Third-quarter economic growth in the US expanded faster than expected, highlighted by a better-than-expected gross domestic product report, which showed that the U.S. economy grew at an annualized pace of 4.9% in the third quarter, led by strong consumer spending. This preliminary growth reading marked a substantial increase from the second quarter’s 2.1% pace and was the most robust figure since the fourth quarter of 2021, surpassing economists’ average prediction of 4.3%.

On the inflation front, the core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, a measure of inflation closely watched by the Federal Reserve, presented mixed signals. The year-over-year measure slightly decreased to 3.7% in September from the previous 3.8%. Despite remaining above the Fed’s 2% long-term inflation target, it is widely expected that the central bank will maintain rates steady at its upcoming October 31-November 1 policy meeting.

It was a busy week for quarterly earnings reports, with just under half of the constituents of the S&P 500 Index having reported for Q3 2023. Investor attention was notably focused on Amazon, Alphabet (Google’s parent company), Meta Platforms (owner of Facebook), and Microsoft, members of the mega-cap technology-focused group of stocks known as the Magnificent Seven. Amazon’s report, released after market close on Thursday, appeared to receive the most positive reaction, with shares of the company rallying strongly on Friday.

U.S. equities ended the week lower for a second straight week, as market sentiment was dented by mixed corporate earnings reports and concerns about higher interest rates. The Dow dropped by 2.1%, the S&P 500 by 2.5%, and the Nasdaq ended the week 2.6% lower.

On Wednesday, the Bank of Canada held rates steady at 5% while retaining a tightening bias, the central bank acknowledged the lagged effects of monetary policy in holding back economic activity and moderating price pressures.

In Europe, the pan-European STOXX 50 Index edged 0.26% lower due to uncertainties regarding interest rates, the economy, and conflicts in the Middle East. The UK’s FTSE 100 Index lost 1.50%.

The European Central Bank (ECB) left short-term interest rates unchanged this week, raising expectations that rates may have peaked in the eurozone. After ten consecutive rate increases, the ECB kept its key deposit rate at 4.0%. ECB President Christine Lagarde highlighted the expectation of ongoing weakness in the eurozone economy for the remainder of the year.

Japanese equities were also down by 0.86% for the week, influenced by rising bond yields and geopolitical tensions. Japan’s core inflation rate accelerated to 2.7% in October, surpassing expectations, while the consumer price index rose to 3.3% from 2.8% in September.

In China, equity markets ended the week stronger with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index advancing 1.16% driven by increased government economic stimulus.

Amid rising concerns about escalating military action in the Middle East, the price of gold broke through the $2,000 per ounce threshold as investors sought refuge in safe-haven assets.

In the past year, concerns about inflation, rising interest rates, and political instability have persisted, even as markets have shown improvement. However, recent tragic events in the Middle East have introduced new worries for investors, as they evaluate how military conflicts might impact financial markets. While acknowledging the human tragedy, the market’s primary focus has shifted to potential effects on oil prices, interest rates, and the strength of the dollar, as these factors have a more direct influence on market performance.

Major indexes concluded the week with mixed results as investors weighed up inflation data against dovish signals from Federal Reserve officials. Leading banks such as Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and JPMorgan Chase initiated the unofficial start of the third-quarter earnings reporting season on a positive note, benefiting from higher interest rates.

The release of minutes from the Fed’s September policy meeting on Wednesday suggested that policymakers agree that they need to maintain restrictive interest rates for some time, while being mindful of balancing the risk of overtightening with the goal of curbing inflation towards the 2% target. In September, CPI rose by 0.4% month-on-month, surpassing market expectations, signalling ongoing inflationary pressures. The Fed’s core CPI, which excludes food and energy costs, also increased by 0.3% in September.

In Europe, the ECB’s minutes revealed that the majority of policymakers voted to raise the key deposit rate to a record high of 4.0%. Meanwhile, the German government lowered its 2023 economic growth outlook from 0.4% growth to a 0.4% contraction due to higher energy costs and reduced demand from major markets like China.

UK retail sales growth slowed to 2.7% year-on-year in September, marking the second weakest month of the year, while GDP rose by 0.2% month-on-month in August, after contracting 0.6% in July.

