Beige Book Reveals a Sagging Low- and Middle-End Consumer

Global markets sit mostly flat in a thin holiday trade while the Beige Book flags a recessionary labor market and a frugal consumer.

Key Takeaways

• Japan Data Supportive of a Stronger Yen: It is quiet on the markets front, but the data released overnight showed economic strength in Japanese retail sales, industrial production, and above-expected core inflation. All should be yen-positive. In Europe, bonds should like the declines in the various German state CPI data and stability in the ECB inflation expectation surveys.