US Fed Chairman Jerome Powell has used a variety of superlatives to express his pleasure with the current state of the US economy. Powell believes the economy is in a good place, with exceptionally low unemployment and inflation close to target. With inflation expectations in check, the Fed continues to believe it can gradually nudge [...]
US The FOMC decision was the headline event this week, even though its unanimous 25 bps rate hike was widely expected. What was decidedly more interesting were key changes in the language of the committee’s policy statement, as well as the rollout of its 2021 fed funds rate projections. While the FOMC has been steadily [...]
US Housing starts rebounded in August but building permits dropped. Home sales also came in below expectations, as resales of existing homes were unchanged. Despite housing remaining in a soft patch, real GDP is expected to remain solid and grow 3.1% during Q3 and stay close to that pace through the remainder of the year. [...]
US US retail sales data came in a bit light, rising just 0.1%, but data for the prior month were revised higher and the core measure of retail sales remains up at a brisk 7.8% pace over the past 3 months. Keep an eye on clothing and department store sales, which tumbled 1.7% and 1.0%, [...]
US US employers added 201,000 new jobs in August. The prior two months of additions were revised down 50,000, bringing the three-month average to 185,000. Gains in August were broad based, with most industries adding jobs over the month, notably the transportation and warehousing & construction sectors. Manufacturing jobs fell slightly during the month. The [...]
US The second estimate for US GDP revealed a faster pace of economic growth than first estimated, with the annualised growth rate quickening slightly to 4.2% in Q2. The details also offered additional colour on the state of the economy at this late stage of the cycle and, with some exception, those details were broadly [...]
US US existing homes sales declined 0.7% to 5.34 million units in July. Single-family sales fared slightly better and only experienced a 0.2% drop, while condos and co-ops fell 4.8%. Total resales have now declined on a monthly basis in each of the past four months and are trending 1.5% below year-ago levels. The parade [...]
US US Consumer Prices matched expectations and edged up 0.2% in July. The monthly gain kept the headline index at a 2.9% increase on a year basis, the fastest pace in six years. Energy prices were a drag on the headline figure and dropped 0.5% for the month, mostly the result of lower gas prices. [...]
US US Consumer Prices matched expectations and edged up 0.2% in July. The monthly gain kept the headline index at a 2.9% increase on a year-to-year basis, the fastest pace in six years. Energy prices were a drag on the headline figure and dropped 0.5 % for the month, mostly the result of lower gas [...]
US The Employment Cost Index rose to its highest year-over-year pace of the expansion in Q2. Employment costs at private businesses have risen 2.9% amid a more rapid rise in wages and benefits. Public sector costs have been more subdued, however, as wage growth has slipped back under 2.0%. For all the hand wringing over [...]