In China, inflation remained subdued with CPI for September remaining unchanged from a year earlier. Meanwhile, producer prices fell by a higher-than-expected 2.5% compared to the previous year. At the same time, Chinese developer Country Garden Holdings faces its first-ever potential default and restructuring due to difficulties in meeting offshore payment obligations on U.S. dollar bonds, highlighting China’s property debt crisis.

Global equity markets concluded the week with mixed results. In the U.S., the Dow Jones (+0.79%) and S&P 500 (+0.45%) were positive whilst the Nasdaq (-0.18%) was mildly negative. Similarly, European and Asian markets, including the Euro Stoxx 50 (-0.20%), FTSE 100 (+1.40%), Nikkei 225 (+4.26%), Hang Seng (+1.65%) and Shanghai Composite Index (-0.70%) were mixed.

In September, the U.S. economy saw the creation of 360,000 new jobs, and an extra 119,000 positions were included in the count through revisions. The print surged passed expectations of only 170,000 new jobs, re-igniting the bonds sell-off that has swept global markets over the past two weeks. The U.S. 10-year Treasury yields climbed by approximately 14 basis points, reaching 4.88%, marking their highest point since 2007, coinciding with a roughly 50% increase in the likelihood of a rate hike before the end of the year. The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 3.8%. Wage growth remained stagnant, rising 0.2% m/m and 4.2% y/y, while the workforce participation rate stayed steady at 62.8%. However, digging deeper, the data suggests that the labour market is driven more by increased worker supply than excessive demand, creating a more favourable inflation outlook.

In U.S. political news, after failing to secure Republican caucus support in the U.S. House of Representatives for a government funding bill that included spending cuts and increased border security, Speaker Kevin McCarthy allowed a bipartisan bill to proceed. It passed with a 335 to 91 vote, but 90 Republicans opposed it. On Monday, a motion to remove McCarthy as Speaker was filed and succeeded with a 216 to 210 vote on Tuesday. Eight Republican renegades joined with a united Democratic caucus to remove a speaker for the first time in history. The House is in recess until next week when a new Speaker will be elected.

Throughout most of 2023, the U.S. services sector remained strong, while manufacturing experienced a contraction. However, in September, this trend flipped, with the manufacturing index improving to 49 from 47.6, while the nonmanufacturing measure dropped to 53.6 from the previous month’s 54.5. Notably, the nonmanufacturing new orders index hit a low point, declining to 51.8, marking its lowest level in a year, down from 57.5.

Both official and private-sector data indicated a potential slowdown in the eurozone economy during the third quarter. The September reading of the final Composite Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) from S&P Global stood at 47.2, marking the fourth consecutive month of contraction. (A PMI reading below 50 signifies a decrease in business output.)

China’s manufacturing sector showed signs of recovery, marking its first expansion since March and suggesting a potential economic turnaround. The official manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) exceeded expectations, rising to 50.2 in September from August’s 49.7. Additionally, the nonmanufacturing PMI surpassed forecasts, expanding to 51.7 compared to August’s 51.0.

During another week of trading dominated by large-cap growth stocks, especially in the mega-cap information technology and internet sectors, the major U.S. indexes closed with a mix of performances. The Nasdaq (+1.60%) and the S&P 500 (+0.48%) ended the week higher while the Dow Jones dipped -0.30%. Shares in Europe (Euro Stoxx 50) declined by -0.72%, while the FTSE 100 dropped by -1.49%. Financial markets in China were closed last week for the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday and will reopen on Monday, October 9. The Hong Kong Stock Exchange resumed trading on Tuesday, and the benchmark Hang Seng Index slipped by -1.80% for the shortened holiday week. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell by -1.68%. Brent oil prices declined by -8.36% as demand fears outweighed supply cuts, while gold dropped by -0.84%.

Early Saturday morning, Palestinian group Hamas launched one of the biggest attacks on Israel in years with many killed, hostages taken, and fighting raging after a surprise assault that included gunmen entering Israeli towns after a barrage of rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared a state of war.

In the past year, concerns about inflation, rising interest rates, and political instability have persisted, even as markets have shown improvement. However, recent tragic events in the Middle East have introduced new worries for investors, as they evaluate how military conflicts might impact financial markets. While acknowledging the human tragedy, the market’s primary focus has shifted to potential effects on oil prices, interest rates, and the strength of the dollar, as these factors have a more direct influence on market performance.

