Economy in Brief: March 2015

The Chicago Federal Reserve reported that its National Activity Index (CFNAI) for February declined to -0.11 from -0.10 in January, revised from +0.13. The three-month moving average also turned negative. The reading of -0.08 was the [...]

The industrial commodity price index from the Foundation for International Business and Economic Research (FIBER) declined this week to the lowest level since December 2009. Overall, prices have fallen 14.3% y/y and 15.2% since late-August.

Inflation in Canada continues weak, crawling along the bottom of the range established by the Bank of Canada. The central bank has a desired inflation in a range of 1% to 3% but also expects that inflation will drop below 1% for much [...]

Recent strength in the U.S. factory sector has done little for industrial commodity prices as growth abroad struggles. The industrial commodity price index from the Foundation for International Business and Economic Research (FIBER) [...]

The Index of Leading Economic Indicators from the Conference Board increased 0.2% (6.2% y/y) during February following an unrevised 0.2% January improvement. A 0.2% rise had been expected in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. The [...]

The Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank reported that its General Factory Sector Business Conditions Index for March declined to 5.0 from an unrevised 5.2 in February. The number remained at the lowest point since February 2014 and was [...]

During all of 2014, the current account deficit deepened to $410.6 billion from $400.3 billion in 2013. The increase occurred as exports of goods, services & income rose 3.5% and imports gained 3.4%. The deficit deepened to $113.5 [...]

Initial jobless insurance claims of 291,000 in the week ended March 14 compared to 290,000 in the prior week, revised from 289,000. The four-week moving average of initial claims notched higher to 304,750. The Action Economics [...]