Economy in Brief: July 2015

The National Federation of Independent Business reported that its Small Business Optimism Index declined sharply to 94.1 during June after an unrevised rise to 98.3 in May. The reading was the lowest since March of last year. The [...]

Import prices fell 0.1% during June (-10.0% y/y) following a 1.2% jump during May, revised from 1.3%. The Action Economics Forecast Survey anticipated a 0.2% rise. Prices of petroleum imports increased 0.8% (-41.3% y/y) following an [...]

Overall retail sales including food services & drinking places during June declined 0.3% (2.9% y/y) following downwardly revised readings of 1.0% and no change during May and April, earlier reported as 1.2% and 0.2%. The June decline [...]

In the current month with overall IP falling, it is the rich getting richer as the big four economies show advances in their national manufacturing IP output. But over the past year it is a different story. It is the austerity [...]

The Federal Government reported a $51.8 billion budget surplus during June compared to a $70.5 billion surplus during June of 2014. A $41.0 billion surplus had been expected in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. For the first nine [...]

Dutch manufacturing IP has just made its third consecutive gain year-over-year. However, overall IP excluding construction (the headline series) is lower year-over-year for two months running. Shorter term trends, those inside one [...]

Inventories at the wholesale level increased 0.8% during May (5.0% y/y) following an unrevised 0.4% April gain. The rise was paced by a 4.4% jump (-16.7% y/y) in petroleum inventories which followed a 3.1% April increase. There also [...]

The National Association of Realtors Composite Index of Home Affordability declined 3.7% during May to 159.7 (-0.9% y/y), down for the fourth consecutive month. The decline was driven by a 4.7% rise in home prices which have increased [...]