From Joe Carson at The Carson Report, September 29:
Consumer price inflation is at its highest rate in decades, yet some equity managers are screaming that deflation is the most significant risk. Is deflation a credible risk, or are these prognostications a spurious call for a Fed pivot? It's the latter.
First, the US has never recorded one year of deflation in core consumer prices in the sixty-plus years that the Bureau of Labor Statistics has collected data. Think about that. There have been several years of high unemployment, with the jobless rate exceeding 8% and a few at 10%-plus. Also, the US experienced record wealth losses following sharp drops in equity and real estate prices, abrupt drops in commodity prices, and near-collapse in the banking system in 2008-09, and not one year of a decline in consumer prices. That does not mean the future risk is zero. Still, going from high to negative inflation in months has to be exceptionally low. Also, economic and financial conditions would have to get significantly worse, above and beyond what has happened in the past, for a prolonged period before deflation risks would be the dominant worry.
Second, many equity managers form their opinion on inflation/deflation risks based on changes in commodity prices, especially energy. But, commodity prices are inputs into the production process and have a small weight in the overall cost of operations. Also, the US uses more commodities than it produces, so a fall in commodity prices is usually bullish for growth as it frees up cash flow and increases demand (and prices) in other areas....
....MUCH MORE
Our introduction to a previous visit with the writer:
"Peak Inflation Is Hollow: It Provides No Context To Reduction in Speed or Duration of Cycle"
The author, Joe Carson
is the former Chief Economist & Director of Global Economic
Research at Alliance Bernstein. Prior to that he was Chief Economist at
Chemical Bank and at Dean Witter, firms he left in such rough shape they
were forced to merge with JPM and MS respectively. (Just Kidding Mr.
C.)....
