Robertson Stephens Weekly Commentary – July 28, 2025

Occasionally, the amount of economic data made available in a short time can seem overwhelming. Such is the case this week, where the “main event” is the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting on Wednesday, but inflation, employment, consumption, and housing data for Q2 and July all appropriately deserve equal attention. We believe the tariff situation represents more of a consumption tax that will be more similar to a one-time price adjustment than stoking runaway inflation expectations.  We also believe that housing is an important component of inflation metrics, where home prices have been recently deflating across the country, and mortgage rates remain elevated. Housing-related costs account for approximately 41% of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and 15% of the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) inflation index. On the wealth planning front, we share what families should know about the new Trump account.