The economy is booming and companies are expecting robust growth in the second half of 2021 and 2022. Travel is starting to rebound and cities are coming back to life. Stimulus has left consumers with a tremendous amount of liquidity and we are spending. Institutional investors are increasingly concerned about inflationary pressures.
Succinct Summary: Retailers reported strong quarters last week showing that the US consumer remains resilient despite high unemployment. A new wave of Covid could slow the economy back down but vaccines are almost here. It will be interesting to see what behaviors have been permanently altered by the pandemic and which ones will return to the way that they were. Business travel is one thing that may be permanently changed.
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Succinct Summary: The economy has had a strong rebound, but the rising virus cases in some states are a cause for worry. Consumers are fatigued from the virus but starting to accept that it may take a while for things to get back to normal. And the old normal may never return. Technology companies have been major beneficiaries of quarantine. Companies are “splurging” on tech.
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Succinct Summary: Worries about the impact of the Coronavirus are at the top of mind for management teams. The positive thing is activity is picking up in China and the impact is not expected to be long-term. Short -term worries persist, but elections may be the bigger long term risk to US markets in 2020.