Economy in Brief

Real GDP ticked 0.1% higher (2.3% y/y) last quarter following an unrevised 2.6% gain in Q4 2013. The Department of Commerce indicated in this advance estimate that growth was its weakest since Q4 2012. Growth was well short of [...]

Following a sharp rise in March, consumer confidence, as measured by the Conference Board, eased to an index reading of 82.3 this month (+19.3% y/y) from an upwardly revised 83.9. The latest figure remained nearly the highest since [...]

The EU sentiment indicator rose in April as the same indicator for EMU fell by 0.5%. All EU-wide sector indicators rose month-to-month except construction. The UK economy is on fire, with its sentiment index in the 94th percentile of [...]

The International Council of Shopping Centers and Goldman Sachs reported that chain store sales improved 1.6% (3.1% y/y) last week, the firmest gain in a month. The rise pulled sales up 3.1% versus last year, the strongest increase [...]

The price for a gallon of regular gasoline increased to $3.71 last week, up 5.5% y/y. The price is close to the $3.78 per gallon peak reached in February of last year. To account for seasonal volatility, Haver Analytics constructs [...]

The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas reported that its Company Outlook Index gained to 23.4 (SA) this month from 9.1 during March. It was the highest level since April 2010. The Production reading led the advance to 24.7, the highest [...]

Following eight straight months of decline, pending sales of single-family homes improved 3.4% during March, according the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The 0.5% February decline was revised from a 0.8% shortfall reported [...]

Italian consumer confidence has moved up sharply and unexpectedly in April. The index that measures confidence jumped to 105.4 in April from 101.9 in March. The index now sits above its average reading of 104 and is positioned in the [...]