Market Pulse Report Q1 2022 - Fitzgerald Power

Economic trends

The invasion of Ukraine by Russia has further destabilised the global economy, increasing inflation in energy and food prices. Russia and Ukraine are important exporters of commodities such as wheat and gas, and the disruption in production is driving up prices across the world.

The Irish economic outlook

The Irish economy is estimated to have grown by 13.5% last year, driven largely by growth of 16.6% in exports of goods and services. Gross national product, a measure of economic activity that excludes the profits of multinationals, increased by 11.5%.

Stock market trends

The US stock market had its worse start to a year in decades, dropping 13% in the first four months. The decline is driven by a drop in the share price of the major tech companies, but it remains to be seen if this is a temporary blip or reflects a systemic shift in the market.

Rising prices

Inflation in the Eurozone rose to a new high of 7.4%, with energy prices remaining the biggest contributor to accelerating prices, rising 44.7%. Core inflation, which excludes volatile factors such as energy, food, alcohol and tobacco, remained stable at 3.2%.

Global economic trends

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected global growth will slow from an estimated 6.1% in 2021 to 3.6% in 2022 and 2023. This is 0.8 and 0.2 percentage points lower for 2022 and 2023 than projected in January.