The CEO's Unofficial Q2 Buzzword

You may have heard the expression, “You can talk yourself into just about anything.” If that’s true, corporate America better watch out.

As publicly traded companies report quarterly sales and earnings, they often review critical economic conditions. Last quarter, nearly 50% of the S&P 500 companies mentioned the term “recession” during their Q2 conference calls with shareholders, according to FactSet. This breaks the previous record set in Q1 2020, at the start of the pandemic.

Unsurprisingly, America’s corporate leaders are preparing for potential economic turbulence. After all, we often see volatility in the financial markets when economic reports raise questions about recession and the Fed’s policies. Words are powerful.

This time next year, the buzzword of the quarter could be something else entirely. Here’s hoping for something like “recovery,” “rebound,” or “growth.”

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