Recession Watch: Amazon boss says you should spend less

There’s no question what everyone’s thinking about these days. In this weekly update, we gather recession-related news so that you don’t have to. Are we at rock bottom yet? Who’s winning or losing? How are companies reacting, and how should you react? Read on to find out.

Jeff Bezos has some advice on how to handle the recession – more below. / Photo credit: Amazon

Is it over yet?

Eurozone faces less risk of a deep winter recession

This group of European Union countries have greater government spending, lower fuel prices, and a warmer autumn to thank for that, economists say. However, the eurozone’s output is expected to shrink well into 2023.

Malaysia, US and China may skip recession

One analyst thinks that Malaysia will face turbulence, but it might escape a recession.

The US has a strong labor market going for it. This may be good news for Singapore, as it trades heavily with Uncle Sam.

The bad news for the US? Its inverted yield curve – seen as a predictor of recessions – has deepened.

China, meanwhile, has already been slowed by Covid restrictions, so a loosening up of measures next year may counter a weak global economy.

S&P 500 continues to rise

The stock index, which tracks 500 large publicly listed companies in the US, has continued its rebound from a low point in mid-October, when it was reported that September inflation rates came in higher than expected.

Ups and downs

Layoffs at Zomato, GoTo, and Ruangguru

Indian food delivery giant Zomato is set to shed 3% of its workforce, though it claims that the move is part of “regular performance evaluations.”

In Indonesia, ecommerce giant GoTo and edtech major Ruangguru are looking to lay off 1,300 and hundreds of workers, respectively, as the economy worsens.

Recession-proofing