Economy in Brief: September 2010

Consumers continued to hold back on their spending last week and for September as a whole. Weekly chain store sales last week gained back just 0.4% of the prior week's 1.4% decline. For September, average sales fell 0.9% from August [...]

The Conference Board reported that consumer confidence fell sharply last month to the lowest level since February. The index of overall confidence fell to 48.5 from a downwardly revised 53.2 in August. Moreover, the September level [...]

Following the expiration of the government's home buyer tax credit, home prices have lost forward momentum. During July, the seasonally adjusted Case-Shiller 20-City Home Price Index slipped 0.1% (+3.2% y/y) following a diminished [...]

The Czech Republic and the Netherlands reported measures of confidence among their consumers and business communities. There were small declines in both measures in both countries. In the Netherlands, the percent balance between [...]

Money growth is largely tame - With the Federal Reserve pondering doing more and the case for further monetary stimulus being argued in the UK and with Japan trying to put a number on a new fiscal stimulus plan the path of money [...]

The August National Activity Index (CFNAI), reported by the Chicago Fed, backpedaled and returned to nearly its lowest level of the economic recovery. The decline to -0.53 was from a revised -0.11 during July and indicated that [...]

With no government help and no jobs growth, home sales remain mired. The Census Department indicated that August new home sales were even with July at 288,000. July's figure was revised up from 276,000 while May sales of 282,000 were [...]

IFO acts like economic UFO – Look up in the sky, it's a bird, it's a plane, no! It's the German economy! Germany's IFO this month does seem a bit over the top compared to what expectations were. Maybe 'UFO' is too strong a [...]