Economy in Brief

As of October the EU area unemployment rate has continued to move steadily higher. Among the key reporting EMU economies only Germany and Ireland have persistently declining rates of unemployment. Ireland's drop is from very elevated [...]

The Institute for Supply Management reported that its composite index of manufacturing activity fell to 49.5 in November from an unrevised 51.7 in October. The latest level was the lowest since July 2009 and it was well short of [...]

The Institute for Supply Management-Chicago reported that its Business Barometer improved this month to 50.4, its highest level in three months. Haver Analytics constructs a seasonally adjusted figure comparable to the ISM Composite [...]

Hurricane Sandy made landfall on October 29th and thus reduced three days worth of income & outlays along the Eastern Seaboard. Personal income was unchanged last month (3.1% y/y) following an unrevised 0.4% September increase. A 0.2% [...]

The EU Indices rose unexpectedly in November despite ongoing pressure in the Zone and discord about how to approach its tangled future. The EU economic sentiment index is at its highest level since July. The EMU index is at its [...]

Pending sales of single-family homes jumped 5.2% (13.2% y/y) last month after a little revised 0.4% September rise, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The latest figure broke home sales out of the sideways trend [...]

Initial claims for unemployment insurance fell again last week as Hurricane Sandy had less of an increasing effect on filings. Claims fell during the week ended November 24 to an expected 393,000 from 416,000 in the prior period, [...]

The economy grew faster than initially reported during Q3'12. Real GDP increased at a revised 2.7% (2.5% y/y) annual rate, up from a 2.0% advance estimate and up from 1.3% during Q2. Consensus expectations were for a 2.8% rise. A [...]