Goldman Sachs Says Economy May Have Hit Bottom

The chief economist for Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Jan Hatzius, believes that the global economy may have already bottomed out, according to recent article in Bloomberg.

In a recent note, Hatzius and colleague Sven Jari Stehn wrote, “some green shoots are emerging that suggest that sequential growth will pick up from here,” adding that Goldman expects:

  • upside on risk assets, albeit probably at lower levels as “markets have become ‘more sanguine on recession;’ “
  • bond yields to rise;
  • continued strength in the dollar, “given a dovish Fed and expectation for a pickup in global growth;”
  • modest growth in oil over the next 2 to 3 months, but a “more bearish outlook for the remainder of the year.”
  • the outlook for a pickup in the U.S. is strongest, as the “drag from a tightening of financial conditions eases.”

The article also reports that Goldman sees “tentative signs of a turnaround in Chinese growth:”

The note expressed concern about weakness in European economies and has “pushed back its expectations for the first ECB hike from late-2019 to mid-2020,” according to the article. Regarding the Fed, Goldman believes that “prospects for moves in the next 6 to 9 months have fallen, and an increase toward the end of the year would require a rebound in both growth and core inflation.”

The article points out that some executives, including JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon, have expressed concern. While Dimon is not expecting a recession, in the bank’s annual presentation to investors he said, “We’re simply pointing out that we are very conscious about the risks we bear.”