Novembers Political Exuberance Morphs into Uncertainty and Fragilised Economic Activity


 
After Trump's November election win, the US Sales Managers Survey recorded a previously unheard of 5.1 Index points increase in Business Confidence. Through December and January the exuberance faded somewhat, but was clearly still present in the Sales Managers Survey responses.

The Survey results for February present a very different story, with all Indexes falling sharply over the month. The Sales Growth, Staffing and Overall Sales Managers Indexes all fell to 13 month lows. All other indexes hit new lows. The overall Sales Managers Index came in barely above the 50 line separating growth from economic contraction.

Post Trump election exuberance fades away
Diffusion Index: 50 = ‘no growth’
Novembers Political Exuberance Morphs into Uncertainty and Fragilised Economic Activity


There seems little doubt that the continuous stream of political and business threats pouring out of the President's office on a daily basis are causing considerable uncertainty and harming growth. The extreme buoyancy in business confidence over the immediate post election period appears to have all but evaporated.
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