US Fourth quarter US GDP rose 2.6% on an annualised basis following the third quarter’s 3.2% rate of growth. An important measure of core demand, real final sales to private domestic purchasers, climbed to 4.6% on an annualised basis. One of the most impressive aspects of the GDP report was consumer spending, which rose 3.8% [...]
US Weekly US jobless claims fell to 220,000 in the week ending 6 January, the lowest reading since 1973, when the US population was far smaller than today. The US Department of Labor reported last Friday that the US unemployment rate held steady at 4.1% In December. Industrial production rose 0.9% last month, which was [...]
This weekend, exactly one year since President Trump’s inauguration, the US Government shutdown became a reality as the US Senate were unable to agree a deal, meaning the US Government at the time of writing this article is now shut down. Of course, essential functions will still operate, but this is still a big problem [...]
US The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), import price index and producer price index all came in a bit on the soft side. Job openings edged down for a second straight month in November, a respite from the sharp run-up over the first three-quarters of 2017. Openings are up 4.4% over the past [...]
US The ISM manufacturing index for December remained in solid expansion territory, coming in at a mild 59.7 to extend a five-month streak above 58. The last time the index posted such a run was in 2004, then 1987 prior to that. Activity rose across most sub-categories, particularly new orders, which surged to its 13-year [...]
