US Economics Update Larger tax refunds a windfall for households in H1 2026 Households’ annual tax refunds should be about $100bn larger this year, a windfall equivalent to 0.5% of annualised consumption. Although temporary, this boost gives us further reason to expect that... 29th January 2026 · 4 mins read
US Economics Update Official population projections may not be low enough US population growth is expected to slow to only 0.2% y/y this year, matching the record low. Yet the risks to the official forecasts arguably lie to the downside, with a modest fall in the population... 28th January 2026 · 5 mins read
US Economics Update Midterms unlikely to slow down Trump The Republicans are likely to lose their majority in the House of Representatives in this November’s midterm elections, but that won’t slow down the President, with Donald Trump continuing to pursue... 20th January 2026 · 4 mins read
US Economics Update SCOTUS rulings pivotal for Trump’s second year President Donald Trump’s first year back in the Oval Office was more disruptive than we had expected, marked by attacks on the global trading order, the domestic institutional framework and even the... 20th January 2026 · 5 mins read
Global Economics Update Your questions about tensions over Greenland We hosted an online Drop-In session today to discuss escalating tensions over Greenland and their economic implications. (Recording available here.) This Update provides answers to some of the... 19th January 2026 · 5 mins read
US Economics Update Latest threat to Fed independence likely to fail The Trump administration’s latest attempt to pressure Fed Chair Jerome Powell and his colleagues on the FOMC to cut interest rates will fail and there are several reasons to believe it could backfire. 12th January 2026 · 4 mins read
US Economics Update Labour market remains in ‘low-hire, low-fire’ stable state The drop in the job openings and job hires rates reported in November’s JOLTS was accompanied by a decline in the layoff rate from already depressed levels, underscoring employers’ continued caution... 7th January 2026 · 2 mins read
US Economics Update Fed softens blow of hawkish cut with asset purchase restart The FOMC overcame its divisions to vote for another interest rate cut today, albeit with three dissenting votes. The hawks influenced the accompanying policy statement, which notes that the FOMC will... 10th December 2025 · 3 mins read
US Economics Update JOLTS teases an improving labour market The JOLTS data for September and October show glimpses of a rosier labour market, with firms in tariff-affected sectors posting more jobs and layoffs concentrated in a couple of sectors. This chimes... 9th December 2025 · 3 mins read
US Economics Update Should we fear the 2026 “maturity wall”? The rise in the number of business bankruptcies this year, despite little change in default rates for bank loans or speculative-grade debt, seems to reflect the larger number of firms trying to re... 9th December 2025 · 4 mins read
US Economics Update NFIB survey reveals upside risks to inflation and employment The November NFIB survey suggests that the labour market is regaining momentum, while also pointing to some upside risks to inflation. At the margin at least, that lends some support to our view that... 9th December 2025 · 2 mins read
US Economics Update Economic data will return slowly post-shutdown The reopening of the federal government does not mean the flow of economic data will be restored straight away. Survey-based data not collected in October during the funding lapse will take weeks to... 13th November 2025 · 3 mins read
US Economics Update NFIB survey adds to signs jobs market has stabilised The latest NFIB survey provides further evidence that the labour market has not deteriorated any further since official jobs data stopped being reported. 11th November 2025 · 2 mins read
US Economics Update Taking the pulse of the economy using alternative data Alternative data suggest the economy continued to perform reasonably well early in the fourth quarter. Fears of a renewed labour market downturn, amid reports of mass layoffs at several large firms... 10th November 2025 · 4 mins read
US Economics Update Why is hiring soft despite resilient GDP growth? Lower immigration, increased use of AI and cyclical weakness outside of the main tech sectors are the key reasons for the slowdown in private sector hiring this year. There is a risk that the drags... 6th November 2025 · 3 mins read
US Economics Update Consumption won’t fall off a cliff Fears that weak payroll gains will cause a sharp slowdown in consumption growth over the next year are overblown. The immigration crackdown will prevent wage growth from slowing much further, and... 5th November 2025 · 5 mins read
