Business

Former Fed chair Alan Greenspan blasphemously warned a year ago of an "imminent crisis":

"This is the worst period, I recall since I've been in public service. There's nothing like it, including the crisis - remember October 19th, 1987, when the Dow went down by a record amount 23 percent? That I thought was the bottom of all potential problems. This has a corrosive effect that will not go away. I'd love to find something positive to say."

Via MauldinEconomics.com,

It is increasingly evident that the US economy is not taking off like some predicted after the election.

President Trump and the Republicans haven’t passed any of the fiscal stimulus measures we hoped to see. Banks and energy companies have got some regulatory relief, and that helps. But it’s a far cry from the sweeping healthcare reform, tax cuts, and infrastructure spending we were promised.

Headline growth in US construction spending collapsed in July to just 1.6% YoY - the weakest since 2011.

As Reuters reports, U.S. construction spending unexpectedly fell in June as investment in public projects recorded its biggest drop since March 2002. The Commerce Department said on Tuesday that construction spending tumbled 1.3 percent to $1.21 trillion - the lowest level since September 2016 - drastically missing economists' estimates of a 0.4% increase.

July was a great month for virtually all asset classes (at least those tracked by Deutsche Bank) with the notable exception of what, which tumbled after surging previously.

Remember what Goldman said when it reported atrocious earnings two weeks ago, when it revealed that FICC revenues plunged by 40%? Here is a reminder:

"During the quarter, Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Client Execution operated in a challenging environment characterized by low levels of volatility, low client activity and generally difficult market-making conditions... During the quarter, Equities operated in an environment characterized by generally higher global equity prices, while volatility levels remained low."