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<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="740" height="416" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Workers-inspect-the-Repository-in-ONKALO-a-deep-geological-disposal-underground-facility-designed-to-safely-store-nuclear-waste-on-May-2-2023-on-the-island-of-Eurajoki-western-Finland.webp" alt="Workers inspect the Repository in ONKALO, a deep geological disposal underground facility, designed to safely store nuclear waste, on May 2, 2023, on the island of Eurajoki, western Finland." class="wp-image-524629" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Workers-inspect-the-Repository-in-ONKALO-a-deep-geological-disposal-underground-facility-designed-to-safely-store-nuclear-waste-on-May-2-2023-on-the-island-of-Eurajoki-western-Finland.webp 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Workers-inspect-the-Repository-in-ONKALO-a-deep-geological-disposal-underground-facility-designed-to-safely-store-nuclear-waste-on-May-2-2023-on-the-island-of-Eurajoki-western-Finland-300x169.webp 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Workers-inspect-the-Repository-in-ONKALO-a-deep-geological-disposal-underground-facility-designed-to-safely-store-nuclear-waste-on-May-2-2023-on-the-island-of-Eurajoki-western-Finland-160x90.webp 160w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A worker walks at the turbine room linked to the OL3, the latest among three reactors at the nuclear power plant Olkiluoto on May 2, 2023, on the island of Eurajoki, western Finland. Jonathan Nackstrand | Afp | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Finland is on the cusp of burying spent nuclear fuel in the world’s first geological tomb, where it will be stored for 100,000 years.



The pioneering project has been&nbsp;<a href="https://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/finlands-spent-fuel-repository-a-game-changer-for-the-nuclear-industry-director-general-grossi-says" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">hailed</a>&nbsp;as both a watershed moment for the long-term sustainability of nuclear energy and “a model for the entire world.”



At some point either next year or in early 2026, highly radioactive spent nuclear fuel will be packed in watertight canisters and deposited into bedrock more than 400 meters below the forests of southwest Finland.



The durable copper canisters will be isolated, separated from humans and kept underground for thousands of years.



“Onkalo,” which is the trademark name of the long-term disposal facility, is the Finnish word for a small cave or pit. It is an apt name for the repository, which sits atop a warren of tunnels and is situated next to three nuclear reactors on the island of Olkiluoto, approximately 240 kilometers from the capital of Helsinki.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="929" height="523" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-3.jpeg" alt="A worker walks at the turbine room linked to the OL3, the latest among three reactors at the nuclear power plant Olkiluoto on May 2, 2023, on the island of Eurajoki, western Finland. - Finland's next-generation Olkiluoto 3 nuclear reactor, the largest in Europe, has gone into regular production on April 16, 2023 after months of delays, hours after Germany ended its nuclear era. (Photo by Jonathan NACKSTRAND / AFP) (Photo by JONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP via Getty Images)" class="wp-image-524636" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-3.jpeg 929w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-3-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-3-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-3-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-3-768x432.jpeg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 929px) 100vw, 929px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A worker walks at the turbine room linked to the OL3, the latest among three reactors at the nuclear power plant Olkiluoto on May 2, 2023, on the island of Eurajoki, western Finland. Jonathan Nackstrand | Afp | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Established in 1995, Posiva is tasked with the responsibility of handling the final disposal of spent nuclear fuel rods at Onkalo. The Finnish company is jointly owned by nuclear power company TVO and utility Fortum.



“Basically, the Onkalo project is that we are building an encapsulation plant and disposal facility for spent fuel. And it’s not temporary, it’s for good,” Pasi Tuohimaa, head of communications for Posiva, told CNBC via videoconference.



Tuohimaa said the first-of-its-kind geological disposal facility had received a lot of interest from industry players, citing what he described as a nuclear “<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/26/morgan-stanley-on-how-to-play-the-global-nuclear-power-renaissance.html">renaissance</a>” in recent years and an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/16/europes-energy-crisis-is-making-the-market-nervous-ahead-of-winter.html">energy crisis</a>&nbsp;that gripped Europe and parts of Asia from mid-2021 through to late 2022.



