Economic Commentary
A short note on the US Supreme Court’s decision on tariffs
Economy & Policy February 20, 2026 Raymond James Chief Economist Eugenio J. Alemán discusses current economic conditions. We will let lawyers determine the path forward on tariffs after the Supreme Court’s decision, but we want to give our two cents from inside our economist castle tower. As we have said before, we believe that freer […]
What to make of the January employment report
Economy & Policy February 13, 2026 Raymond James Chief Economist Eugenio J. Alemán discusses current economic conditions. There is a lot to unpack from what was included in the delayed January employment report. The most important information was that it was very strong, up 130,000. Recent research has shown that the breakeven monthly employment growth […]
Employment weakness is driving the mood
February 06, 2026 Raymond James Chief Economist Eugenio J. Alemán discusses current economic conditions. A couple of weeks ago, on Jan. 23, 2026, we dedicated part of the weekly commentaries to the mismatch between the economy and how American consumers feel about it. We said that measures of consumer confidence and consumer sentiment were not […]
Employment remains weak, but a recovery is in the cards
Economy & Policy January 16, 2026 Raymond James Chief Economist Eugenio J. Alemán discusses current economic conditions. The biggest concern for the Federal Reserve (Fed) today is the weakness in employment over the last year, and especially during the second half of the year. This weakness was behind its decision to resume interest rate cuts […]