W5 - Fed Hikes Interest Rates, Credit Card Debt Hits Record High, Layoffs From PayPal & Rivian, US Payrolls Surge, and Amazon + Apple + Alphabet + Meta Earnings
The Fed hikes interest rates 25 basis points and foreshadows it may only have a few left before an eventual pause. Chairman Powell had a slightly dovish tone in the press conference and noted ‘disinflation’ has started.
Payrolls spiked 517K last month, well above estimates of 187Kas the unemployment rate sank to a 55-year low at 3.4%. Average hourly earnings rose 0.3% during the month and 4.4% during the year, in line with expectations.
Layoffs in tech continue to pile upas PayPal, Rivian, Workday, Upstart, Okta, Hubspot, DraftKings, Splunk, and others make cuts this week. According to layoffs.fyi, 288tech companies have laid off 88K workers so far in 2023.
U.S. manufacturing sector sinks furtheras ISM reports a Manufacturing PMI of 47.4 (48.0 exp.) for January, down from 48.4 the month prior. Prices paid jumped to 44.5, signaling prices continue to slide but at a slower pace.
Google is testing ChatGPT-like competitorsas it looks to integrate the feature into a new search page design. ChatGPT’s explosive launch has lit a fire under Google, as more employees have been asked to help test the efforts internally.
U.S. credit card debt surges 18.5% during the yearand hits a record $930.6 billion as consumers continue to digest higher inflation and higher interest rates. The average balance rose to $5,805 over that same period.
Rest of World 🌏
Bank of England hikes rates by 50 basis points, taking the bank rate to 4%. They also indicated in their decision statement that smaller increases and an eventual end to the hiking cycle may be in the cards in coming meetings.
Eurozone inflation dips for a third straight month as energy prices continue to fall. Headline inflation came in at 8.5% in January, below the consensus forecast of 9.0%, and down from 9.2% in December.
China’s January factory activity returns to growth as economists cheer its reopening. China’s official PMI rose to 50.1, above consensus estimates of 49.8, and up significantly from last month’s reading of 47.0.
Celsius allows specific users to withdraw assetsat 94 cents on the dollar if they can cover the withdrawal fees. The customers eligible for withdrawals should receive an email on Feb 15 with further steps on how to process transfers.
BonqDAO protocol suffers a $120M loss after an oracle hack allowed the exploiter to manipulate the price of the AllianceBlock token. The hacker stole $108m in BEUR tokens and $11m in wrapped-ALBT tokens.
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