Roughly 56% of loan officers noted a decline in demand for loans by large and middle market firms, while 53% reported a decline in credit demand by small firms, according to the Fed’s quarterly Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey released Monday. … READ MORE >
Is a debt-ceiling crisis coming? Money markets are saying yes.
Not only have three- and five-year U.S. credit default swaps soared to multiyear highs, but distortions are also emerging at the front end of the Treasury curve. … READ MORE >
Hiring in U.S. remains robust in April as the jobless rate falls to 3.4%
We have made the case over the past few months that resilience rather than recession is a more apt description of the American economy. The net change in employment in the April jobs report of 253,000 reported by the Labor Department on Friday reflects that resilience. In addition, the … … READ MORE >
Fed hikes rate a quarter point while creating framework for a pause
The 25 basis-point increase was accompanied by changes in the Federal Open Market Committee’s statement that imply a possible pause at the Fed’s next meeting in June. … READ MORE >
Economic implications of further turmoil in the banking sector
The latest bank seizure should bolster confidence in the ability of the federal government and systemically important financial institutions to address any subsequent landmines among small and medium-size lenders … READ MORE >
Tighter financial conditions threaten Canada’s growth
The RSM Canada Financial Conditions Index remains at 1.4 standard deviations below normal, indicating that greater risk than normal is being priced into financial assets. … READ MORE >
RSM US Manufacturing Outlook Index: Slowdown continues into April
Overall manufacturing activity remains at 1.85 standard deviations below normal, a level consistent with past recessions. … READ MORE >
FOMC preview: Is 10 the magic number?
We expect the Federal Reserve to hike the federal funds rate by 25 basis points to a range of 5% to 5.25% at its May 3 meeting, with changes in the FOMC statement that imply a possible pause in the rate hike campaign and a bias toward future tightening if inflation proves sticky and stubborn. … READ MORE >
U.S. growth slows to 1.1% as businesses pull back
Growth in the first quarter expanded at a 1.1% annualized pace and by 1.6% on a year-ago basis as a modest inventory correction and a large pullback in business investment offset the increase in household consumption. … READ MORE >
Growth, employment and identifying the end of a business cycle
The Federal Reserve’s rate hikes are starting to pull down growth just as a period of tighter lending will probably cool the economy further over the next few months. … READ MORE >








