American companies are splurging on their own shares. The constituents of the S&P 500 index are expected to spend $650bn buying back their shares this year, which would set a new annual record. The previous high was in 2007 at the top of the global cycle.
The corporate tax cut from 35% to 21% has given year-on-year earnings growth a hefty fillip to over 20% from underlying profit growth in the mid-single digits.
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