Manufacturing PMIPMI — Purchasing Managers' Index. Above 50 = the sector is expanding vs last month; below 50 = contracting. A timely read on activity. is above 50 and rising.
Why: A reading above 50 means more firms report expanding activity than contracting; rising means the breadth of expansion is widening — a timely, forward-looking growth signal.
Earnings expectations broaden toward economically-sensitive sectors.
Why: Stronger activity feeds revenue and pricing power first in the parts of the market geared to the physical economy.
Cyclicalscyclicals — Sectors whose earnings rise and fall with the economic cycle — industrials, materials, energy, consumer discretionary., small-caps, EM and commodities lead; defensivesdefensives — Sectors whose demand is steady through the cycle — consumer staples, utilities, healthcare. They outperform when growth slows. lag.
Why: Capital rotates toward the cycle — industrials, materials, energy, smaller and more leveraged firms, and the commodities their activity consumes — while steady-demand defensives become relatively less attractive.

Helps
cyclicals (industrials, materials, energy)small-capsEM equitycommodities

Hurts
defensive sectors (staples, utilities)long government bonds

Caveat: If acceleration also stokes inflation fears, the bond-yield response can offset the equity benefit (good growth becomes 'too good'), especially late-cycle.

House-view hook — empty (textbook default; Stephen's view bakes in here).

What would change the read

Inflation surprise (upside) Core inflation is steady, so the upside-surprise channel is quiet. It would fire on a core reading ≥0.2pp above the prior — watch it because that is what forces a central bank to stay restrictive and pressures the longest-duration assets first.
Inflation surprise (downside / disinflation) Core inflation isn't cooling fast enough to trigger the disinflation channel. A fall of ≥0.2pp would fire it — worth watching because it is the cleanest tailwind for long-duration growth and government bonds.
Monetary easing (rate cut) The policy rate is on hold, so the easing channel is dormant. A cut would fire it — it matters because the first cut of a cycle typically broadens a rally and pressures the currency.

China

No active mechanism this week — the standing read above carries the bloc.

What would change the read

Monetary easing (rate cut) The policy rate is on hold, so the easing channel is dormant. A cut would fire it — it matters because the first cut of a cycle typically broadens a rally and pressures the currency.
Monetary tightening (rate hike) The policy rate is steady, so the tightening channel is dormant. A hike would fire it — watch it because it hits long-duration growth, long bonds, and gold first.
Growth acceleration (expansionary PMI) Manufacturing isn't both expanding and accelerating, so the growth-acceleration channel is dormant. A rising PMI back above 50 would fire it — it matters because it's the signal to rotate from defensives toward cyclicals.

Euro area

No active mechanism this week — the standing read above carries the bloc.

What would change the read

Monetary easing (rate cut) The policy rate is on hold, so the easing channel is dormant. A cut would fire it — it matters because the first cut of a cycle typically broadens a rally and pressures the currency.
Monetary tightening (rate hike) The policy rate is steady, so the tightening channel is dormant. A hike would fire it — watch it because it hits long-duration growth, long bonds, and gold first.
Growth acceleration (expansionary PMI) Manufacturing isn't both expanding and accelerating, so the growth-acceleration channel is dormant. A rising PMI back above 50 would fire it — it matters because it's the signal to rotate from defensives toward cyclicals.

Japan

No active mechanism this week — the standing read above carries the bloc.

What would change the read

Inflation surprise (upside) Core inflation is steady, so the upside-surprise channel is quiet. It would fire on a core reading ≥0.2pp above the prior — watch it because that is what forces a central bank to stay restrictive and pressures the longest-duration assets first.
Inflation surprise (downside / disinflation) Core inflation isn't cooling fast enough to trigger the disinflation channel. A fall of ≥0.2pp would fire it — worth watching because it is the cleanest tailwind for long-duration growth and government bonds.
Monetary easing (rate cut) The policy rate is on hold, so the easing channel is dormant. A cut would fire it — it matters because the first cut of a cycle typically broadens a rally and pressures the currency.

