Marketing-and-sales campaigns demand empathy. What is the current state of the economy? Are there unexpected headlines? How do the commercial affairs of clients and prospects relate to the business cycle? Macro-level developments both accelerate and derail business strategies.
Economic Output
Percent change in gross domestic product models changes in the standard of living at the national level. Although GDP is a headline indicator, it offers scant insight on the social texture of a country. Life-expectancy and income-equality data, for instance, is captured elsewhere.
Financial Assets
A responsive measure of economic activity is the stock market, often incorporated into measures of sentiment or confidence. There other types of financial assets, including the bond market . A common denominator is that the asset price is set in an open market of buyers and sellers.
Household Sector
Inflation takes a bite out of wages, impacting financial security. Weaker household income suggests that durable purchases are deferred or, more critically, healthcare needs are unmet. In the extreme, those sort of lifestyle pressures can lead to civil disturbances and political unrest.
Manufacturing Activity
Industrial production is a measure of real economic activity. Despite the small size of the secondary sector in many nations, the indicator is important because these firms transact on the frontline of international competitiveness. Manufacturers also have an important influence on other sectors.
Headline Viewpoint
We offer up-to-date thoughts on the complete range of site topics, framing articles and editorials from the business press.
Economic Output
Feelings about the US economy once tracked data on confidence and unemployment, among other indicators. There is now a gap between perception and reality, known as a "vibecession." Each demographic groups look at the US economy through a different lens. https://t.co/8BgXtcECuZ
— Night Orca (@ocean_warfare) January 14, 2024
Financial Assets
With uncertain fundamentals, could the outlook for US stocks be tethered to technical analysis? The prognosis is murky on that basis, given outsized returns seen in 2023 and 2024. Most realists expect a correction as large as 15% in the S&P 500 this year. https://t.co/Pjtm5PQLQ6
— Night Orca (@ocean_warfare) January 14, 2025
Household Income
Analysts tend to look at top-line wage growth as a measure of economic health. The data can be misleading. In the US, most paycheck buoyancy has been among low-wage earners, not those with high disposable incomes. Consumers may be gloomy for a reason. https://t.co/DADj0K5DLY
— Night Orca (@ocean_warfare) July 30, 2024
Manufacturing Activity
Artificial intelligence is not an intelligent mind. It merely re-processes information that already exists, albeit at extraordinary speed. With writing, AI generates passable and ordinary text. True creativity is unpredictable; it demands "leaps in logic." https://t.co/vjiha7euGb
— Night Orca (@ocean_warfare) December 25, 2023
