Economic Beat: Financial News

How will current market developments affect you? The thought leaders at Fifth Third Bank can help make sense of it all. Listen to the Economic Beat as they discuss what happened last week and what they expect will be the focus of this week. Click the button below to listen or read the transcript to this week's Economic Beat.

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Past Economic Beats

May 22, 2023

Major U.S. equity indices posted solid gains last week

Debt ceiling discussions reignite concerns over whether lawmakers will agree to a deal to avoid a default next month. Importantly, this is a debate over the government’s willingness to pay its debt, not its ability to pay its debt. History suggests this too shall pass and that the U.S. will not ultimately default on its debt.

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May 15, 2023

US equity indices were mixed this week

The consumer price index (CPI) for April came in at 4.9%, better than the 5.0% expected. This was the smallest annual increase since April 2021 and the 10th straight month of improvement since inflation peaked last June at 9.1%. Excluding food and energy, core inflation ticked down to 5.5% from 5.6%.

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May 8, 2023

The U.S. labor market remains resilient

Last week, the Federal Reserve increased its key interest rate by 0.25 percentage points, it’s 10th hike in 14 months. That pushed its benchmark rate to between 5 percent and 5.25 percent, up from near-zero in March 2022, although the Fed hinted the rate hike may be its last for now.

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May 1, 2023

First quarter growth is below expectations

Major U.S. equity indices were higher last week, with the S&P 500 Index up just under one percent in total return following a modest decline in the prior week. The Nasdaq Composite added 1.3% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.9% in total return for the week.

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