Economy in Brief: 2013

Retail sales growth in the Eurozone contracted in February after rising in January and dropping in December. Over three months, retail sales are contracting but they are contracting at a slower rate than they had been over six months. [...]

The National Association of Realtors reported that March sales of existing homes fell 0.6% (+10.3% y/y) to a 4.920M annual rate. The increase followed a downwardly revised 0.2% February uptick. The latest fell short of Consensus [...]

The Chicago Federal Reserve reported that its March National Activity Index (CFNAI) backpedaled to -0.23 from an upwardly revised 0.76 in February. The three-month moving average pulled back to -0.01, its lowest reading since October. [...]

Depending on where you live in the U.S., the unemployment rate may vary greatly from the country's 7.6% average. Suffering the greatest degree of unemployment is the Pacific region where jobless rates average 8.8%. California averages [...]

Industrial orders in Italy fell by 2.5% in February adding to a string of declines that extends back over four months. The declines over the recent two months are steeper than the declines over the previous two months. Foreign orders [...]

Unemployment remains high in the European Monetary Union. As of February the rate is 12% the same as in January both figures are up from December's 11.8%. In the EU unemployment rates have snaked up to 10.9% from 10.8% in January and [...]

The index of Leading Economic Indicators, published by the Conference Board, ticked 0.1% lower (+1.7% y/y) during March following unrevised 0.5% increases during the prior two months. One-half of the component series had a positive [...]

Initial claims for unemployment insurance rose to 352,000 (-9.0% y/y) during the week ended April 13 from a revised 348,000 during the prior week, initially reported as 346,000. Consensus expectations were for 345,000 claims. The four [...]