Risk-adjusted performance continued to rise in August for the Global Market Index (GMI), an unmanaged, market-value-weighted portfolio that holds all the major asset classes (except cash). GMI’s Sharpe ratio increased for a sixth straight month, reaching 0.93 – the highest in over two years.

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* Millions of jobless Americans are about to lose federal unemployment benefits
* Japan’s prime minister announces he’ll quit after a year in office
* Looking for clues for predicting how the Taliban will govern Afghanistan
* China Services PMI: sector contracted in August for first time since April 2020
* US jobless claims remained strong in August
* GM to halt most production at North American plants due to chip shortage
* One of biggest hedge funds agrees to pay up to $7 billion to settle tax dispute
* US rent inflation will accelerate, predict two Fed economists predict:

The expected risk premium for the Global Market (GMI) ticked up in August, reaching an annualized 6.1%, slightly above the previous month’s estimate. That’s a relatively elevated level compared with recent history. The forecast relates to the long-run outlook for GMI’s return over the “risk-free” rate, which is based on the yield for a 3-month Treasury bill.

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* Hurricane Ida’s remnants bring widespread flooding to US Northeast
* Global mfg growth slipped to six-month low in August via PMI survey data
* US construction spending ticked up to 9.0% annual gain, a pandemic high
* Will ending eviction protections harm the economic recovery?
* The outlook for merger arb trades looks encouraging, predicts GMO
* US manufacturing posts slightly stronger growth in August
* US private payrolls grew faster in August, but less than forecast via ADP data:

Is it risk-on again for emerging markets? It’s an intriguing question that resonates a bit more these days, courtesy of rallies in several of the leading EM nations.

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The winning streak for American shares rolled on in August. US stocks rose for a seventh straight month and posted the strongest gain for the major asset classes.

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* Assessing the shift in global power relations in wake of US exit from Afghanistan
* China mfg sector posts slight decline in Aug–first drop in 1-1/2 years
* OPEC+ lifts forecast for oil demand in 2022
* India’s economy rebounded at record rate in second quarter
* German retail sales fell far more than expected in July
* US home prices post record gain in June
* Chicago PMI pulls back to 2-month low in Aug, but still reflects strong growth
* Is the stock market immune to bad news?
* US Consumer Confidence Index fell in August to six-month low: