[NEW INSIGHT] Why multimedia is becoming a CEOs most powerful thought leadership tool in 2026
When I was a kid, I loved WWE. The cartoonish jumps, the seemingly fatal hits, a picnic table to the skull. I used to go nuts watching it.
And there was no better part than seeing these guys get up from the canvas after witnessing – presumably – Heaven’s gates. It was like Monty Python’s Black Knight on steroids (literally).
In present times, of course, my entertainment is far more bland. But I still clutch onto the primal excitement of my WWE-compilation days with fondness. So much so that, when I read something in the news – the US economy, cough, cough – that embodies the invincibility of a beaten-up jock in ridiculous costume, invoking my dear wrestling Muse just comes naturally.
So, there we have it. The focus of this newsletter: a US economy that, despite tariffs, despite geopolitical chaos, and despite an unruly President, continues to defy expectations.
The US economy keeps taking hits, yet it continues to get back up off the canvas.
Inflation registered just 2.4% in January 2026 (-0.1% than @Bloomberg’s sensible prediction), and the economy added a whopping 130,000 jobs – bringing the unemployment rate down to 4.3%. In characteristic fashion, even the bond market was caught off guard, with yields on two-year notes jumping 9.5bps.
Of course, that’s all while the markets continue their bullish run, with the Dow even (!) crossing a 50,000-point record.
Obvs, we can’t get carried away. Powell will soon be leaving the Fed – albeit now stricken off the Trump Christmas-card list – with Kevin Warsh almost certainly taking his place. The central bank is entering a new era under a very different helmsman, but personally, I’m just looking forward to seeing the bond market throw another tantrum.
Markets can take a lot of punishment, but strong economic fundamentals still matter.
Unfortunately, news on this side of the Pond hasn’t been as inspiring. Following the Peter Mandelson scandal, Prime Minister Starmer is well and truly on the ropes. He made a sacrificial lamb out of chief aide Morgan McSweeney, got taunted at PMQs, and now faces a medieval usurpation from some hungry, hungry Cabinet Ministers.
It’s pretty dire. And there’s no joy in the economy either. The supposedly fastest-growing-economy-in-the-G7 – to take a leaf out of the Labour rhetoric manual – registered just 0.1% growth in Q4 last year. But hey, the FTSE has not been too bad, right?!
Whether we – like our American friends – get up from the canvas is yet to be seen. Until then, though, stay bullish and “Always look on the bright side of life…”