Retail sales volumes in the euro area in May grew by a solid 0.4% but in the wake of a 0.2% gain in April and after a 0.6% drop in March. Over the last three months, retail sales are still contracting on balance in the EMU. The [...]
Introducing
Robert Brusca
in:Our Authors
Robert A. Brusca is Chief Economist of Fact and Opinion Economics, a consulting firm he founded in Manhattan. He has been an economist on Wall Street for over 25 years. He has visited central banking and large institutional clients in over 30 countries in his career as an economist. Mr. Brusca was a Divisional Research Chief at the Federal Reserve Bank of NY (Chief of the International Financial markets Division), a Fed Watcher at Irving Trust and Chief Economist at Nikko Securities International. He is widely quoted and appears in various media. Mr. Brusca holds an MA and Ph.D. in economics from Michigan State University and a BA in Economics from the University of Michigan. His research pursues his strong interests in non aligned policy economics as well as international economics. FAO Economics’ research targets investors to assist them in making better investment decisions in stocks, bonds and in a variety of international assets. The company does not manage money and has no conflicts in giving economic advice.
Publications by Robert Brusca
Global| Jul 05 2016Euro Area Retail Sales Are Soft and So Is the Outlook
- Global| Jul 01 2016
Euro Area Improvement Is Loud and Clear...But Will It Endure Brexit?
Phillips Curve Busters! Unemployment rates fell in six of 11 of these early-reporting EMU member states in May. Greece, where data lag by two months, shows a decline on that basis as well (making it seven of 12 drops in the `most [...]
- Global| Jun 30 2016
German Retail Sales Rebound
German retail sales ex-autos rose by 0.8% in May after a skinny gain of 0.1% in April. The three-month growth rate is zero. Over six-months, sales are up at a 0.5% pace. Over 12-months, sales are up at a 0.7% pace. Sales are [...]
- Global| Jun 29 2016
EU Commission Indices Show Mixed Trends
The overall EU economic sentiment indicator from the EU Commission ticked higher to 105.7 in June from 105.6 in May. Meanwhile the EMU index edged lower to 104.4 in June from 104.6 in May. Coming attractions... With the U.K. adoption [...]
- Global| Jun 28 2016
Italian Consumer Confidence Makes Clear U-Turn from `New High' to Never Mind
Make no mistake about it. Italy's drop in consumer confidence is not about Brexit; it's about Italy. Italian confidence had surged, peaking in January of this year and has since been in a steady state of erosion. Confidence is 18 [...]
- Global| Jun 27 2016
Euro Area: Pre-Brexit Snap Shot of Financial Conditions
Brexit came as a shock and now we must monitor all relevant trends to see what will be affected in the post-Brexit period. We also get a look at how trends were performing as we were gliding into the pre-Brexit vote period. The answer [...]
- Global| Jun 24 2016
German IFO Echoes ZEW Optimism But What About Post-Brexit?
The IFO joins the ZEW index with a rise in June. But these increases came in the wake of the `polls' that were saying that Brexit would be defeated. In the event, Brexit was not defeated and the U.K. is on its way out of the EU. Much [...]
- Global| Jun 23 2016
Euro Area Flash PMI Steps Back on Weak Services
The chart is clear. The manufacturing sector stepped up in June while services stepped back. The two sectors now have nearly the same raw PMI score, but their queue standings are wide apart. The services sector usually is expanding [...]
- Global| Jun 22 2016
Canadian Nominal Retail Sales Snap Back As Real Sales Lag
Canadian sales patterns have become confusing. While its nominal patterns look quite upbeat, real sales have slowed and are declining in the current quarter-to-date. Nominal sales are quite mixed with large blocks of sales showing [...]
- Global| Jun 21 2016
Sharp Rebound in German ZEW Expectations; What Do ZEW Experts See that Janet Yellen and Her Merry Band of Fed [...]
Despite the unexpected and relatively sharp rise in June's German expectations, the June expectations index is still higher nearly half the time (43%, approximately). Current conditions in Germany are better only 17% of the time, [...]
- Global| Jun 20 2016
Japan's Trade Trends Wither
Japan is getting a boost to growth through its external sector. Its trade surplus is growing. But the boost is not the type we like to see. Japan's exports are falling year-over-year, but since imports are falling by more the trade [...]
- Global| Jun 17 2016
Canadian Inflation: Alone in the Sweet-Spot
Inflation globally is low. In the EMU, the price level is falling. Japan's inflation is weak. In the U.S., the CPI is up only 1.1% although the U.S. targets the PCE deflator which shows a much weaker core trend than the CPI. In [...]
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