“Having a solution for the final disposal of spent fuel was like the missing part of the sustainable lifecycle for nuclear energy,” Tuohimaa said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-role-of-nuclear-power"><a></a>The role of nuclear power</h2>



The Onkalo project has&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/08/22/nuclear-energy-the-answer-to-a-sustainable-future-experts-are-divided.html">stoked debate</a>&nbsp;about whether anyone can guarantee the long-term safety of spent nuclear waste and the extent to which atomic power should be used in the fight against the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/08/climate-world-surpasses-key-warming-threshold-across-an-entire-year.html">climate crisis</a>.



Nuclear energy currently provides about 9% of the world’s electricity,&nbsp;<a href="https://world-nuclear.org/information-library/current-and-future-generation/nuclear-power-in-the-world-today" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according</a>&nbsp;to the World Nuclear Association.



As it’s low-carbon, advocates&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/10/14/ukraine-war-europe-is-still-quietly-importing-russian-nuclear-energy.html">argue</a>&nbsp;that nuclear energy has the potential to play a significant role in helping countries generate electricity while slashing emissions and reducing their reliance on fossil fuels.



Some environmental groups, however,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.greenpeace.org.uk/challenges/nuclear-power/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">say</a>&nbsp;the nuclear industry is an expensive and harmful distraction to cheaper and cleaner alternatives.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="929" height="523" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-2.jpeg" alt="Finland is poised to bury spent nuclear fuel in the world's first geological tomb. The Onkalo site is situated next to three nuclear reactors on the island of Olkiluoto in southwest Finland." class="wp-image-524635" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-2.jpeg 929w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-2-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-2-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-2-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-2-768x432.jpeg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 929px) 100vw, 929px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Finland is poised to bury spent nuclear fuel in the world’s first geological tomb. The Onkalo site is situated next to three nuclear reactors on the island of Olkiluoto in southwest Finland. Credit: Posiva</figcaption></figure>



“I work both in nuclear waste disposal and nuclear accidents and I have experienced the best and worst of what the nuclear industry can offer,” Gareth Law, professor of radiochemistry at the University of Helsinki, told CNBC via videoconference.



“Clean energy, cheap energy, good baseload but then I have seen the bad side too, accidents, waste creation and the problems that we have there,” he continued.



“To have a country now that’s demonstrating that you can actually take this very dangerous waste that’s going to be here for 100,000-odd years into the future, and we actually have a disposal solution for it, I think that shows it can be done.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-finland-at-least-a-decade-ahead"><a></a>Finland ‘at least a decade ahead’</h2>



Law described the Onkalo project as a “big milestone” for both Finland and the international nuclear power industry.



“Posiva are very correct in selling this as a world first. It is going to be the first repository to take spent nuclear fuel and dispose of it in what I think is going to be a very safe and robust manner into the future.”



Law said that while many countries will want to follow in Finland’s footsteps when it comes to the geological disposal of spent nuclear fuel, the Nordic country is “at least a decade” ahead of neighboring Sweden, the next country that’s likely to achieve such a feat.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="929" height="523" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-1.jpeg" alt="Visitors are shown the Repository in ONKALO, a deep geological disposal underground facility, designed to safely store nuclear waste, on May 2, 2023, on the island of Eurajoki, western Finland. - Finland's next-generation Olkiluoto 3 nuclear reactor, the largest in Europe, has gone into regular production on April 16, 2023 after months of delays, hours after Germany ended its nuclear era. (Photo by Jonathan NACKSTRAND / AFP) (Photo by JONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP via Getty Images)" class="wp-image-524634" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-1.jpeg 929w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-1-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-1-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-1-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-1-768x432.jpeg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 929px) 100vw, 929px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Visitors are shown the Repository in ONKALO, a deep geological disposal underground facility, designed to safely store nuclear waste, on May 2, 2023, on the island of Eurajoki, western Finland. Jonathan Nackstrand | Afp | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



“Scientifically and engineering-wise, it is a very difficult thing to put it into place and to enact, but also politically, it is very, very difficult to get the impetus to do this disposal scenario,” Law said.



