Economy in Brief: February 2015

The ZEW financial experts' expectations index is back at its highest level in 12 months. Its percentile standing shows it is higher about 28% of the time while the current index, which advanced strongly to 45.5 from 22.4, is higher [...]

The Empire State Factory Index of General Business Conditions fell to 7.78 during February, after rising to 9.95 in January. The figures remained well below the 27.41 peak reached last September. The figures are from the Federal [...]

The National Association of Realtors reported that during all of last year its Housing Affordability Composite Index declined to 166.2, the lowest level since 2008. For December, the index improved somewhat to 167.8 but remained down [...]

Once upon a time a considerable time ago, there was a far off land called Europe that decided to form a more perfect union, but a still a less-than-perfect union, and blend its data together using an average weighted by GDP and [...]

Downward pressure on prices of internationally traded goods is ongoing. Import prices declined 2.8% during January (-8.0% y/y) following a revised 1.9% December fall, earlier reported as -2.5%. It was the largest of seven straight [...]

Total business inventories nudged just 0.1% higher in December (3.9% y/y) versus an unrevised 0.2% November rise. During the last three months, inventory growth slowed to 1.8% (AR) from its high of 7.6% late in 2013. Total business [...]

Initial claims for unemployment insurance increased to 304,000 during the week ended February 7 following a rise to 279,000 during the prior week, revised from 278,000. The four-week moving average of initial claims declined to [...]

Overall retail sales including food services & drinking places declined 0.8% last month following an unrevised 0.9% fall in December. A 0.5% shortfall had been expected in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. Sales excluding autos [...]