Economy in Brief: March 2019

Italian retail sales jumped 0.5% in January, a strong-looking gain made less so by the recognition that sales also fell by -0.6% in December. Expressed in real terms, Italian sales log a 0.6% rise in January against a drop of 'only' [...]

Output per hour in the nonfarm business sector grew 1.9% (SAAR) in Q4'18, an increase fairly stable with the Q3 gain. During the last four quarters, productivity growth picked up to 1.8%, the quickest rate of increase in three years. [...]

Initial claims for unemployment insurance edged down to 223,000 in the week ended March 2 from an upwardly revised 226,000 (initially reported as 225,000) in the previous week. The Action Economics Forecast Survey projected 225,000 [...]

With the Bank of Canada's interest rate decision hanging in the balance, Canada released its trade data for December. In the event, the Bank of Canada has left its key rate unchanged at 1.75%. The trade data echo a theme that has been [...]

ADP indicated in its National Employment Report that private nonfarm payrolls increased 183,000 during February following a 300,000 January gain, revised from 213,000. It was the weakest increase in three months. A 190,000 gain had [...]

The U.S. trade deficit in goods and services widened more than expected to $59.77 billion in December from an upwardly revised $50.30 billion in November. This was the largest deficit since October 2008. The Action Economics Forecast [...]

The Composite Index of Nonmanufacturing Sector Activity from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) rose more than expected to 59.7 in February. This followed two consecutive monthly declines. While suggestive of strong growth, the [...]

The U.S. Treasury Department reported a federal government budget surplus of $8.7 billion during January compared to a $49.2 billion surplus during January 2018. A $6.0 billion surplus had been expected in the Action Economics [...]