The first Q3 GDP estimate was released and for the first time in 2022 the estimate was positive. GDP was estimated to have grown at an annual rate of 2.6%. However, one of the largest reasons for this turnaround is a swing in international trade. Exports rose significantly as the U.S. is exporting oil and national gas abroad. Imports also fell leading to a substantial decrease in the deficit. It'll be interesting to see how estimates change in the near future. Consumption still remains strong, however, the housing market has been dropping in recent months leading to decreases in investment.
Last Wednesday, Meta reported its Q3 earnings, and they fell well short of their estimated revenue. The market responded accordingly as the stock dropped 24%. Meta stock has seen a severe drop in the past year. This is due to competition in the social media market with the people using other platforms such as TikTok. Investors are also skeptical of the significant investment being made into building the metaverse.
This past week, one megawatt hours' worth of natural gas cost -$16 in Europe. Since the start of the Russia Ukraine war, the supply of natural gas in Europe has declined immensely. Europe relies heavily on gas coming in from Russian pipelines. Recently, the adjustment being made has been importing liquid natural gas or LNG from other parts of the globe such as the U.S.. However, Europe lacks the infrastructure to hold high levels of LNG. Thus, there is a bottleneck of ships carrying LNG in European ports. As ports get congested, and the fuel needs to be unloaded, prices have dropped substantially so that ships can unload the fuel and depart. As Winter grows near, it will be interesting to see how the energy market fluctuates in Europe
https://www.npr.org/2022/10/28/1132364114/gdp-lng-and-metas-q3
I spoke about the Q3 GDP numbers and it looks like that isn't a true sign of forward momentum for our economy, but anything is possible
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