When the Economic Canaries Stop Singing, It Signals Trouble
Some of America’s most reliable economic fortune tellers delivered some unsettling news. Two established bellwethers touching every American household, UPSUPS and Procter & GamblePG, reported earnings on Tuesday, revealing concerning trends. When companies this foundational struggle, it adds yet another recessionary indicator to the growing pile.
- Package powerhouseUPS reported domestic volume and EPS plummeted 7.3% and 8.48% from last year, respectively — withholding its guidance amid “macroeconomic uncertainty.”
- Meanwhile, consumer staplePG “really see[s] that the consumer is under … stress” — citing spending slowdowns across its categories as shoppers slash store visits and delay purchases.
The bottom line: This isn’t just another tale of two economies, as high-income shoppers hunt for deals alongside their inflation-battered counterparts. The pullback even reached beyond borders, as P&G’s CFO noted that the slowdown spans both the US and Western Europe. With UPS offering driver buyouts for the first time in 117 years and P&G facing “more challenges now than any time [its CEO] can remember,” the economic outlook just got much harder to ignore.