Economics: Top 2023 charts: a half-time report

Updating our top charts for 2023

It’s exactly six months since we published our selection of charts to track over the course of 2023. This week we update each of those charts and outline how our key macro themes have panned out so far.

Some encouraging signs in the near-term, but headwinds remain 

Our global leading indicator has turned up, and we still haven’t seen the downturn in capex spending and rise in unemployment that we had expected. China’s housing concerns have faded too. Yet the global economy still faces a number of headwinds.

Signs that underlying inflation pressure is easing

Our US Wage Growth Tracker has weakened further, and measures of underlying inflation look to have peaked almost everywhere. Central banks appear close to bringing their tightening cycles to a close.