Confounded Interest – Anthony B. Sanders
Financial Markets And Real Estate
Good news on the wage front. Sort of .
US REAL average hourly earnings rose in September to -0.8% YoY.
Too bad that REAL home prices are growing at a 14.4% YoY clip.
The Federal Reserve’s new motto: making home unaffordable! With help from the US Treasury.
At least the Atlanta Fed’s President Raphael Bostic finally admitted that inflation isn’t as transitory as he previously believed. The Fed dumped trillions in liquidity into an economic system that was unprepared for it, and he is surprised that prices are going nuts?
The consumer price index increased 0.4% from August, according to Labor Department data released Wednesday. Compared with a year ago, the CPI rose 5.4%, matching the largest annual gain since 2008. Excluding the volatile food and energy components, so-called core inflation rose 0.2% from the prior month.
U.S. headline inflation rose more than forecast in September.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Bloomberg survey
The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for a 0.3% monthly gain in the overall measure and a 0.2% advance in the core rate.
A combination of unprecedented shipping challenges, materials shortages, high commodities prices and rising wages have sharply driven up costs for producers. Many have passed some portion of those costs along to consumers, leading to more persistent inflation than many economists — including those at the Federal Reserve — had originally anticipated.
The pickup in price growth seen last month reflected higher food and shelter costs. Meantime, measures of used cars and trucks, apparel and airfares cooled.
U.S. equity futures fluctuated and Treasury yields were little changed following the report.
The CPI data reflects crosscurrents in the economy. Hotel fares fell, reflecting the impact of the delta variant on travel, but inflation is broadening out beyond categories associated with reopening.
Higher home prices are now starting to filter through in the data. Rent of primary residence jumped 0.5%, the most since 2001, while a measure of homeowners’ equivalent rent posted the biggest gain in five years. Shelter costs, which are seen as a more structural component of the CPI and make up about a third of the overall index, could prove a more durable tailwind to inflation.
The report will likely reinforce the Fed’s inclination to soon start tapering its asset purchases, especially as the supply-chain challenges plaguing businesses show little signs of abating. Minutes from last month’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting — out Wednesday afternoon — will provide further insight on policy makers’ views toward progress on employment and inflation goals for tapering.
A New York Fed survey out Tuesday showed U.S. consumers’ expectations for inflation continued to rise in September, with 1-year and 3-year expectations accelerating to record highs.
American consumers are also experiencing higher prices for new vehicles and household furnishings and supplies, which increased by a record 1.3%, the report showed. And looking ahead, elevated energy prices are set to take an additional bite out of workers’ paychecks.
While we know that apartment rents are growing at 15.5% YoY, the CPI for Owner’s Equivalent Rent only rose by 3.2% YoY.
Powell: Whoops, did I do that?
Everyone seems worried about it. Bridgewater Associates co-Chief Investment Officer Greg Jensen says spiraling prices that choke off growth are a “real risk” that many portfolios are massively overexposed to. A “fairly strong consensus” of market professionals believe that some kind of stagflation is more likely than not, according to a Deutsche Bank AG survey. And while Goldman Sachs Group Inc. urged investors to buy the dip, strategists said “stagflation” was the most common topic in client conversations.
Wherever you fall on the debate, alarm bells are ringing as energy prices head toward multiyear highs and persistent shortages crimp supply chains worldwide. That’s fueling price pressures and pushing up bond yields just as economic growth is cooling and central banks such as the Federal Reserve weigh scaling down pandemic-era stimulus. And after a second straight month of disappointing U.S. jobs gains, the stakes are rising heading into this week’s inflation report.
“The reality that inflation is more persistent and sustainable than the ‘transitory’ camp thought, and that inflation and its causes are in turn slowing economy growth,” said Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer for Bleakley Advisory Group.
Much of the stress is emanating from the energy market, where West Texas Intermediate crude oil broke above $82 per barrel for the first time since 2014 on Monday amid a power crisis from Europe to Asia. Prices of coal and natural gas have also jumped, with demand ahead of winter whittling worldwide stockpiles.
The commodity surge has thrust stagflation fears front-and-center in markets, given that higher energy prices have the potential to pinch consumers, according to Principal Global Investors. Gains in consumer spending are already expected to slow, leading Goldman economists to slash U.S. growth estimates over the weekend.
“The idea was already starting to take shape. The increase in commodity prices has just formalized those fears,” said Seema Shah, Principal’s chief global strategist. “While there have been complaints around higher food prices, higher lumber prices, higher clothes prices, it’s the increase in household bills that has really put fear into peoples’ minds, because it is so visible and rising gas prices are difficult to substitute away from for an average household.”
