U.S. Review
Broad Gains, but Where Are the Skilled Workers?
• There were broad improvements in the economic data this week, with more optimism among small businesses, lower jobless claims and expanding consumer credit. However, according to the NFIB and JOLTS, a number of employers cannot seem to find qualified workers.
• Fed minutes revealed a slightly more dovish tone than was articulated during the press conference. We continue to look for the Fed’s rate hike to come around the middle of next year.
Global Review
IMF’s Downward Revision and Some Positive Offsets
• The IMF this week made headlines with its semi-annual update to its global forecasts, which shaved estimates for this year and next by a tenth of a percentage point each. Official projections from the IMF now expect top-line global GDP growth of 3.6 percent in 2014 and 3.9 percent in 2015. This is slightly rosier than our global growth forecast of 3.3 percent for 2014 and 3.8 percent in 2015.
• In this week’s Global Review on page 4, we discuss how the outlook for some parts of the global economy brightened this week with better-than-expected data.
Read the full report: Economic Research
Wells Fargo