The dataL3

United States

Indicator	Current	Prior	Δ	As of
CPI (YoY)	1.40	1.37	+0.03 ▬	2021-01-13
Core CPI	0.10	0.02	+0.08 ▬	2021-01-13
Core PCE	1.70	1.40	+0.30 ▲	2021-01-01
Policy rate	0.25	0.25	+0.00 ▬	2021-01-17
GDP	5.70	33.40	-27.70 ▼	2021-01-01
PMI (mfg)	60.70	57.50	+3.20 ▲	2021-01-05
PMI (svc)	57.20	55.90	+1.30 ▲	2021-01-07
Unemployment	6.70	6.40	+0.30 ▲	2021-01-08
10Y yield	1.11	1.15	-0.04 ▬	2021-01-15
2Y yield	0.13	0.16	-0.03 ▬	2021-01-15
2s10s slope	0.98	0.99	-0.01 ▬	2021-01-15
FX vs USD	90.78	90.24	+0.54 ▲	2021-01-15

China

Indicator	Current	Prior	Δ	As of
CPI (YoY)	0.20	-0.50	+0.70 ▲	2021-01-11
Policy rate	3.85	3.85	+0.00 ▬	2020-12-21
GDP	4.90	3.20	+1.70 ▲	2020-10-19
PMI (mfg)	51.30	51.90	-0.60 ▼	2021-01-01
PMI (svc)	55.70	56.40	-0.70 ▼	2020-12-31
Unemployment	5.40	5.20	+0.20 ▲	2021-01-01
10Y yield	3.15	3.11	+0.04 ▬	2021-01-15
2Y yield	2.68	2.60	+0.08 ▲	2021-01-15
2s10s slope	0.47	0.51	-0.04 ▬	2021-01-15
FX vs USD	6.47	6.47	+0.01 ▬	2021-01-15

Euro area

Indicator	Current	Prior	Δ	As of
CPI (YoY)	-0.30	-0.30	+0.00 ▬	2021-01-07
Policy rate	0.00	0.00	+0.00 ▬	2020-12-10
GDP	-0.30	-0.30	+0.00 ▬	2020-12-17
PMI (mfg)	55.20	55.50	-0.30 ▬	2021-01-04
PMI (svc)	46.40	47.30	-0.90 ▼	2021-01-06
Unemployment	8.30	8.40	-0.10 ▬	2021-01-08
10Y yield	-0.06	-0.09	+0.03 ▬	2021-01-01 ⚠⚠
FX vs USD	1.22	1.22	-0.00 ▬	2021-01-15

Japan

Indicator	Current	Prior	Δ	As of
CPI (YoY)	-0.90	-0.40	-0.50 ▼	2020-12-18
Core CPI	-0.40	-0.40	+0.00 ▬	2020-12-18
Policy rate	-0.10	-0.10	+0.00 ▬	2020-12-18
GDP	n/a
PMI (mfg)	n/a
Unemployment	2.90	3.10	-0.20 ▼	2020-12-25
10Y yield	0.06	0.02	+0.04 ▬	2021-01-01 ⚠⚠
FX vs USD	103.83	103.84	-0.01 ▬	2021-01-15

Concept libraryL3

Terms marked ✓ are linked inline above — click any dotted term in the text to expand it in place.

2s10s: The gap between the 10-year and 2-year government bond yields. Positive = normal upward-sloping curve; negative ('inverted') = a classic late-cycle/recession warning.
PMI ✓: Purchasing Managers' Index. Above 50 = the sector is expanding vs last month; below 50 = contracting. A timely read on activity.
carry trade: Borrowing in a low-rate currency (long the yen's case) to buy higher-yielding assets elsewhere. It unwinds violently when the funding rate rises or the funding currency strengthens.
credit impulse: The change in the flow of new credit into an economy. A rising impulse front-runs stronger demand for commodities and cyclical goods, with a lag.
cyclicals ✓: Sectors whose earnings rise and fall with the economic cycle — industrials, materials, energy, consumer discretionary.
defensives ✓: Sectors whose demand is steady through the cycle — consumer staples, utilities, healthcare. They outperform when growth slows.
discount rate: The rate used to convert a future cash flow into today's value. A higher discount rate makes far-off cash flows worth less now.
disinflation: Inflation that is still positive but falling (prices rising more slowly) — distinct from deflation, where prices actually fall.
duration: How sensitive an asset's price is to interest rates. 'Long-duration' assets (long bonds, fast-growing stocks whose profits are years away) move most when rates change.
net interest margin: The spread a bank earns between what it charges on loans and pays on deposits. Higher short rates / steeper curves tend to widen it.
nominal yield: The headline interest rate on a bond, before subtracting inflation.
policy rate: The interest rate a central bank sets directly (e.g. the Fed funds rate, the ECB deposit rate, China's LPR). It anchors all other rates.
rate path: The market's expectation of where the policy rate goes over the next year or two — not just today's level, but the whole expected trajectory.
real yield: The yield after subtracting expected inflation — what a lender actually earns in purchasing power. Real yield ≈ nominal yield − expected inflation.
term premium: The extra yield investors demand to hold a long bond instead of rolling short ones — compensation for tying money up and for issuance/inflation risk.