Market Call: Three Scenarios

We now see three possible historical precedents for the economy, the Fed, and the stock market's performance ahead:

(1) The 1920s (with a subjective probability of 60%). This is our base case "Roaring 2020s" scenario. We've been discussing it since the start of the current decade. Our basic premise is that a chronic shortage of labor is forcing companies to use technological innovations to boost their productivity growth, which started to improve last year according to the government's quarterly data. As a result, inflation remains subdued, while real GDP growth, real wage growth, and profit margins all get boosted. The Fed is likely to ease, but won't have to cut the federal funds rate by much. Stock investors do very well.