Yardeni QuickTakes (Page 89)

Leading Indicator Still Misleading

Feb 20, 2024 2 min read

January's Index of Leading Economic Indicators (LEI) was down again by 0.4% (chart). It has been falling since December 2021. It was the 23rd straight monthly decline, just one month short of the record-long slump that began in April 2007 and ran through March 2009 during the Great Financial Crisis. January's Index of Coincident Economic indicators rose 0.2% to yet another record high,

Ed Yardeni

DEEP DIVE: Why Were Economists So Wrong?

Feb 19, 2024 7 min read paid

Why were so many economists and strategists so wrong in their predictions of a recession over the past two years? Now seems to be a good time to answer this question since there are lots of lessons to be learned from the widely held misconceptions of the past two years. Let’s review them: (1/10) Tight monetary policies always cause recessions. The Fed raised the federal funds rate (FFR)

Ed Yardeni

Market Call: Investing Is For Teenagers

Feb 18, 2024 2 min read

Contrary indicator alert! On Sunday, the WSJ posted an article titled "These Teenagers Know More About Investing Than You Do: Custodial investment accounts for minors have surged in popularity." According to the article, the kids are all buying technology stocks: "Brokerage executives say that technology behemoths that are ubiquitous in the lives of teens are often some of the most widely held shares." You have been

Ed Yardeni

The Economic Week Ahead: Feb 20 - 23

Feb 17, 2024 2 min read paid

It's a slow, holiday-shortened week for economic data up ahead. It will start on Tuesday with January's Index of Leading Economic indicators (LEI) and Index of Coincident Economic Indicators (CEI). Regarding the LEI, we are reminded of Bradley Cooper's song, "Maybe it's time to let the old ways die." The LEI peaked at a record high during December 2021,

Ed Yardeni

Not-So-Hot PPI

Feb 16, 2024 2 min read paid

Tuesday's CPI and today's PPI for January were higher than expected. Thursday's retail sales and today's housing starts for last month were both weaker than expected. The new year is starting with hotter inflation and colder economic growth. Nevertheless, these hot flashes and chills should be temporary. In our opinion, inflation continues to moderate and the economy remains resilient. The latter forecast

Ed Yardeni

It Was Cold In January, But Spring Is Coming!

Feb 15, 2024 2 min read

Retail sales fell 0.8% m/m in January, much weaker than expected (chart). Leading the way down was a 4.1% drop in building materials & garden equipment & supplies. Following the release of January's employment report, we anticipated some weakness in retail sales because the 0.2% increase in payrolls was offset by an odd 0.6% drop in average weekly hours (chart). Also weak during

Ed Yardeni

How To Spot A Meltup

Feb 14, 2024 2 min read paid

We are sure that Fed Chair Jerome Powell has recently reread former Fed-Chair Alan Greenspan's December 5, 1996 speech in which he famously asked: "But how do we know when irrational exuberance has unduly escalated asset values, which then become subject to unexpected and prolonged contractions as they have in Japan over the past decade? And how do we factor that assessment into monetary policy?"

Ed Yardeni

Dr Ed's Video Webcast 2/14/24

Feb 14, 2024 1 min read paid

High inflation rarely has been tamed without precipitating a recession. Few economic prognosticators thought it could be done. Yet the Fed has steered inflation down toward its 2.0% target while allowing the US economy to fly, avoiding a hard landing. Today, we look at the projections of economists who expected a hard landing of the economy and why their trusty models and indicators failed them. Below is exclusive early

Ed Yardeni

Inflation Scare

Feb 13, 2024 2 min read paid

Today, January's CPI inflation rate was slightly higher than expected. But the upside surprise was enough to convince investors and traders that the Fed is less likely to cut the federal funds rate (FFR) soon or by as much as they expected over the next 12 months. The 12-month federal FFR futures rose to 4.44% today, up from 3.74% on January 15 (chart). That amounts

Ed Yardeni

Bull Chasers

Feb 12, 2024 2 min read paid

The S&P 500 is up 40.5% since the start of the current bull market on October 12, 2022 (chart). Along the way, there was a 10.3% correction from July 31 to October 27, 2023. Since then, it has been a 22.1% meltup through Friday’s close. Furthermore, the Wilshire 5000 market capitalization is up $14 trillion since October 14, 2022 and $9.3 trillion since

Ed Yardeni

Market Call: A Meltup For All Seasons

Feb 11, 2024 2 min read

The stock market has been melting up since late October 2023, when investors concluded that the Fed was done raising interest rates. It melted up during the fall and winter. We think it might continue to do so in the spring and summer. It could be a meltup for all seasons. Leading the S&P 500 stock price index to a new record high on Friday was the S&

Ed Yardeni

The Economic Week Ahead: February 12-16