Sky-high commodity prices have filtered through to the Treasury market, where yields on benchmark 10-year notes broke above 1.6% for the first time since June last week. Driving the gain is an increase in breakeven inflation rates, while so-called real yields — often viewed as a proxy of growth expectations — have retreated so far this month.
“If we look at the composition within the TIPs market, we see an increase in breakevens to the detriment of real yields,” BMO strategist Ian Lyngen said on the firm’s “Macro Horizons” podcast. “We read this as the market’s focus on longer-term inflation has taken some of the optimism out of the growth profile going forward.”
Morgan Stanley strategist Andrew Sheets disagrees. Breakeven rates are still below their May peaks, while the cross-asset landscape is distinct from the stagflationary setup of the 1970s, he argued. Data compiled by Bloomberg shows gross domestic product is forecast by economists to rise 5.9% this year, 4.1% next year and 2.4% in 2023.
“Asset pricing also couldn’t be more different. Over the last century, the 1970s represented an all-time high for nominal interest rates and an all-time low for equity valuations,” Sheets wrote in a note Sunday. “Today we’re near a low in yields and a high in those valuations.”
Equity investors so far seem unperturbed. That’s the view of Matt Maley, chief market strategist for Miller Tabak + Co., given that the S&P 500 is just 3.9% lower from its all-time high. However, the mood music could change as the third-quarter reporting season kicks off and corporate executives sound off on supply chain issues and rising input costs, he said.
“The key should be this earnings season,” Maley said. “If a lot of companies start talking about margin pressures, the stock market will start pricing in stagflation rather quickly.”
So far, balance sheets have been resilient. Operating margins for the S&P 500 clocked in at 14.4% last quarter, a record high, with companies in many cases actually benefiting from the inflation uptick.
But should stagflation fears start to meaningfully rattle equity markets, shares of companies with higher pricing power — the ability to pass on costs — should profit, according to Goldman, after several weeks of underperformance.
“Stocks with strong pricing power have recently lagged but appear attractive if stagflationary concerns continue to build,” strategists led by David J. Kostin wrote. “If inflation remains high alongside a weakening economic growth outlook, firms with strong pricing power should be best positioned to maintain profit margins despite slowing revenue growth and rising input costs.”
Not to mention real-time GDP of 1.3%. And falling!
Of course, there will be cries in Washington DC to spend trillions … and trillions … and trillions.
Initial jobless claims dropped below their recent range last week, falling to the second lowest level since the COVID-lockdowns crushed the economy. Only 326k Americans filed for jobless benefits for the first time last week, down from 364k last week and below the 348k expectation.
The massive Covid stimulus for employment has worn out. Note the decline in Pandemic Unemployment Insurance and Pandemic Emergency Claims. The thrill is gone … of pandemic unemployment benefits.
Continuing claims also declined from the previous week, again largely from Pandemic Unemployment Assistance and Pandemic Emergency Claims programs ending.
On a related note, Challenger job cuts were down -84.9% YoY. But for September, there was a surge in low-paying retail jobs and transportation jobs as Panademic stimulus ran out and governments have pretty much stopped their destructive government shutdowns of economies.
So this is where all the Pandemic claimants have gone?
Central banks are turning “hawkish” in the face of inflation.
(Bloomberg) — Treasuries fell, sending 10-year yields to a three-month high, as traders braced for a testing week of heavy bond auctions and continued to digest the prospect that central banks in the U.S. and Europe will step up the pace of policy tightening.
The yield on 10-year Treasuries reached 1.51%, the highest since June, before settling at 1.48%. The yield has climbed 16 basis points over the past week as the Federal Reserve signaled it may start reducing its asset purchases in November and raising rates as soon as next year. Yields on two- and five-year Treasuries hit their highest levels since early 2020, with a combined $121 billion of the securities set to be sold Monday. A seven-year auction is due Tuesday.
While Treasuries briefly extended the selloff after a report showed durable goods orders exceeded economists’ forecasts, they started to pare losses after U.S. equity futures soured.
Bond yields increased across the globe last week as central banks move to reduce pandemic stimulus. The Bank of England surprised markets by raising the prospect of increasing rates as soon as November, and Norway delivered the first post-crisis hike among Group-of-10 countries. In the U.S., traders pulled forward wagers on an interest-rate increase to the end of 2022 following last week’s Fed meeting.
