Economy in Brief

The Composite Housing Market Index from the National Association of Home Builders-Wells Fargo inched up during October to 68 from an unrevised 67 in September. Despite the gain, the index remained below its December 2017 high of 74. [...]

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the total job openings rate rose to a record 4.6% in August; July was revised higher to 4.5%. The job openings rate is the job openings level as a percent of total employment plus the job [...]

The factory sector remains in good shape. Industrial production rose 0.3% (5.1% y/y) during September following an unrevised 0.4% August increase. A 0.2% improvement had been expected in the Action Economics Survey. Manufacturing [...]

Gasoline prices slipped to an average $2.88 per gallon last week (+15.7% y/y), down two cents from the prior week. Prices have meandered sideways since May. Haver Analytics constructs factors to adjust for the marked seasonal [...]

The U.S. Treasury Department reported that during FY'18, the federal government ran a $779.0 billion budget versus a $665.8 billion deficit in FY'17. It was the largest deficit since 2012 and amounted to 3.9% of GDP, up from 3.5% in [...]

Total business inventories increased 0.5% (4.2% y/y) during August following a 0.7% July rise, revised from 0.6%. Total business sales increased 0.5% (7.8% y/y), following a 0.2% gain. The inventory-to-sales ratio held steady at 1.34. [...]

Finland is experiencing three distinct forces on the inflation front. Within the last year, inflation is low and stable. Yet, over the past year, inflation has been rising on a year-over-year basis (see Chart). However, at the same [...]

Total retail sales improved 0.1% (4.7% y/y) during September following an unrevised 0.1% August gain. A 0.6% increase had been expected in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. Excluding motor vehicles and parts, retail sales eased [...]