International economy
Overview
The pace of global growth has broadly accelerated since our July
commentary. The United States has added over 2 million jobs in the
past year and robust corporate profits have driven sharemarkets
higher. The slowdown in China has at least been temporarily
reversed with another round of stimulus reviving the rate of growth
to above 7.5%. In addition, the Eurozone came out of recession in
the June quarter.
Global GDP and manufacturing output PMI
Source: Markit ... JP Morgan Global All Industry output index at
2 1/2 year highs In August
United States
The US recovery has broadly been driven by a lean and profitable
corporate sector that has benefited from low interest rates, a
favourable exchange rate, a flexible labour market and cheaper
energy costs courtesy of the coal seam gas boom. This has helped
sustain the recovery since the Global Financial Crisis (GFC).
Nevertheless, the recovery has been one of the weakest in
