Economy in Brief: 2019

The Chicago Purchasing Managers’ Business Barometer rose more than expected to 48.9 in December from 46.3 in November and 43.2 in October. The October reading had been the lowest level in four years. This index is a diffusion index [...]

U.S. pending home sales decreased 1.7% (+4.4% y/y) in October.. The pending home sales index measures sales at the time the contract for the sale of an existing home is signed, analogous to the Census Bureau's new home sales data. In [...]

U.S. pending home sales rose 1.2% (+7.4% y/y) in November, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) after falling 1.3% in October. October was revised from a 1.7% drop. The November index level of sales was 108.5 [...]

The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas reported in its Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey that the General Business Activity Index fell in December to -3.2 from -1.3 in November. For this index, zero is the critical value that separates [...]

The Chicago Purchasing Managers' Business Barometer rose more than expected to 48.9 in December from 46.3 in November and 43.2 in October. The October reading had been the lowest level in four years. This index is a diffusion index [...]

Japans' retail sales rebounded but only part way after a horrific decline in the wake of its consumption tax hike. On October 1, the government raised the consumption tax from 8% to 10%. While retail sales had risen by 7.2% in [...]

Japan's housing starts fell for the second month in a row in November. With a shirking population, housing is not the vibrant industry it once was. The housing market was impacted in the global recession, but it did recover from [...]

Initial claims for unemployment insurance decreased 13,000 in the week ended December 21 to 222,000 (-0.4% y/y) from the prior week's 235,000, which was revised upward by 1,000. The December 21 actual also equaled the Action Economics [...]