Karol Pelc

Karol Pelc

Week 42

Macro Inflation broadened beyond energy, increasing pressure on household purchasing power. US September CPI rose 0.6% month-on-month, lifting annual inflation to 3.7%; core prices increased 0.3%, above the 0.2% consensus, with three-month annualised momentum reaching approximately 3.4%. Gasoline drove more…

Week 41

Macro The global expansion remains resilient, but rising energy and transport costs are making growth more inflationary while narrowing the scope for policy support. This week’s evidence points to continued US activity, uneven household demand across Asia and mounting fiscal…

Week 40

Macro Softer US employment and inflation data shifted expectations towards later Fed tightening, while European fiscal stress intensified. The implied probability of an October hike fell from approximately 64% to 23% over the week, although markets still priced roughly one…

Week 39

Macro Stronger US activity reduced near-term slowdown risks while making the inflation challenge harder to resolve. September’s flash composite PMI rose to 58.4 from 56.0, with manufacturing and services both strengthening alongside new orders and employment. Business investment provided supporting…

Week 38

Macro The Fed delivered the long-awaited return to tightening, reinforcing confidence that persistent inflation would ultimately take precedence over political pressure for lower rates. The widely anticipated 25bp hike to 3.75–4.00% was the first increase since 2023 and, more importantly,…

Week 37

Macro The Middle East energy shock moved from geopolitical risk premium toward physical supply disruption this week, while global activity remained surprisingly resilient. Brent rose 8.65% Friday-to-Friday from $96.28 to $104.61/bbl and reached $109.97 intraday, while WTI gained 9.37% to…

Week 36

Macro Global growth remained resilient, led by a renewed acceleration in US activity, but the underlying labor data were firm rather than unequivocally inflationary. US payrolls increased by 162,000 in August against 55,000 expected, unemployment held at 4.1%, participation rose…

Week 35

Macro The US growth-inflation mix deteriorated at the margin, although the apparent stickiness in PCE may overstate underlying inflation pressure. Core PCE rose to 3.34% YoY and headline PCE to 3.70%, while real consumption was flat, retail sales fell 0.6%…

Week 34

Macro The global macro backdrop remained resilient but increasingly uneven, while the renewed Iran and Hormuz shock materially raised the inflation tail risk. Brent rose 6.6%, from $88.52 to $94.39/bbl, and briefly approached $95, after the US-Iran MOU expired on…

Week 33

Macro The US data mix turned materially less hawkish. July payrolls fell 23k vs +80k expected, compounded by 103k of downward revisions to May/June; unemployment nevertheless fell to 4.1% vs 4.2% expected, partly reflecting weaker participation, while initial claims rose…