The Day at a Glance | July 26 2023

*Consumer confidence in the U.S. reached its highest level in 2 years.

*Mortgage applications in the U.S. fell 1.8% w/w during the week ending on July 21st.

*The Federal Reserve will announce its monetary policy decision today at 12:00pm. The analysts´ consensus – as well as the futures market – expect a 25bp increase, which would take the federal funds rate to a range of between 5.25% and 5.50%.

*Fitch Ratings dismisses leverage risks for companies in Mexico due to “Nearshoring.”

*This Thursday, African leaders will seek to reach concrete agreements on grain exports with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

*European banks warn about the risks of bad loans amidst a weak global economy.

*Today, Hunter Biden, son of U.S. President Joe Biden, is expected to plead guilty to two federal tax offenses for not paying taxes in a timely manner in 2017 and 2018.

Economic environment

The US consumer confidence indicator – carried out by the “Conference Board” – recorded a 7.2 point increase in July and set at 117.0 points, its highest level since July 2021. This reading significantly exceeded the 112.0 points expected by the consensus, driven by an improved perception of current conditions and future expectations. Regarding the job market, people surveyed reported improved employment conditions and abundant job opportunities. In this regard, the perceived probability of a recession occurring within the next 12 months, represented by the percentage of participants who responded “somewhat” to “very likely,” decreased compared to what was seen at the beginning of the year.