Main Street Macro: The next Fed rate cut might disappoint

 

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July 22, 2024

MainStreet Macro: The next Fed rate cut might disappoint. Here’s why.

The recent slowdown in inflation has left market watchers more confident that Federal Reserve policymakers will cut interest rates at least once this year. What’s harder to predict is how those rate cuts might affect the economy.
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March 4, 2024

Main Street Macro: What non-economists get wrong

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

Economists sometimes get their forecasts wrong. First, we say inflation will be transitory. Then we say there will be a soft – no, wait! – a hard landing. A recession! Or maybe, definitely, a soft landing.
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February 26, 2024

Main Street Macro: The shrinking work week

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

Are you working fewer hours now than you did before the pandemic? If the answer is yes, you have a lot of company.
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February 20, 2024

Main Street Macro: Spring means homebuyers—and a big test of inflation

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

This year, the spring housing market will be watched closely by more than just would-be buyers. Investors, economists, and monetary policymakers also are eying listings in both the inventory-starved for-sale market and the rental market. Here are three reasons why.
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February 12, 2024

Main Street Macro: Normal? What’s that?

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

After last month’s blockbuster government jobs report, I’ve been looking for signs of a normal economy. But as economists and market watchers talk of a “new normal” and “normalization,” I’ve been wondering just what a normal economy is.
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October 23, 2023

Main Street Macro: That new-hire glow is fading

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.Liv Wang

Job-switching is looking a lot less lucrative these days. The pay premium new hires commanded during the pandemic has been falling steadily for more than a year. In this week’s MainStreet Macro, ADP chief economist Nela Richardson and ADPRI senior data scientist Liv Wang look at shrinking new hire pay.
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September 18, 2023

Main Street Macro: What happens when the best choice isn’t available? (Asking for a friend)

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

They say a dog is a man’s best friend, but let’s be real: Sometimes dogs will settle for second best. It’s that way with the economy, too. Central banks are the economy’s best friends for now, but for how long?
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November 7, 2022

MainStreet Macro: Is the Fed ready for a running play?

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

Last week brought fresh job data from the ADP Research Institute and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and another rate hike from the Federal Reserve. Football season is in full swing, too, so here’s some color analysis of the game we’re all watching: Team Fed v. Team Inflation.
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