Economy in Brief

U.S. import prices showed broad-based strength. During January, prices jumped another 1.5% after an upwardly revised 1.2% December increase, initially reported as 1.1%. The increase was stronger than Consensus expectations for a 0.8% [...]

January consumer spending lost forward momentum. Retail and food service sales rose 0.3% last month after a 0.5% December increase that was revised from 0.6%. Sales have risen for seven consecutive months; however, the latest was the [...]

China reported a trade surplus of $6.5 billion for January, a decline of $6.6 billion from December, 2010 and $7.7 billion below January of a year ago. The decline from December was the result of 2.2% decline in exports and a 2.3% [...]

The US economy and the OECD remain on roughly the same path. The trend restored leading indicators from the OECD show that from 2008 onward, there has been a severe down-phase, and a strong up-phase that has since played out and now a [...]

Consumer price inflation has been under control of late with both the overall CPI (1.4%) and the core inflation rate (0.6%) at their lowest since the mid-1960s. A popular harbinger of inflation, however, is the price of gold and it is [...]

The improved job market coupled with low prices seem to be buoying consumers' spirits. The mid-February reading of consumer sentiment from the University of Michigan rose to 75.1 and more-than recovered its January decline to an [...]

The U.S. foreign trade deficit deepened during December to $40.6B versus a little-revised $38.3B in November $38.3B. Consensus expectations had been for $40.0B. For the full year, the deficit deepened to $497.8B. Exports gained 1.8% [...]

Germany's inflation trends are on a clear upward path. Yr/Yr the headline rate is now on the cusp of excess at 1.9%. The Bundesbank used to put 2% as the upper bound for inflation when it held the reins. Now the ECB maintains that [...]