DoubleLine Round Table Prime 2026: Macroeconomic Outlook

In the Macro segment of DoubleLine’s 2026 Round Table Prime, DoubleLine Deputy CIO Jeffrey Sherman moderates a discussion among leading macroeconomic thinkers of an increasingly complex and bifurcated global economic environment. The segment begins with a look at the reliability of economic data, growing divergence between public and private indicators and implications of a K-shaped economy. Panelists explore how headline growth masks underlying softness in labor markets, consumption and capital spending while soaring equity markets and concentrated wealth exert an outsized influence on aggregate outcomes. David Rosenberg of Rosenberg Research sees the macro backdrop defined by a deteriorating labor market, disinflationary pressure and gap between economic averages and lived reality. He highlights weak hiring, declining wage growth, falling labor participation and the growing importance of private-sector data relative to U.S. government statistics. Jim Bianco of Bianco Research builds on this theme, focusing on population growth and immigration as underappreciated drivers of economic equilibrium and arguing that dramatic shifts in labor supply are reshaping job creation thresholds, productivity expectations and the Federal Reserve’s policy challenge in a post-COVID-19 economy. Danielle DiMartino Booth of QI Research underscores stress points in white-collar employment, underemployment and unit labor costs, noting that productivity gains increasingly come at the expense of worker leverage and income growth. Charles Payne of Wall Street Strategies and host of Fox Business’ “Making Money” broadens the lens to structural forces such as AI, profit margin expansion and rising inequality, warning of profound societal implications even as investment opportunities expand. DoubleLine CEO-CIO Jeffrey Gundlach concludes the macro discussion by emphasizing the need to deconstruct aggregate data; reassess long-held assumptions about interest rates and inflation; and recognize how wealth effects, fiscal imbalances and changing market behavior are redefining economic cycles and portfolio strategy.