Recent Updates
- US: Kansas City Fed Mfg Survey (May)
- US: Pending Home Sales Index (Apr)
- US: GDP and Corporate Profits (Q1, 2nd release)
- Canada: Retail Trade, Payroll Employment (Mar)
- South Africa: PPI (Apr) Government Debt (Apr-Prelim)
- more updates...
Economy in Brief
Kansas City Fed Manufacturing Index Dips in May But Remains Strong
The Kansas City Fed reported that its manufacturing sector business activity index declined to 23 in May...
U.S. Pending Home Sales Decline Sharply in April
Home buying remains under pressure...
U.S. Unemployment Claims Eased Slightly in the Latest Week
Initial claims for unemployment insurance filed in the week ended May 21 were 210,000 (-52.4% y/y)...
U.S. Durable Goods Orders Increase Modestly in April
Manufacturers' new orders for durable goods increased 0.4% during April (12.2% y/y)...
U.S. Mortgage Applications Continue to Weaken
The MBA Loan Applications Index fell 1.2% (-54.5% y/y) in the week ended May 20...
Viewpoints
Commentaries are the opinions of the author and do not reflect the views of Haver Analytics.
State Coincident Indexes in April 2022
State Labor Markets in April 2022
Profits & Margins Plunge In Q1: Expect More Margin Contraction As Fed Squeezes Inflation
The Many Links of Inflation Cycle: Hard Landing Is Needed to Crack Them
Peak Inflation and Fed Policy: A Relationship which Should Worry the Fed and Scare Investors
by Tom Moeller October 19, 2005
Housing starts remained firm last month and rose 3.4% m/m to 2.108M units.The prior month's figure was revised slightly higher and the September gain far outpaced Consensus expectations for a decline to 1.97M starts.
The Census Bureau indicated that the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the figures was minimal.
Single-family starts rose 2.6% due to 6.2% gains in both the South (14.0% y/y) and in the Midwest (7.3% y/y). In the Northeast, single family starts rose 0.7% (17.2% y/y) and in the West single family starts fell 5.3% (+11.7% y/y).
Multi family starts rose 7.8% m/m after an upwardly revised 1.5% August gain.
Federal Reserve Board Vice-Chairman Roger W. Ferguson's speech on the Economic Outlook for the United States can be found here.
| Housing Starts (000s, AR) | Sept | Aug | Y/Y | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 2,108 | 2,038 | 10.3% | 1,950 | 1,854 | 1,710 |
| Single-family | 1,747 | 1,703 | 12.3% | 1,604 | 1,505 | 1,363 |
| Multi-family | 361 | 335 | 1.1% | 345 | 349 | 347 |
| Building Permits | 2,189 | 2,138 | 7.4% | 2,058 | 1,8 88 | 1,749 |
