Economy in Brief

Total retail and food service sales rose last month by 1.0% following a 0.7% January increase, revised up from 0.3%. Sales have risen for eight consecutive months and the latest increase lifted the y/y increase to 8.9%, the strongest [...]

Credit market borrowing amounted to $1,111 billion, seasonally adjusted annual rate, in Q4. This extended a firming trend that lasted throughout 2010; the year cumulated to $736 billion in borrowing, reversing the net paydown of $634 [...]

German exports, although expected to remain strong in 2011, fell in January taking their 3-month growth rate into negative territory along with it. Notwithstanding this set-back the German trade group BGA just yesterday affirmed the [...]

Initial claims for unemployment insurance rose to 397,000 last week from 371,000, initially reported as 368,000. Consensus expectations had been for 380,000 claims according to Action Economics. Despite the increase, claims remained [...]

The U.S. foreign trade deficit deepened during January to $46.3B versus a little-revised $40.3B in December. Consensus expectations had been for $41.5B. Economic improvement abroad and the lower value of the dollar helped exports jump [...]

German industrial output is up in January after two straight months of decline. The rise was sharp and put the three-month growth rate back into positive territory but that rate still shows deceleration from its six month pace and is [...]

The Mortgage Bankers Association reported that overall mortgage applications increased 15.5% last week. The jump pulled applications 13.9% above the February average. Nevertheless, applications were up just modestly from nearly the [...]

Consumers began the month in a mood to spend. Sales at chain stores jumped 2.3% during the first week of March following a modest slip that ended last month. The gain lifted sales 2.8% above the February average after that month's [...]