Economy in Brief: 2017

The Empire State Manufacturing Index of General Business Conditions for January continued to suggest positive economic conditions, though it eased to 6.5 in January from 7.6 in December. It was the third straight positive reading [...]

Every picture tells a story, don't it? Bad grammar? Yes, but a truism nonetheless. The chart on the left pictures the German and EMU current accounts as a percentage of GDP. Since late 2000, these values have been positive indicating [...]

The headline Final Demand Producer Price Index increased 0.3% (1.6% y/y) during December after an unrevised 0.4% November rise. The rise matched expectations in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. During all of 2016, prices [...]

Total retail sales & spending at restaurants increased 0.6% (4.4% y/y) during December following a 0.2% November rise, revised from 0.1%. October's increase also was revised higher to 0.7% from 0.6%. A 0.7% increase had been expected [...]

Total business inventories increased 0.7% m/m (1.5% y/y) in November following a 0.1% m/m decline (originally reported as -0.2% m/m) in October. This rise was generally in line with market expectations, which looked for a 0.6% m/m [...]

The U.S. Treasury Department reported that during December, the federal government ran a $27.5 billion budget deficit compared to a $14.4 billion deficit in December 2015. A $23.0 billion deficit had been expected in the Action [...]

Initial unemployment insurance filings rose to 247,000 (-11.8% y/y) during the week ended January 7 following a decline to 237,000 in the prior week, revised from 235,000. The latest level remained near the lowest since November 1973. [...]

Import prices increased 0.4% (1.8% y/y) during December following a 0.2% November decline, revised from -0.3%. A 0.7% increase had been expected in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. During all of last year, prices declined 3.4%, [...]