“There are many countries in the world that are still very much in the planning stages and even just trying to find somewhere to put the waste. So, the fact that Finland [has] built a repository now and in the next year or two we’re going to be operating it and start the disposal process … I don’t want to call it a miracle, but it wouldn’t be a bad way of framing it in the global context.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-model-for-the-entire-world"><a></a>‘A model for the entire world’</h2>



The Onkalo project is&nbsp;<a href="https://group.vattenfall.com/press-and-media/newsroom/2023/finland-to-open-the-worlds-first-final-repository-for-spent-nuclear-fuel" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">based</a>&nbsp;on the so-called “KBS-3” method developed by the Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Company, which is working on what could be the world’s second final repository.



KBS-3 is based on a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.posiva.fi/en/index/finaldisposal/releasebarriers.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">multi-barrier principle</a>, where several engineered barriers seek to ensure the long-term safety of the spent nuclear fuel. In practice, it means that if one of the barriers were to fail, the isolation of the radioactive waste is not compromised.



“It is a way to showcase that such a small nation sometimes is able to solve one of humankind’s maybe top 20 problems or challenges,” Finnish Climate Minister Kai Mykkänen told CNBC via videoconference.



“As we have seen during the past 10 years, nuclear seems to be required in a very important way for the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/01/05/climate-eu-backlash-over-plans-to-label-nuclear-and-gas-as-green.html">green deal in Europe</a>&nbsp;… but especially if we want to see Asia and the U.S. get rid of fossil electricity production,” he added.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="929" height="523" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image.jpeg" alt="The Repository in ONKALO, a deep geological disposal underground facility, designed to safely store nuclear waste, is pictured on May 2, 2023, on the island of Eurajoki, western Finland. - Finland's next-generation Olkiluoto 3 nuclear reactor, the largest in Europe, has gone into regular production on April 16, 2023 after months of delays, hours after Germany ended its nuclear era. (Photo by Jonathan NACKSTRAND / AFP) (Photo by JONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP via Getty Images)" class="wp-image-524633" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image.jpeg 929w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/image-768x432.jpeg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 929px) 100vw, 929px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The Repository in ONKALO, a deep geological disposal underground facility, designed to safely store nuclear waste, is pictured on May 2, 2023, on the island of Eurajoki, western Finland. Jonathan Nackstrand | Afp | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Asked whether the Onkalo project could be seen as a solution to the sustainability of nuclear waste, Mykkänen replied: “Yes, definitely.”



He added, “I am sure that the clear majority of the Finnish population, and also an even larger population near to Onkalo, they are seeing it in a similar way. People really see it as a solution that replaces more harmful energy.”



Mykkänen said he hoped the Onkalo project would be “a model for the entire world.”

Workers inspect the Repository in ONKALO, a deep geological disposal underground facility, designed to safely store nuclear waste, on May 2, 2023, on the island of Eurajoki, western Finland.

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<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/108013392-1722337017522-gettyimages-2021271708-20090101240221-99-73751-1-820x462.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-523819" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/108013392-1722337017522-gettyimages-2021271708-20090101240221-99-73751-1-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/108013392-1722337017522-gettyimages-2021271708-20090101240221-99-73751-1-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/108013392-1722337017522-gettyimages-2021271708-20090101240221-99-73751-1-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/108013392-1722337017522-gettyimages-2021271708-20090101240221-99-73751-1-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/108013392-1722337017522-gettyimages-2021271708-20090101240221-99-73751-1.jpeg 929w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The lights of Frankfurt am Main’s banking skyline glow in the last light of day. Boris Roessler | Picture Alliance | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



LONDON — European markets were higher on Tuesday as investors assessed geopolitical risks and U.K. markets reopened after being closed on Monday for a national bank holiday.



The pan-European Stoxx 600 was 0.21% higher at 8:49 a.m. London time, with all major regional indexes trading in the green. Sectors were mixed, with mining stocks adding 1.08%, while retail stocks shed 0.34% and tech dipped 0.18%.



European markets had posted a mixed session on Monday.



Investors continued to weigh geopolitical risks after Israel and Hezbollah traded strikes over the weekend, raising fears about a wider conflict in the Middle East.



The uncertainty sent oil prices higher on Monday. On Tuesday prices eased slightly, with Brent crude&nbsp;futures dipping by 0.15% to $81.31 a barrel and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude declining by 0.31% to $77.18 a barrel at 8:51 a.m. London time.



