy in both the short and long run. A more partial implementation, (which seemed to be anticipated by financial markets last week), could net out to be positive for stocks and negative for Treasuries in the short run. However, even this more restrained policy path would likely result in sharply-rising government debt and the potential, in some areas, for building economic and market risks. For this reason and because of the further run up in the U.S. equity valuations in the wake of the election, investors would be well advised to continue to rebalance portfolios both across asset classes and around the world.

The last few weeks have seen spectacular weather in New England, with warm temperatures and blue skies almost every day. By now, we would normally have stored the back-yard furniture inside to prevent it getting ruined over the winter. But instead, on weekend afternoons, Sari and I drowsily read our books in the sunshine with the still-loud chirping of the crickets letting us pretend that summer isn’t really over. Nor is there any harsh weather in the near-term forecast – it should be in the 70s on Thursday when the trick-or-treaters set off on their rounds. But the gentle rustle of falling leaves is providing its usual warning of colder days ahead and the need to be prepared.

Growing up in Dublin, I had a well-earned reputation as a child of very healthy appetite. At birthday parties, I’d always make sure, at the outset, to get my share of any cocktail sausages, cucumber sandwiches or Rice Krispie treats going around. When it came time for cake and ice cream, I made sure my plate was amply stocked. And I know my mother was filled with pride, (and the other young mothers equally filled with envy), as her little man waddled back up to the table in search of seconds.

But even I had my limits. I vaguely recall a rather distressing incident on the car ride home from one of these parties. I won’t go into the sordid details – suffice to say that the upholstery in the back of the car neither looked nor smelt quite the same thereafter.

On Tuesday, the Commerce Department will publish international trade data for August. The numbers will, undoubtedly, show a deficit – the U.S. has run a trade deficit every year since 1975. This, in turn, implies that the U.S. dollar exchange rate is too high – we buy everyone else’s stuff because it’s cheap; they don’t want to buy ours because it’s expensive. That being said, even as Americans have sent dollars overseas to buy goods and services, these dollars have returned to buy U.S. stocks and bonds, fueling a booming stock market and allowing the federal government to borrow relatively cheaply.

I have a habit, or so my wife tells me, of staring intently, for minutes at a time, into an open refrigerator, in search of one particular item. When she can no longer stand it, or when the binging of the refrigerator alarm informs the world that its contents are now thawing, she gently asks me what I am looking for and points it out, sitting, as it always is, right in front of my nose.

I had a similar feeling of sheepish embarrassment last week, when I reflected on the impact of the extraordinary surge in wealth on the economic and financial environment. I spend a significant chunk of my life looking at stock indices and home prices. And yet, throughout this year, while agonizing about tenths of a percent in the unemployment rate or the inflation rate and how the Fed might interpret them, I have neglected to consider fully how burgeoning stock market and housing wealth has changed both the economic environment and the position of investors.

On Thursday, the Bureau of Economic Analysis, commonly known as the BEA, will release revised data on the national income and product accounts going back to the start of 2019. This is an annual process, usually only mildly interesting to economists and ignored by everyone else. However, this year it’s more important since it could help clarify the trajectory of the economy at a critical time for both political and monetary policy choices. It’s also important because it could help resolve at least some of a yawning discrepancy between the estimates of output produced and income received in the American economy.

Cutting short-term interest rates from a peak is a little like hauling a piano down a flight of stairs. The operation is best done slowly and with care.

The Federal Reserve will probably show some awareness of this in their actions and communications this week. That being said, one of the greatest identifiable dangers to the economy and markets today is that the Fed, by acting too aggressively or talking too negatively, increases the risk of the economy falling into recession.

On Wednesday of next week, the Federal Reserve will almost certainly embark on its long-anticipated easing cycle. However, whether the first cut in the federal funds rate is 25 or 50 basis points is still very much in doubt. This is a crucial question for the economy and financial markets since a 50 basis point cut might well do more harm than good if businesses, consumers and investors saw it as a signal that the Fed is worried about recession.

The most important issue for the Fed as they debate this decision is the strength of the U.S. labor market. It is quite clear that job growth has slowed over the past year as the post-covid rebound has faded. But is the labor market stalling, or just slowing to a more gradual pace?

The U.S. working age population is growing relatively slowly. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that the U.S. population aged 18 to 64 grew by less than 0.1% over the past year.