Economy in Brief: July 2019

The Composite Housing Market Index from the National Association of Home Builders-Wells Fargo edged up to 65 in July from 64 in June, reversing half of its June decline. Compared with a year ago, the index is 3 points lower and [...]

Improvement in consumer spending continues to underscore the economic expansion. Total retail sales increased 0.4% (1.8% y/y) during June following a 0.4% May gain, revised from a 0.5%. April's increase was revised also to 0.4% from [...]

Improvement in consumer spending continues to underscore the economic expansion. Total retail sales increased 0.4% (3.4% y/y) during June following a 0.4% May gain, revised from a 0.5%. April's increase was revised also to 0.4% from [...]

Import prices fell 0.9% (-2.0% y/y) in June following an upwardly revised unchanged reading in May (initially reported as a 0.3% m/m decline). The June decline was larger than the 0.6% m/m decline expected in the Action Economics [...]

Industrial production was flat during June (+1.3% year-on-year) following an unrevised 0.4% gain in May. April was revised down slightly to -0.5% from -0.4%. The Action Economics Survey forecast a 0.2% gain in June. Manufacturing [...]

The pump price for a gallon of gasoline in the U.S. increased to $2.78 per gallon (-3.0% y/y) from $2.74 in the previous week. It was the highest price since early-June. Haver Analytics adjusts for the seasonal variation in gasoline [...]

Irish exports and imports both have decelerated sharply from their respective paces of early-2018. Both have posted relatively recent year-on-year growth rates that have dipped below zero. However, as of May, it is exports where [...]

The Empire State Manufacturing Index of General Business Conditions rose to 4.3 during July after deteriorating sharply in June to -8.6, the first negative index level since October 2016. The Action Economics Forecast Survey expected [...]