- Private payrolls +122K in May, largest of 11 straight m/m gains, indicating sustained labor-market momentum.
- Broad-based hiring across company sizes, driven by small businesses (+67K).
- Service-sector jobs up (+114K), led by education & health svs. (+57K) and trade, transp. & utilities (+36K), partly offset by information (-9K).
- Goods-producing jobs up (+8K), driven by construction (+8K).
- Wage growth down marginally y/y for job changers (6.5%) but steady for job stayers (4.4%).
Introducing
Winnie Tapasanun
in:Our Authors
Winnie Tapasanun has been working for Haver Analytics since 2013. She has 20+ years of working in the financial services industry. As Vice President and Economic Analyst at Globicus International, Inc., a New York-based company specializing in macroeconomics and financial markets, Winnie oversaw the company’s business operations, managed financial and economic data, and wrote daily reports on macroeconomics and financial markets. Prior to working at Globicus, she was Investment Promotion Officer at the New York Office of the Thailand Board of Investment (BOI) where she wrote monthly reports on the U.S. economic outlook, wrote reports on the outlook of key U.S. industries, and assisted investors on doing business and investment in Thailand. Prior to joining the BOI, she was Adjunct Professor teaching International Political Economy/International Relations at the City College of New York. Prior to her teaching experience at the CCNY, Winnie successfully completed internships at the United Nations. Winnie holds an MA Degree from Long Island University, New York. She also did graduate studies at Columbia University in the City of New York and doctoral requirements at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Her areas of specialization are international political economy, macroeconomics, financial markets, political economy, international relations, and business development/business strategy. Her regional specialization includes, but not limited to, Southeast Asia and East Asia. Winnie is bilingual in English and Thai with competency in French. She loves to travel (~30 countries) to better understand each country’s unique economy, fascinating culture and people as well as the global economy as a whole.
Publications by Winnie Tapasanun
USA| Jun 01 2026U.S. Construction Spending Up for Second Straight Month After Two Prior Monthly Declines
- Headline +0.4% m/m in Apr., second straight monthly rise; +0.9% y/y, highest since Dec.
- Residential private construction +0.8% m/m, driven by a 1.4% gain in single-family building.
- Nonresidential private construction -0.2% m/m, second consecutive monthly decline.
- Public construction +0.4% m/m, led by a 0.7% rebound in residential public building.
USA| May 29 2026U.S. Goods Trade Deficit Narrows in April After March Widening
- Deficit: $82.4 bil. in April, down $2.9 bil. (-3.4%) from March’s $85.3 bil.
- Exports +4.0%, fourth straight m/m gain to a record level, driven by a 7.8% rebound in nonauto consumer goods exports.
- Imports +1.9%, third consecutive m/m rise to highest level since Mar. ’25, led by a 7.5% recovery in imports of other goods.
USA| May 28 2026U.S. New Home Sales Drop to a Three-Month Low in April
- Sales -6.2% m/m (-11.3% y/y) to 622,000 in Apr.; +3.4% m/m (+1.1% y/y) to 663,000 in Mar.
- Sales down m/m and y/y in the Midwest, Northeast, and South; up only in the West (+18.7% m/m, +4.6% y/y).
- Median sales price +8.0% m/m to $422,500, a 4-month high; avg. price +0.7% m/m to $508,800.
- Months' supply: 9.4 mths. in Apr., a 3-month high; 8.7 mths. in Mar.
USA| May 26 2026Chicago Fed National Activity Index Turns Positive in April
- CFNAI +0.14 in April, highest since March ’25; -0.15 in March.
- Two of four CFNAI components up m/m; two make positive contributions.
- CFNAI-MA3 edges up to +0.03, third straight positive reading; above -0.70 (recession signal).
- CFNAI Diffusion Index rises to +0.06, highest since Oct. ’22.
USA| May 12 2026U.S. NFIB Small Business Optimism Still Fragile in April
- NFIB Small Business Optimism Idx up 0.1 pts. to 95.9 in Apr., still below its 52-year avg. of 98.0.
- Uncertainty Idx down 4 pts. to 88, remaining well above the historical avg. of 68.
- Expectations for economy down 7 pts. to 4%, lowest since Oct. ’24.
- Expected real sales down 4 pts. to 3%, a one-year low.
- Plans to expand business down 4 pts. to 7%, lowest since Oct. ’24.
- Firms raising avg. selling prices up 5 pts. to 30%, a four-month high.
- Top three business concerns: quality of labor (18%), taxes (17%), and inflation (16%).
- April sales +0.2% m/m to lower-than-expected 4.02 mil.; 0.0% y/y after five straight y/y declines.
- Sales m/m up in the Midwest (+2.2%) and South (+0.5%), down in West (-2.6%), flat in Northeast; sales y/y up only in South (+2.7%).
- Median sales price +2.1% (+0.9% y/y) to $417,700, highest since Aug. ’25.
- Unsold inventory +5.8% (+1.4% y/y) to six-month-high 1.47 mil. units; 4.4 months' supply.
- Headline +0.6% m/m, first monthly gain in three mths.; +1.6% y/y, fourth straight y/y rise.
- Residential private construction +1.7% m/m, driven by a 2.7% rebound in single-family building.
- Nonresidential private construction -0.2% m/m, fifth decline in six mths.
- Public construction -0.2% m/m, led by a 2.3% drop in residential public building.
- Purchase applications -3.7% w/w, first decrease in three weeks; refinancing loan applications -5.0% w/w, second consecutive drop.
- Effective interest rate on 30-year fixed loans up 10bps to 6.64%, a four-week high.
- Average loan size up for the fifth straight week, highest level since the March 6 week.
- Sales +7.4% m/m (+3.3% y/y) to 682,000 in Mar., a 3-month high; +8.9% m/m (-1.1% y/y) to 635,000 in Feb.
- Sales m/m up in the Northeast and South, down in the Midwest and West; sales y/y up in all regions except the West (-12.7% y/y).
- Median sales price -5.3% m/m to $387,400, lowest since Jul. ’21; avg. price -3.4% m/m to $503,100, lowest since Jul. ’25.
- Months' supply: 8.5 mths. in Mar., a 3-month low; 9.1 mths. in Feb.
USA| May 04 2026U.S. Factory Orders Exceed Expectations in March
- Factory orders +1.5% m/m (+2.1% y/y) in Mar.; 9.5% above the Jan. ’24 low.
- Durable goods orders +0.8%, first m/m increase since Nov.; nondurable goods orders +2.1%, largest of four straight m/m gains; shipments +1.4%, fourth successive m/m rise.
- Transportation orders +0.8%, driven by m/m surges of 30.9% in ships & boats and 17.8% in defense aircraft orders.
- Computers & electronic products +3.6%, fastest of seven consecutive m/m rises.
- Unfilled orders +0.1%, eighth straight m/m increase.
- Inventories +0.6%, biggest of five consecutive m/m gains.
USA| May 01 2026U.S. ISM Manufacturing PMI Steady in April; New Orders and Production Growing; Employment Contracting
- ISM Mfg. PMI at 52.7 in Apr. and Mar.; fourth consecutive month of expansion.
- Production (53.4) expands for the sixth straight mth.; new orders (54.1) for the fourth successive mth.
- Employment (46.4) contracts for the 31st straight mth.; at a four-month low.
- Prices Index (84.6) highest since Apr. ’22; prices rising for the 19th consecutive mth.
- Exports (47.9) contract; imports (50.3) still grow but at a three-month low.
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