On the data front in Europe, Germany’s statistics office on Tuesday released a final reading of the country’s second-quarter gross domestic product, saying that it fell by 0.1% from the previous quarter. That was in line with the preliminary second-quarter GDP reading that was released in July.



Elsewhere, Hungary’s central bank is set to announce its interest rate decision.



Elsewhere, Asia-Pacific markets broadly pulled back on Tuesday as investors weighed industrial profit data out of China and widely followed key Wall Street indexes lower.



The S&amp;P 500 and Nasdaq Composite had retreated on Monday in the U.S. as technology stocks slid, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average notched a fresh record high. U.S. futures were last mixed early on Tuesday.

108013392-1722337017522-gettyimages-2021271708-20090101240221-99-73751 (1)

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<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/108025237-1724641337856-gettyimages-2167483575-AFP_36EN9KK-820x462.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-523407" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/108025237-1724641337856-gettyimages-2167483575-AFP_36EN9KK-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/108025237-1724641337856-gettyimages-2167483575-AFP_36EN9KK-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/108025237-1724641337856-gettyimages-2167483575-AFP_36EN9KK-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/108025237-1724641337856-gettyimages-2167483575-AFP_36EN9KK-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/108025237-1724641337856-gettyimages-2167483575-AFP_36EN9KK.jpeg 929w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">This photo taken from a position in northern Israel shows a Hezbollah UAV intercepted by Israeli air forces over north Israel on August 25, 2024. The Israeli military announced early August 25, 2024 that it was conducting pre-emptive strikes in Lebanon after detecting preparations for “large-scale” attacks by the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah. Hezbollah said it had launched more than 320 rockets at Israel overnight, targeting a string of military positions, even as Israel’s military said it was carrying out pre-emptive strikes against the group.  Jalaa Marey | Afp | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Tensions in the Middle East and the risk of a wider conflict will keep oil prices elevated, said Vivek Dhar, mining and energy commodities strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.



Oil prices rose on Monday after Israel’s Air Force struck targets in Lebanon with over 100 fighter jets before the Iran-backed group fired more than 320 rockets into Israel.



U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up 0.75% at $75.39 a barrel, while Brent crude rose 0.67% to $79.55.



Iran-backed Hezbollah said the strikes were in retaliation to Israel’s killing of senior commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut last month. Israel said its pre-emptive strikes were aimed at foiling a bigger attack by the Hezbollah, Reuters reported.



“While market expectations are centered on Iran’s attack hurting Israel without triggering a wider regional conflict, Israel’s response will be equally important. And Israel’s response may include an attack on Iran’s oil supply and related infrastructure, which would put at risk 3 &#8211; 4% of global oil supply,” Dhar said.



Cedric Chehab, managing director and head of global risk at research firm BMI said the exchange of fire on Sunday does not mean that an “all-out war” is imminent.



Speaking to CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia,” Chehab said that “what Hezbollah wanted to do, what Iran wanted to do, was to essentially allow for deterrence. So, [to] exercise that deterrence, and they’ve done that.”



While there is a risk that the confrontation spirals out into a wider conflict, there is still room for de-escalation, he added.



Both Israel and Iranian leaders “do not want this to get out of hand and to escalate &#8230; don’t forget, Iran has a new president who’s untested, and the idea is to apply pressure on Israel, but not necessarily engage in direct confrontation.”



While Dhar agreed with Chehab’s view that the events on Sunday are unlikely to be the catalyst for an all-out war in the region, he pointed out Iran has yet to retaliate against Israel following the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the political chief of Hamas, in Tehran last month.



Dhar also said the progress of Gaza truce talks will be an indicator of how Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas interpret the events over the weekend.



Early Monday, Reuters reported that there was no agreement over ceasefire in talks on Sunday regarding the Gaza conflict, with Egyptian security sources telling the agency that neither Hamas nor Israel agreed to proposals presented by mediators in Cairo.



Dhar added while the escalation hurts truce talks at face value, the fact that Israel managed to thwart Hezbollah “may force Iran and its proxies to concede that Israel is in a position of power, particularly with U.S. backing, making the truce talks more palatable.”



