>>513947545
>corporate value is tied to expected economic output
When you say corporate value, I assume you are referring to stock price? As in price to earnings ratio? P/E is hardly useful for investors(the most valuable companies in many cases have never even made a profit). At best you could argue that people are investing for potential future earnings, but that is all speculation(see AI/Tesla/etc).
In reality, the market is primarily driven by the availability of capital. For example, during COVID, the economy was collapsing as asset prices skyrocketed. Why? Because the government injected trillions of dollars into the economy. Investors don't want to sit on a pile of cash when inflation is a possibility. Capital has to go somewhere, at least as long as there is somewhere to go.
What actually powers the west is the lucrativeness of western financial markets. Which is mostly because there are really no alternative. If you're a Sheik in Saudi Arabia, where are you going to put your oil revenue to earn a return on investment? Nothing in Saudi Arabia itself. All of these foreigners throw the capital from selling their commodities into western capital markets. Not only in market funds, but also into real-estate acquisitions.
This is why the United States constantly bails out the bankers, and constantly props up housing prices. It is only through speculation that the west lives. Had the US not bailed out the banks in 2008/2009, everything would have went to zero.