On the equity side, FAANG stocks trail the S&P 500 as 10-year Treasury yield climb.
We have the 10-year Treasury yield climbing above the S&P 500 dividend yield.
Here are The Fed and The ECB turning “hawkish.”
The stock market mildly rebounded from yesterday’s mild correction, but a glaring problem remains: S&P 500 real earning yields are negative.
With all the Federal government fiscal stimulus and Federal Reserve monetary stimulus, we are seeing inflation and that inflation is eating away at S&P 500 earnings yield.
The S&P 500 is still well above key technical support levels.
However, the Buffet ratio is raging along with Fed stimulus.
And the Hindenburg Omen is flashing RED!
The mystery of the Flying Fed is whether they will withdraw their massive monetary stimulus or not.
(Bloomberg) — The S&P 500 Index extended its decline past 2% Monday afternoon amid growing investor jitters about China’s real estate crackdown potentially sparking a financial contagion. And the Hang Seng fell 3.30% overnight.
The benchmark gauge was down 2.1% as of 12:08 p.m. in New York. All of the 11 major industry groups declined, with the energy, financials and materials sectors leading the losses. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 index slumped 2.4%, while the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average retreated 1.9%.
By 2:33pm, the Dow is down 2.55%, NASDAQ down 3.15%.
Volatility also soared, with the Cboe Volatility Index — often called Wall Street’s “fear index” — jumping as much as 29% to 26.75, the highest level in over four months.
“While the Evergrande situation is front and center, the reality is, stock market valuations are overstretched and the market has enjoyed too long of a break from volatility and Monday’s stock market declines are not surprising,” said David Bahnsen, chief investment officer at the Bahnsen Group, a wealth management firm.
As Evergrande bonds continue to tank.
Meanwhile, most commodity prices are falling … except for UK Natural Gas Futures which are up 16.5%!
Pop goes the weasel!
This is the Steve Urkel economy where The Federal Reserve and Federal government screw everything up with their policies (or follicies) and say “Whoops! Did I do that?”
(Bloomberg) — U.S. consumer sentiment rose slightly in early September but remained close to a near-decade low, while buying conditions deteriorated to their worst since 1980 because of high prices.
The University of Michigan’s preliminary sentiment index edged up to 71 from 70.3 in August, data released Friday showed. The figure trailed the median estimate of 72 in a Bloomberg survey of economists.
Buying conditions for household durables, homes and motor vehicles all fell to the lowest in decades. The report said the declines were due to complaints about high prices. Consumers expect inflation to rise 4.7% over the coming year, matching the highest since 2008.
September’s UMich Buying Conditions for Houses fell to 60 … thanks to superheated house prices.
I can just picture Fed Chair Jerome Powell channeling Steve Urkel and saying “Whoops!! Did I do that?”
US bank loans and leases are slowing, yet The Federal Reserve has helped keep their stock values elevated thanks to the extraordinary monetary stimulus.
(Bloomberg) — U.S. banks’ loans and leases dropped to 47.15% of total assets in the week to Sept. 1 from 47.24% the week before, according to the Fed
Total assets increased to $22.19 trillion from $22.10 trillion
The share of safe assets — virtually riskless investments such as cash, Treasuries, and securities effectively guaranteed by the U.S. government — increased to 51.2% of total assets from 51.0%
Loans and leases as a percentage of deposits were unchanged at 59.7%
Cash was the highest as a percentage of total assets since January 2015
Residential real-estate loans hit a historic low as a percentage of total assets at 10.0%
Commercial real-estate loans were the lowest as a percentage of total assets since August 2015
Consumer loans were the lowest as a percentage of total assets since May
Commercial and industrial loans were the lowest as a percentage of total assets since June 2012
Only in this deranged, hyper-stimulated market can bank stocks be soaring despite slowing loan and lease growth.
Not only after home prices screaming at near 20% YoY growth, but apartment rents are surging as well.
(Bloomberg) — Apartment rents were up in August from a year earlier in all the top 30 U.S. metro areas, the first time that’s happened since the start of the pandemic, according to a new report by Yardi.
The national average rent in multi-family buildings rose 10.3% from a year earlier to $1,539 — the first double-digit rise in the dataset’s history — after a $25 increase in August, the real-estate firm said. Over the past 10 years, the average pace of growth has been 2%.
Zillow’s rent index of all homes is growing at 9.25% YoY.
Fed Chair Jerome “Inflation is Transitory” Powell.
The Fed has a line on you! Or at least a bullseye on the back of renters.
Confounded Interest - Anthony B. Sanders 
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