Rocket Fuel Newsletter – 07/30/22

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More talk on rate hikes and inflation - are you surprised?

Fuel Up 🚀   
  

Biz Buzz 

This Week In Unsurprising News:

The Fed announced another major rate hike on Wednesday, bumping rates another 0.75 percentage points to a range of 2.25% – 2.5%. What does this mean for you, the financial industry professional? 

  • Home prices could cool off as home sales slowdown due to higher mortgage rates. 
  • Savings accounts and CD’s will (eventually) start to accrue interest again as Fed rates increase. 
  • Inflation will (hopefully) begin to ease. Lower gas prices and future rate increases should chip away at the 9.1% June inflation rate. Barclays predicts this rate will fall to 5.7% by December. 

Strangely enough, the stock market has rallied each of the last several times the Fed has raised rates (and it did so again yesterday). 

Inflation At The Concession Stands 

ESPN.com ran a story last weekend detailing the impact of inflation on Major League Baseball stadium concession stands. Unfortunately, ballparks have not been immune to price changes amid supply chain and employment issues. 

Comerica Park in Detroit sits around league average for some of the most popular food and drink items – where does your home ballpark rank? 

In The Weeds Reads 

  1. Pending Home Sales Fell 8.6% In June 
  1. New Home Sales Fell 8.1% In June  
  1. Home Showings Down 20% Year-Over-Year In June 
  1. FHFA Home Price Index Up 1.4% In May 
  1. Home Seller Profits Surge Amid New Round Of Price Spikes In Q2 

Pro Puzzles   

Two solvers completed last week’s Z-filled puzzle in less than a minute, and they were close! Congrats to our unnamed solver whose 48-second time bested John F. by just 3 seconds. 

This week, we celebrate the Rocket Mortgage Classic with a golf pin-shaped puzzle. We give it 3 Rockets out of 5, or in golf terms, an eagle. 

Click here to solve! Â