As I sit down to write this, the presidential election has not taken place yet, but we can be assured of one thing: When you read this, we will have a new President-Elect. And that election will have very little effect on our companies, our customers, and our vendors, as daily life will go on, and we will continue to…
Read MoreTag: Federal Reserve
PCA’s Sullivan traces interest rate drop, construction activity rise
Sources: Portland Cement Association, Washington, D.C.; CP staff PCA Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of Market Intelligence Ed Sullivan told member producers during their fall meeting that the Federal Reserve’s recent move to lower interest rates, coupled with easing inflation, signals a significant retreat in interest rate levels by the end of next year—all to the benefit of residential…
Read MoreSome of the Experts Keep Getting it Wrong
Some of the brightest minds in the economic research area are on Wall Street, working for either major investment banks or business news services with a global following. As recently as a couple of weeks ago, they were issuing research that warned of a slowdown coming in the economy: one began their note by saying that after having boomed its…
Read MoreThe Other Shoe Drops
In the last half of April, there were a couple of seminal economic events that, taken together, mark an example of proverbial shoes dropping, and for the first time in years, marks a cautionary signal on the economy. The first shoe to drop was when Fed Chairman Jay Powell unexpectedly announced that firmer-than-expected inflation during the first quarter has called…
Read MoreSluggish Outlook
Economic uncertainty and inflation impact construction Sector BY CP STAFF As we begin the new year, there are concerns surrounding the health of the economy and whether a recession is in the near future. Amongst the uncertainty, industry economists have revealed that the impact of high interest rates and inflation is already being felt within the construction sector. “The Federal…
Read MoreWilling Us Into Recession
I was driving to the airport at 5:15 a.m. one very recent morning to catch an early flight, and tuned into one of my favorite business radio channels for my usual dose of early news and data, and the outlook for the markets. Some financial pundit was being interviewed, giving all the reasons why the recent spate of good economic…
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