Major indexes concluded the week with mixed results as investors weighed up inflation data against dovish signals from Federal Reserve officials. Leading banks such as Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and JPMorgan Chase initiated the unofficial start of the third-quarter earnings reporting season on a positive note, benefiting from higher interest rates.

The release of minutes from the Fed’s September policy meeting on Wednesday suggested that policymakers agree that they need to maintain restrictive interest rates for some time, while being mindful of balancing the risk of overtightening with the goal of curbing inflation towards the 2% target. In September, CPI rose by 0.4% month-on-month, surpassing market expectations, signalling ongoing inflationary pressures. The Fed’s core CPI, which excludes food and energy costs, also increased by 0.3% in September.

In Europe, the ECB’s minutes revealed that the majority of policymakers voted to raise the key deposit rate to a record high of 4.0%. Meanwhile, the German government lowered its 2023 economic growth outlook from 0.4% growth to a 0.4% contraction due to higher energy costs and reduced demand from major markets like China.

UK retail sales growth slowed to 2.7% year-on-year in September, marking the second weakest month of the year, while GDP rose by 0.2% month-on-month in August, after contracting 0.6% in July.

In China, inflation remained subdued with CPI for September remaining unchanged from a year earlier. Meanwhile, producer prices fell by a higher-than-expected 2.5% compared to the previous year. At the same time, Chinese developer Country Garden Holdings faces its first-ever potential default and restructuring due to difficulties in meeting offshore payment obligations on U.S. dollar bonds, highlighting China’s property debt crisis.

Global equity markets concluded the week with mixed results. In the U.S., the Dow Jones (+0.79%) and S&P 500 (+0.45%) were positive whilst the Nasdaq (-0.18%) was mildly negative. Similarly, European and Asian markets, including the Euro Stoxx 50 (-0.20%), FTSE 100 (+1.40%), Nikkei 225 (+4.26%), Hang Seng (+1.65%) and Shanghai Composite Index (-0.70%) were mixed.

In August, the core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index, excluding food and energy, saw a modest 0.1% increase, marking the smallest monthly rise since November 2020. Over 12 months, the annual increase for core PCE was 3.9%, down from an upwardly revised 4.3% in July. This PCE index is a favoured economic indicator by the Federal Reserve for assessing inflation. This smaller-than-anticipated rise in August indicates that the central bank’s efforts to combat rising prices are showing progress.

Revised figures for the first quarter of the year show that the UK economy experienced a more rapid expansion than initially projected, as per the latest gross domestic product (GDP) data. The Office of National Statistics has revised the first-quarter growth rate to 0.3%, an increase from the prior estimate of 0.1%. Meanwhile, their assessment of second-quarter GDP growth remains unaltered at 0.2%.

Despite the surge in oil prices, inflation decreased across most European countries in September, resulting in the overall rate hitting its lowest point since before the onset of the war in Ukraine. According to the European Commission’s statistical branch, consumer prices in the 20 eurozone countries increased at an annual rate of 4.3 percent in September, a drop from August’s 5.2 percent. Over the past year, inflation in the eurozone has shown a consistent decline, following its peak at an annual rate of 10.6 percent the previous year. Core inflation, which excludes volatile categories such as food and energy and is considered a more reliable indicator of underlying price pressures, also experienced a recent easing, dropping to 4.5 percent in September from 5.3 percent in August.

In September, China’s factory activity saw its first expansion in six months. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), which is based on a survey of major manufacturers, increased from 49.7 to 50.2, surpassing the critical 50-point threshold that distinguishes between contraction and expansion. This reading exceeded the forecasted 50.0. The PMI data reinforces the signs of economic stabilization, following a preceding period of decline after the initial surge earlier in the year when China relaxed its stringent COVID-19 policies.

Global equity markets concluded the week on a downtrend. The S&P 500 Index sustained its fourth consecutive weekly pullback, driven by upward pressure on interest rates, which appeared to dampen investor sentiment. The S&P 500 Index posted a decline of -0.74%. Similarly, the Dow Jones Industrial Average experienced a downturn of -1.34% for the week. In contrast, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite posted a modest +0.06% gain. In Europe, both the Euro Stoxx 50 and the UK’s FTSE 100 recorded losses, sliding by -0.77% and -0.99%, respectively. The Asian markets mirrored this trend, with the Nikkei 225 (-1.68%), Hang Seng (-1.42%), and Shanghai Composite Index (-0.70%) all showing weakness.