Volatility at home and abroad

Key takeaways

• Recession seems imminent given the Fed’s fourth consecutive 0.75 percent rate hike.
• The Russia/Ukraine conflict is likely to continue to have an impact for up to a decade, including leaving Russia as a second-tier commodity exporter.
• Although China is the world’s second largest economy, the country is no longer driving global growth.
• The energy crisis is the biggest concern in Europe, particularly in the UK and Germany, where some businesses and industries may fail when stockpiles are depleted.
• Staffing challenges continue to challenge CFOs across all industries, although there are exceptionally challenging shortages in the hospitality and leisure, childcare, education, and nursing professions.
• Although male workforce participation has reached pre-pandemic levels, and women are starting to come back to the labor market, the U.S. ranks 9 to 10 percentage points lower than Canada when it comes to labor participation.