Economy in Brief: July 2015

New orders for durable goods surged 3.4% during June (-2.8% y/y) following a 2.1% May decline, earlier reported as -1.8%. The increase compared to expectations for a 3.1% rise in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. Last month's gain [...]

New home sales during June declined 6.8% to 482,000 following a revised 1.1% May drop to 517,000, initially reported as 546,000. April sales also were revised lower to 523,000 from 534,000. Sales were at the lowest level since [...]

The services sector continues to lead in terms of the value of the PMI in the EMU, Germany and France. And that goes a long way to explaining why Europe's recovery is still so weak with no fire under it. In July 2015, the EMU overall [...]

The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City reported that business activity improved during July. The Composite index of 10th District factory sector activity rose to -7, up from May's low of -13. The Fed indicated that higher shipments [...]

The Index of Leading Economic Indicators from the Conference Board increased 0.6% during June following a 0.8% rise during May, revised from 0.7%. A 0.2% improvement had been expected in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. The [...]

The Chicago Federal Reserve reported that its National Activity Index (CFNAI) during June registered its first positive reading since December. The latest figure increased to 0.08 from -0.08 in May, revised from -0.17. The three-month [...]

The rate of labor market improvement may have accelerated. Initial claims for unemployment insurance fell to 255,000 (-8.4% y/y) during the week ended July 18 from an unrevised 281,000 during the prior week. The latest figure was the [...]

Japan's trade trends show little alteration over the last few months. Over that period, exports have grown year-over-year in a range from 5.5% to 8.4% while imports have declined by 3.9% to 5.8%. The trade gap has fluctuated between [...]