Recession Fears Rattle Stocks: Time for Alternative Assets?
Stocks experienced another decline last week as Wall Street grappled with recession concerns, despite the release of cooler-than-expected inflation data.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average put an end to what was an encouraging four-day win streak, dropping 0.11%, while the S&P 500 fell 0.41%, and the Nasdaq Composite declined by 0.85%. Not huge, panic-inducing amounts, but they are noticeable.
Minutes from the Federal Reserve’s March policy meeting revealed fears of a mild recession later this year due to the U.S. banking crisis.
Richmond Federal Reserve President Thomas Barkin commented that although peak inflation might be behind the U.S., there is still progress to be made. Recession worries continued to impact investors, even with the March consumer price index (CPI) coming in lower than expected at a 0.1% rise, as opposed to the anticipated 0.2% increase. Small fry, you may argue. And you might be right.
CFRA‘s Sam Stovall commented that while the direction of the CPI might be encouraging, it’s still unlikely to be sufficient for the Fed to halt rate increases.
The health of the U.S. economy and consumers will be further scrutinized later in the week as the first-quarter earnings season commences. Major banks such as JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Citigroup, along with healthcare giant UnitedHealth, are set to report their results. Watch this space.
For people interested in alternative assets, like you, the current economic climate presents challenges and opportunities.
As recession concerns weigh on traditional investments like stocks, you might look to alternative assets to diversify your portfolios, spread risk, and potentially find higher returns. Our blog this week focuses on the growing demand from small businesses for MCA capital, and the opportunities this presents to investors.
That’s the roundup for this week. You can sign up for this newsletter here to stay ahead of the curve with weekly expert insight and measured commentary.
