The economic distress from the coronavirus pandemic is hitting the Canadian private equity market hard. The number of deals reached in Canada this year through Oct. 6 fell to 194, which at that pace would represent a 60% decline from 2019. … READ MORE >
Blog
Manufacturing is recovering, but employment isn’t keeping pace
Industrial manufacturing activity is recovering from the economic turmoil induced by the pandemic, according to recent survey data from the Institute for Supply Management, but manufacturing employment has not rebounded at the same pace. … READ MORE >
SBA announces simplified PPP loan forgiveness
Some businesses that accepted financing under the Paycheck Protection Program now have a streamlined path to receiving the promised forgiveness of those loans, under new guidelines released late Thursday. … READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Business development companies show continued risk
Business development companies are still lagging the market in a sign of persisting concern over the performance of loans to small and midsize businesses. … READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Pandemic economics, in 14 charts
The bond market, and not the equity market, provides perhaps the best assessment of the future of the economy. And these days, no matter how you parse the data, the bond market is telling a clear story: The corporate sector and the broader economy remain at risk. … READ MORE >
Initial jobless claims: If you’re not confused, you’re not paying attention
Pandemic economics has brought about an interesting conundrum: The pace of firings in the economy remains above the monthly hiring data as the unemployment rate falls. Over the past six weeks, first-time claims for unemployment insurance have averaged 867,000. … READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Vanishing public-sector education jobs
Over the past six months, state and local government employment averaged 720,000 fewer education positions and 390,000 fewer non-education positions than last year. That’s 1.1 million total government job losses. … READ MORE >
Revising our growth forecast into 2021
Based on recent political developments, we are reducing our fourth-quarter forecast for gross domestic product to 2.25% growth. … READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: A record year for SPACs
Special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) are continuing their blockbuster year, with dollars raised in 2020 already beating the total from the previous 10 years combined, according to data from Bloomberg. … READ MORE >
Tracking the coronavirus: Preparing for the deluge
Given that many states do not report on weekends, these figures likely understate the true level of infection. At the current rate of spread, and unless the public adheres to strict social distancing practices, the RSM model looks for the total number of U.S. cases to surpass 7.8 million by the second week of October. … READ MORE >