Fisher Investments Reviews: Last Week in Markets—March 17 - March 21

In the US, February industrial production increased 0.7% m/m and 1.4% y/y while manufacturing production increased 0.9% m/m and 0.7% y/y. February retail sales grew 0.2% m/m and 3.1% y/y. The Federal Reserve kept its target federal funds rate range steady at 4.25% - 4.5%.

In the UK, the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.4% in February. The Bank of England left their benchmark Bank Rate unchanged at 4.5%. In the eurozone, February consumer inflation decelerated to 2.3% y/y, while core consumer inflation (which excludes energy, food, alcohol, and tobacco) remained steady at 2.6% y/y.

In Japan, January industrial production decreased 1.1% m/m, but increased 2.2% y/y. January retail sales fell 3.0% y/y. February consumer inflation decelerated to 3.7% y/y, while February core-core consumer inflation (excluding fresh food and energy) accelerated to 2.6% y/y. February preliminary imports fell 0.7% y/y, while exports rose 11.4% y/y, respectively. The Bank of Japan left its policy rate unchanged at 0.5%.

The Week Ahead:

The US, UK, eurozone and Japan release March flash purchasing managers’ indexes (PMIs). The US reports its third estimate of Q4 2024 GDP, while the UK reports it’s second. The US releases preliminary February durable goods orders and personal expenditure expenditures (PCE) data—the Fed’s preferred inflation metric. The UK reports February consumer inflation and retail sales. The eurozone releases February money supply (M3). Japan reports February trade data.

Source for all data cited is FactSet. This update constitutes the general views of Fisher Investments and should not be regarded as personalized investment advice. No assurances are made we will continue to hold these views, which may change at any time based on new information, analysis or reconsideration. In addition, no assurances are made regarding the accuracy of any forecast made herein. Global equities are represented by the MSCI World Index. The MSCI World Index measures the performance of selected stocks in 23 developed countries and is presented net of dividend withholding taxes and uses the maximum rate applicable to non-resident institutional investors who do not benefit from double taxation treaties. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. A risk of loss is involved with investments in stock markets.