Economy in Brief: October 2015

Total business inventories held steady during August (2.4% y/y) for a second month. Revisions to the July figures were minimal. These figures suggest inventories will have little effect on real GDP growth this quarter as in Q2. Retail [...]

The overall Final Demand Producer Price Index fell 0.5% in September (-1.1% y/y) following an unrevised zero change in August. It was the first decline since April. The Action Economics Forecast Survey expected a 0.2% decrease. Prices [...]

EMU industrial production excluding construction (IPxC) fell by 0.5% in August after a 0.8% increase in July. Over three months, IPxC is net lower, falling at a 0.2% annualized rate. Over six months, IPxC is falling at a 1.2% pace. [...]

Overall retail sales including food services & drinking places during September notched 0.1% higher (-5.6% y/y) following no change in August, revised from 0.2%. A 0.2% rise had been expected in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. [...]

The National Federation of Independent Business reported that its Small Business Optimism Index was little changed during September, nudging up to 96.1 from an unrevised 95.9 in August. The latest figure remained below the high of [...]

ZEW financial experts cut their assessment of current conditions in the German economy and chopped their expectations as well. Expectations were cut by 10.2 points while the current situation index was slashed by 12.3 points. These [...]

The National Association for Business Economics forecast of 2.7% growth in U.S. real economic activity in 2016 was revised from 2.9% posted in June. Expected growth of 2.5% this year, however, was little-changed. Quarterly GDP growth [...]

French trade flows have turned sharply weaker in August as exports fell by 1.7% and imports dropped by 2.9%. The relatively sharper weakness in imports thrust the current account into surplus (0.2 billion euros). Sequential growth [...]