Economy in Brief

The National Association of Realtors reported that sales of existing homes in November rose 1.9% to 5.320 million units (SAAR). The 7.0% y/y decline was, however, the largest since May 2011. The latest increase followed an unrevised [...]

The U.S. current account deficit widened to $124.8 billion during Q3'18 from $101.2 billion in Q2. It was the largest quarterly deficit since Q4'08 and compared to $123.4 billion expected in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. As a [...]

The widely watched German IFO gauge weakened noticeably in December. Most IFO readings deteriorated. The exceptions are easier to denote than listing the ones that obeyed the rule. Construction overall and current conditions were flat [...]

Gasoline prices fell to an average $2.37 per gallon (-3.3% y/y) from $2.42 last week. Prices have fallen from an average high of $2.90 early last month to currently the lowest level since August 2017. Haver Analytics constructs [...]

Total housing starts rose 3.2% (-3.6% y/y) during November to 1.256 million (AR) from 1.217 million in October, revised from 1.228 million. The level exceeded expectations for 1.230 million starts in the Action Economics Forecast [...]

The Composite Housing Market Index from the National Association of Home Builders-Wells Fargo declined to 56 during December, its lowest level since May 2015. The figure compared to the expansion high of 74 in December of last year. [...]

Trade flows are rebounding on differing dynamics in the euro area. The aggregate results (see Chart) show year-on-year flows sharply higher in October compared to the previous month's rate of growth. Monthly changes show solid gains [...]

The Empire State Manufacturing Index of General Business Conditions declined to 10.9 in December, the lowest level since May 2017. Nonetheless, for the year as a whole, the index stood at the highest level since 2006. The Action [...]