USA • Markit’s flash composite PMI signaled a further recovery from January’s Omicron-induced slowdown. The headline index came in at 58.5 in March, up from 55.9 the month before and its highest mark since July. The manufacturing sector tracker jumped from 57.3 to 58.5 as output benefited from healthy job creation and less severe supply [...]
USA • Retail sales edged up 0.3% in February, a result roughly in line with consensus expectations (+0.4%). The previous month’s print, meanwhile, was revised from +3.8% to +4.9%. Sales of motor vehicles and parts advanced 0.8% but remained 4.3% below last April’s all-time high. Without autos, sales crept up 0.2% as gains for gasoline [...]
USA • The Consumer Price Index rose a consensus-matching 0.8% MoM in February after climbing 0.6% the prior month. The energy component advanced 3.5%, with strong gains for fuel oil (+7.7%), gasoline (+6.6%), and utility gas services (+1.5%). The cost of food, meanwhile, sprang 1.0%. The core CPI, which excludes food and energy, met consensus [...]
USA • The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics surprised the market with 678k jobs created in February, well above 400k anticipated by forecasters. This was on top of an upward revision of 92k to December and January. The unemployment rate fell to 3.8 % – the lowest reading since the pandemic, just 0.3 %age points [...]
