Weekly Market & Economic News Recap (Week of May 8, 2023)

• Home prices fell in more parts of the U.S. than they have in over a decade during the first quarter, when nearly a third of metro areas posted annual price declines. (Wall Street Journal, May 9, 2023, https://www.wsj.com/articles/home-prices-fell-in-third-of-the-u-s-during-first-quarter-a7f7f78d?mod=economy_more_pos8)

• Inflation eased in April but remains stubbornly high. Prices rose 4.9% from a year earlier, 10th straight month of cooling, likely keeping the Federal Reserve on course to pause interest-rate increases at its next meeting. (Wall Street Journal, May 10, 2023, https://www.wsj.com/articles/us-inflation-april-2023-consumer-price-index-48f0eac5?mod=economy_more_pos5)

• Economy showed signs of cooling last month. Weekly filings for jobless claims rose to highest level since 2021 and supplier inflation moderated in April. (Wall Street Journal, May 11, 2023 https://www.wsj.com/articles/supplier-prices-rose-modestly-in-april-539f17ab?mod=economy_more_pos3)

• Bond selloff adds to the pressure on regional banks. Rising yields on debt threaten higher borrowing costs for lenders. (Wall Street Journal, May 11, 2023, https://www.wsj.com/articles/bond-selloff-adds-to-the-pressure-on-regional-banks-8752867f?mod=markets_major_pos13)

• Congressional and White House staff plan to continue talks over the weekend to avert a U.S. default, as lawmakers expressed increasing urgency about reaching a deal and a nonpartisan report confirmed that the U.S. could fail to make required payments in early June if Congress doesn’t act. (Wall Street Journal, May 12, 2023, https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-risks-breaching-debt-ceiling-in-first-two-weeks-of-june-cbo-says-29b5b9c2?mod=economy_lead_story)

• The S&P and Dow fell Friday and posted a second straight weekly loss as regional bank concerns lingered and survey data showed rising consumer inflation expectations. (Wall Street Journal, May 12, 2023, https://www.wsj.com/articles/global-stocks-markets-dow-news-05-12-2023-51f6a9be?mod=markets_lead_pos1)

• Consumer prices in China rose at their slowest pace in more than two years, reflecting uncertainties in the economy that threaten to limit a consumption-led recovery from three years of strict Covid-19 measures. (Wall Street Journal, May 11, 2023, https://www.wsj.com/articles/chinese-consumer-inflation-slows-to-lowest-level-in-two-years-f7220aad?mod=economy_more_pos4)

• The Bank of England raised its key interest rate for the 12th consecutive time and signaled more increases are possible as it released less gloomy forecasts for the U.K. economy. (Wall Street Journal, May 11, 2023, https://www.wsj.com/articles/bank-of-england-raises-interest-rates-by-quarter-point-db9d3d89?mod=markets_major_pos14)