He also forecasts that Brent futures will trade between $75 and $85 a barrel in September, with more potential upside if hopes for a truce in Gaza diminish, and as an Iranian reprisal against Israel is still “on the cards.”



“More broadly, the risk of a wider conflict in the Middle East that permanently embroils Iran is an upside risk to our outlook.”

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<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/107284465-1691669496096-gettyimages-1603825613-dsc05537_eh8zi6qn-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-522307" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/107284465-1691669496096-gettyimages-1603825613-dsc05537_eh8zi6qn-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/107284465-1691669496096-gettyimages-1603825613-dsc05537_eh8zi6qn-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/107284465-1691669496096-gettyimages-1603825613-dsc05537_eh8zi6qn-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/107284465-1691669496096-gettyimages-1603825613-dsc05537_eh8zi6qn-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/107284465-1691669496096-gettyimages-1603825613-dsc05537_eh8zi6qn-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/107284465-1691669496096-gettyimages-1603825613-dsc05537_eh8zi6qn.jpeg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Grocery items are offered for sale at a supermarket on August 09, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois.  Scott Olson | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Contrary to what many believe, investment research firm BCA Research sees that the economy is on the cusp of a recession, and the predicted upcoming U.S. Federal Reserve rate cuts will not be sufficient to steer markets out of it.



“Every single one of us now believes there’s a recession, and that’s exactly the opposite of what the market believes,” Garry Evans, BCA Research’s chief strategist of global asset allocation told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia.”



Evans pointed to signs of the economy slowing down, including what he called the “deteriorating” U.S. labor market. The U.S. Labor Department reported that the unemployment rate inched to 4.3% in July to its highest since October 2021, and a gauge for U.S. manufacturing activity fell to an eight-month low in the same month.



“There’s things that are breaking down quite rapidly now,” said the strategist.



The Fed funds futures market suggests that investors are expecting at least three rate cuts by the end of the year, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.



But according to Evans, that will not move the needle much on his projections.



“A few rate cuts are not going to prevent a recession. Average recession is 10 months… It takes something like a year before fed cuts actually start to give a boost to the economy,” he said.



“The market believes that the fed fund rate at the end of next year will be 3%. It’s currently at 5.3%. That will not happen unless there is a recession,” he added.



A recession typically occurs when there are two consecutive quarters of decline in a country’s real GDP.



Traders are also keeping their eye on the annual economic policy symposium in Jackson Hole this week, which could offer greater clarity on the interest rate outlook, with Fed Chair Jerome Powell set to speak at the gathering on Friday.



The U.S. economy has remained robust even amid ongoing inflation and elevated interest rates.



In the last century, there have been more than a dozen recessions, some lasting as long as a year and a half.



Although the U.S. isn’t officially in a recession, a survey conducted by Affirm reveals that about 3 out of 5 Americans think it is.

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Oil prices to remain elevated as Middle East tensions threaten a wider conflict, CBA analyst warns

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China showcases humanoid robots at World Robot Conference

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Xpeng releases mass-market EV with basic driver-assist for less than $20,000

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Egypt’s Sisi will pay his first visit to Turkey as President

Finland will soon bury nuclear waste in a geological tomb that’s built to last for 100,000 years

How do Olympic athletes reinvent themselves?

Why Fast Food Chains Like McDonald’s, Wendy’s And Taco Bell Brought Back Value Meals

Why Israel’s war against Hamas is costing its economy

Europe markets rise as investors weigh economic, geopolitical outlook; UK markets reopen

How Wingstop Became One Of The Hottest Restaurant Stocks

The end of a dream: What happens when an Olympian’s career is over

Hidden gems to check out in Peckham

Oil prices to remain elevated as Middle East tensions threaten a wider conflict, CBA analyst warns

Why The U.S. Can’t Build Homes Fast Enough

Shein vs. Temu: Fast fashion wars

China showcases humanoid robots at World Robot Conference

How Google Makes Custom Cloud Chips That Power Apple AI And Gemini

A recession is coming in the U.S., and ‘a few rate cuts’ won’t prevent it, says strategist

News Tips

Advertise With Us

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