In our forecasts made at the beginning of 2019, we predicted a notable slowdown in the US and a consequent softening of the Fed’s verbal communication of its monetary policy. Just a few days ago, the Fed confirmed that the latter is already taking place. This occurrence is highly due to the dragging effect that the world's largest economy can have on the rest of the globe. In this chartbook, we explain whether the feared US slowdown is really taking place and why, and the main impacts of factors such as US monetary policy, national and international policy, and movements in the dollar and the markets. It is important to carefully watch the current juncture between economic