The September 2025 edition of the S&P 500 equity sector rotation chartbook can be found here. You can read more about the methodology and underlying assets here. This chartbook has been prepared with 1y total return, which is a departure from the first version with six-month returns. I honestly didn’t think about this when I pulled the data from Investing.com, as I normally work with 1y total return data for portfolio construction and the like. This shouldn’t make a huge difference to the main conclusions, though in some cases it might obviously shift the sectors around in the key diagram, compared to a six-month return framework. If you have a preference for future versions of this chartbook, let me know.
Read MoreI have been inspired, by listening to recent conversations on the Glenn Show, to delve into the writings of Thomas Sowell. This is a daunting task since the man has written a huge number of books, articles and essays. The Thomas Sowell Reader, however, seems to be a representative collection and a decent place to start. I am enjoying the reading experience so far. TS writes from a conservative, and fiercely pro-free market, perspective, at least in this the volume mentioned above. This invariably will put some readers off. But you’d be hard pressed to find a better example of punchy, yet eloquent, non-technical exposition of economics, social and political issues. The essay on the economics of discrimination and the small tract on “unfunded mandates” are particularly feisty and enjoyable.
Read MoreGlenn Loury is preparing to host a conference at the Hoover Institute, honouring the life and works of Thomal Sowell. To that end, he is hosting a number of conversations on his podcast. The first one with Emily Skarbek, associate economics professor at Brown University, and the second with Jason Riley, columnist for the WSJ, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute. They’re great conversations even if you, like me, are not familiar with the works and life of Thomas Sowell. TS, still going strong in his 90s, writes and thinks about core principles of economic thought, social life, individual responsibility and rights, and it is great to hear Glenn and his guests flex their intellectual muscles on these topics. I’d add to these two a recent Econtalk episode in which Russ Roberts sits down with his friend, and long-time guest on Econtalk, Mike Munger to discuss the question of what capitalism is.
We could all use a space online to unplug once in a while, especially in our current moment. For that purpose, you could do a lot worse than listening to the conversations above.
Read MoreGlobal leading indicators remained robust heading into autumn, despite softening compared to levels at the start of the year. Uncertainty always lurks in financial markets, and currently, (at least) three major questions are weighing on investors—threatening the ongoing optimism in the global economy and financial markets:
U.S. Trade Policy and Tariffs: Did the White House, back in April, effectively throw a boomerang that's now returning to hit both the U.S. and global economy in the face?
Sustainability of the AI Investment Boom: Is the surge in tech and AI-exposed equities evidence of a genuine transformation, a bubble that is about to pop with predictably adverse consequences for markets and the economy.
Global Bond Market Sell-Off: Investors are raising questions about long-term fiscal sustainability in the U.S., U.K., France, and Japan, even speculating about the erosion of monetary policy independence in the U.S. A crisis of confidence in one or more of these large bond markets could trigger turbulence across opaque, illiquid private credit markets, spilling over into the real economy.