Economy in Brief

According to the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), small business optimism fell even further last month. The index level of 82.6 was down 1.8% month-to-month after a slightly revised 1.3% January decline. The latest [...]

Chain store sales ticked up 0.2% last week and began this month slightly above the February average, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers-Goldman Sachs Index. A moderate rebound in consumer spending is indicated [...]

Regular gasoline prices were roughly stable last week, up one penny to $1.94 per gallon. That left the price still near the middle of the $1.89 to $1.96 range in place since early February but the latest was up 33 cents from the [...]

According to the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), small business optimism fell even further last month. The index level of 82.6 was down 1.8% month-to-month after a slightly revised 1.3% January decline. The latest [...]

Japan’s economy watchers index is making further tentative signs of rebounding from its very deep cyclical lows in this cycle. The future index has made a more substantial bounced higher, but the current index is rising too. The [...]

Japan recorded a current account deficit in January of $172.8 billion yen, due largely to the collapse in exports. Exports of goods declined by 1309.6 billion yen in January and were 2830.6 billion yen below a year ago. Imports [...]

Japan recorded a current account deficit in January of $172.8 billion yen, due largely to the collapse in exports. Exports of goods declined by 1309.6 billion yen in January and were 2830.6 billion yen below a year ago. Imports [...]

The plunge in the US, Japan and European LEIs is quite characteristic of recession as the chart on top demonstrates. However, the severity of the declines is unusual. In the past 40-Years only the 1973-75 downturn produced larger [...]