- Today’s release contained figures for both October and November that had been delayed by the federal government shutdown.
- IP fell in October but recovered in November.
- Manufacturing output was tepid, falling in October and unchanged in November.
- A surge in utilities output in October prevented a larger decline in total production.
- A jump in mining output in November accounted for all of the increase in total production.
Introducing
Sandy Batten
in:Our Authors
Sandy Batten has more than 30 years of experience analyzing industrial economies and financial markets and a wide range of experience across the financial services sector, government, and academia. Before joining Haver Analytics, Sandy was a Vice President and Senior Economist at Citibank; Senior Credit Market Analyst at CDC Investment Management, Managing Director at Bear Stearns, and Executive Director at JPMorgan. In 2008, Sandy was named the most accurate US forecaster by the National Association for Business Economics. He is a member of the New York Forecasters Club, NABE, and the American Economic Association. Prior to his time in the financial services sector, Sandy was a Research Officer at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Senior Staff Economist on the President’s Council of Economic Advisors, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic Policy at the US Treasury, and Economist at the International Monetary Fund. Sandy has taught economics at St. Louis University, Denison University, and Muskingun College. He has published numerous peer-reviewed articles in a wide range of academic publications. He has a B.A. in economics from the University of Richmond and a M.A. and Ph.D. in economics from The Ohio State University.
Publications by Sandy Batten
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
- New orders for durable goods slumped 2.2% m/m in October following increases in both August and September
- A 24% monthly drop in aircraft orders drove the overall decline
- Orders excluding aircraft rose 0.2% m/m in October
- Core capital goods shipments and orders continued to rise in October with small upward revisions to September
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
USA| Dec 19 2025U.S. Existing Home Sales Edged Up in November
- Existing home sales increased 0.5% m/m in November, the third consecutive monthly gain.
- Month-over-month sales increased in the Northeast and South, were unchanged in the West, and fell in the Midwest.
- Year-over-year sales were unchanged in the Northeast and South and decreased in the Midwest and West.
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
USA| Dec 16 2025U.S. Employment and the Unemployment Rate Rose in November
- Total payrolls rose 64k in November but fell 105k in October
- The October decline was more than accounted for by a 157k decline in government employment
- The unemployment rate jumped to 4.6% in November from 4.4% in September.
- There were no household survey data collected for October.
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
USA| Dec 03 2025U.S. Industrial Production Edged Up in September
- IP edged up 0.1% m/m in September with a downward revision to August.
- Manufacturing and mining production were unchanged.
- Utilities output rebounded 1.1% m/m.
- Capacity utilization unchanged.
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
USA| Nov 26 2025U.S. Initial Unemployment Insurance Claims Fell in Latest Week
- Initial unemployment claims fell to 216,000, the lowest weekly figure since April.
- Continued claims edged up to 1.96 million, indicating that the unemployed are still having increasing difficulty finding a job.
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
- The headline index increased to -1.7 in November from -12.8 in October. So, while activity fell further, the pace of decline slowed.
- Both new orders and shipments fell into negative territory in November after posting positive readings in October.
- Delivery times slowed and the pace of input price increases rose.
- Employment increased while the rise in the workweek slowed.
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
USA| Nov 19 2025U.S. Trade Deficit Narrowed in August
- Release delayed by the more than one-month federal government shutdown.
- The trade deficit narrowed to $59.6 billion in August from $78.2 billion in July.
- Exports were little changed with a 4% jump in capital goods exports offset by declines in most other major categories.
- Imports fell 5.1% m/m, reflecting a $9 billion monthly decline in nonmonetary gold imports.
- The services surplus edged up in August.
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
USA| Oct 29 2025U.S. Mortgage Applications Rebounded on Further Decline in Rates
- Applications increased 7.1% w/w, their first weekly gain in five weeks.
- Both applications for purchase and for refinancing rose.
- Fixed mortgage interest rates continued their general downtrend.
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
USA| Oct 15 2025U.S. Mortgage Applications Continued to Fall in Latest Week
- Mortgage applications fell 1.8% w/w in the week ended October 10, the third consecutive weekly decline.
- Applications are on a modest uptrend but are still correcting from the outsize jump in mid-September.
- Fixed mortgage rates were mixed with the 15-year rate down slightly and the 30-year rate unchanged.
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
USA| Oct 14 2025U.S. Small Business Optimism Fell in September
- First decline in three months.
- Uncertainty rose to the fourth highest levels in series history,
- Percentage expecting economy to improve fell for the third time in the past four months.
- Percentage reporting supply chain disruptions jumped 10 points in September.
- This survey was conducted in September. Whatever impact the federal government shutdown will have will appear in the October survey.
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
USA| Oct 08 2025U.S. Mortgage Applications Fell in Latest Week
- Mortgage applications fell 4.7% w/w in the week ended October 3.
- Applications are on a modest uptrend but are still correcting from the outsize jump in mid-September.
- Fixed mortgage rates were mixed with the 15-year rate up a bit and the 30-year rate down slightly.
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
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