In partnership with
Welcome to yet another insightful edition of Market Mosaic.
This week, tech layoffs racked up their worst quarter of 2026, and core inflation cooled to a 5-year low even as the Fed weighs its next move.
We also looked at how household card spending kept climbing despite shoppers chasing every discount, and how container congestion is tying up more of the world's shipping capacity than in months.
Ask the Desk, our latest AI tool, for data-driven insights on what they mean for your business and market.
Insights Team, Rwazi
Chart: Tech sector layoffs by month, 2026. Data visualization by Market Mosaic.
Tech layoffs just had their ugliest quarter of 2026
Tech companies cut 100,443 jobs in the first four months of 2026, and March alone accounted for nearly half of it. Job losses hit 28,683 in January, eased to 20,138 in February, then surged to 49,802 in March before falling sharply to 1,820 in April.
One company's own restructuring drove much of March's spike, pushing that month to more than double February's total. The sharp April pullback suggests the worst of this wave may already be behind the sector.
Key Insights
March alone cut 49,802 tech jobs, more than January and February combined, and one company's restructuring drove much of that spike before cuts fell to just 1,820 in April. See how your own hiring plans stack up against a sector still absorbing the shock.
Finding data-driven market insights from Market Mosaic used to mean scrolling through weeks or months of newsletters.
The Desk pulls all the insights for you to make decisions. Ask a question and get an answer sourced from all editions of Market Mosaic.
Ask something like "Should rising freight rates change my Q4 shipping budget?" and get a sourced answer in seconds.
Traders now see an 85% chance the Fed holds rates steady in November
Core prices excluding food and energy rose 3.9% year-over-year in August, the lowest reading since September 2021 and down from 4.2% in July. Headline inflation ticked up to 3.5% from 3.4%, with prices rising 0.4% for the month.
Personal income and spending each grew 0.4%, matching forecasts, and the 10-year Treasury yield slid 4 basis points to 4.53% on the news. December odds are split 67% for no change and 33% for another hike.
Key Insights
Core inflation posted its softest reading in 5 years, yet the 10-year Treasury yield still slid only 4 basis points to 4.53% on the news. See how your own borrowing costs compare with markets still pricing in a longer pause.
Household card spending rose 4.5% as big-box retailers outshine the rest
Total card spending per household climbed 4.5% year-over-year and 0.9% from the prior month, with general merchandise and big-box retailers outperforming traditional store categories during the back-to-school stretch.
Spending and wage growth have converged across income groups, and credit card utilization is declining across most age and income brackets. Lower- and middle-income households still hold higher deposit balances than before the pandemic.
Key Insights
Value-hunting is now a habit across every income bracket, and big-box retailers have captured most of the 0.9% monthly spending gain, while credit card utilization continues to fall across most age groups. See how your own price positioning holds up against shoppers trading down.
Container congestion now ties up 12.6% of the world's shipping capacity
About 4.3 million TEUs of vessel capacity, 12.6% of the global total, sat stuck in port congestion as of late August. China-origin imports still rose 7.2% to 873,129 TEUs, the highest monthly level in a year.
Trans-Pacific spot rates from Shanghai to Los Angeles and New York each jumped 9% in a single week. September import forecasts call for 2.16 million TEUs, down from 2.22 million in August as the peak-season rush fades.
Key Insights
Congestion is holding back 12.6% of global shipping capacity, the most in months, even as China-origin volumes hit a 12-month high and spot rates jumped 9% in a week. See how your own shipping costs hold up against a market this tight.
Some teams never seem to stop moving. They're on Attio, the agentic CRM.
Every customer signal is captured in one shared context layer, always current and compounding. Agents and workflows build pipeline, chase every buying signal, and move deals forward, an always-on revenue engine running alongside your team.
With Attio, you’ll get:
Leads automatically prioritised and routed to the right rep
Expansion and risk signals caught the moment they land
Follow-ups written in your voice, already there when you arrive
Teams like Parallel, Turbopuffer, and Wordsmith build on Attio. Are you one of them?
The best in influencer marketing. And you’re invited.
Get ready for Return on Influence Festival '26. An entire day dedicated to influencer marketing with speakers running some of the best programs in the world. October 21, 2026, 10 am - 5 pm ET.
Hire anyone, anywhere — compliant in under 3 days
Found the right hire, but no entity in their country? Remote becomes the legal employer — with contracts, benefits, and tax setup handled, plus direct access to the same in-house team that runs payroll locally.
