What we’re reading (7/28)
“U.S. Yield Curve Flashing More Warning Signs Of Recession Risks Ahead” (Reuters). “The shape of the yield curve, which plots the return on all Treasury securities, is seen as an indicator of the future state of health of the economy, as inversions of the curve have been a reliable sign of looming recession.”
“Gold Scores Biggest One Day Rally Since March, Silver Jumps Nearly 7% Due To Fed-Inspired ‘Short Squeeze’ (MarketWatch). “Gold and silver both benefitted from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s comment on Wednesday that the next interest rate hike in September would depend on the tenor of upcoming U.S. economic data. Traders have interpreted Powell’s vague guidance as opening the door to a rate hike of just 50 basis points in September after the Fed opted for 75 basis point hikes in June and July.”
“U.S. GDP Fell At 0.9% Annual Rate In Second Quarter; Recession Fears Loom Over Economy” (Wall Street Journal). “The U.S. economy shrank for a second quarter in a row—a common definition of recession—as the housing market buckled under rising interest rates and high inflation took steam out of business and consumer spending. Gross domestic product, a broad measure of the goods and services produced across the economy, fell at an inflation and seasonally adjusted annual rate of 0.9% in the second quarter, the Commerce Department said Thursday. That followed a 1.6% pace of contraction in the first three months of 2022.”
“The 100 Wealthiest Americans Lost $622 Billion Since November” (Bloomberg Tax). “In the early days of the pandemic, when markets plunged and 22 million Americans lost their jobs, Congress and the Federal Reserve sprang into action to stabilize an economy at risk of buckling. After trillions of dollars of Covid-19 relief cash and a monsoon of cheap federally sponsored loans, US households are sitting on record savings. But no group benefited more than the one needing the least assistance: the ultrarich.”
“Ex-Boyfriend Of Biglaw Associate Arrested For Insider Trading... Wonder Where He Allegedly Got All That Nonpublic Info?” (Dealbreaker). “Seth Markin, a former FBI trainee, and his friend Brandon Wong were arrested on insider trading charges (there’s also a parallel civil complaint filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission) earlier this week. According to the indictment, the pair made ~$1.4 million by improperly trading on nonpublic information, specifically that Pandion was set to be acquired by pharmaceutical company Merck. How’d they come across this insider information? The indictment indicated Markin was dating a Biglaw associate staffed on the M&A deal, and he ‘abused his relationship of trust and confidence’ to gain access to the information.”
