Category Archives: Weekly

U.S. economic data was mixed this week with a solid Leading Indicators report for December and another good read on January unemployment insurance claims, but mildly disappointing December home sales. Equity markets rallied with the Leading Indicators report highlighting the … Continue reading →

As data for the fourth quarter of 2012 rolls in we are seeing evidence of an economy that can be described as tentative but not stalled. December retail sales gained 0.5 percent as motor vehicle and parts dealers reported a … Continue reading →

It was a light week for data. The most important U.S. data points were the November trade gap and November job openings (both series have significant lags), unemployment insurance claims for the first week of January and the NFIB Small … Continue reading →

A lot happened this week. Most significantly, on Wednesday the Federal Reserve took several major steps. As expected, it announced that Operation Twist ends this month. The Fed will now add T-bonds to its program of outright bond purchases known … Continue reading →

The BLS reports that payroll employment increased by 146,000 jobs in November and the unemployment rate declined from 7.9 to 7.7 percent. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Hurricane Sandy “did not substantively impact the national employment and unemployment … Continue reading →

Economic data at the start of November are generally favorable. Hurricane Sandy delivered a devastating blow to coastal communities from Virginia through Connecticut. Damage totals could reach $50 billion, making it the second most costly storm in history, after Hurricane … Continue reading →

At the end of October, it is becoming increasingly evident that the U.S. economy is being pulled in several directions at once. Consumers are feeling increasingly confident, buying houses, automobiles and other items with cheap credit. However, businesses are growing … Continue reading →

We have had a spate of noisy data, beginning with the large downward revision of Q2 real GDP growth to 1.3 percent. Then we had a major decline in September’s unemployment rate to 7.8 percent. We also saw house starts … Continue reading →