Nirvana for Stocks Rests on Faith in Fed Doves
It’s the best of both worlds for equities, with economic data strong and bond yields contained. How long that can continue depends on central bankers.
The Fed conquers all inflation fears, for now at least.
Photographer: Sakesan Khamsuwan/EyeEm/Getty Images
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April is showering the U.S. with economic good news. The last two days of last week brought startling good numbers on manufacturing from the ISM purchasing managers’ survey, followed by an excellent jobs report on Good Friday. The question was whether the services sector, more directly affected by the pandemic slowdown, would be able to revive to the same extent. On Monday, the ISM services survey for last month came in with the highest figure since it started in 1997, while beating expectations by the biggest margin since Bloomberg began compiling economists’ estimates in 2008. So, yes, the services sector is doing well too: