Economy in Brief

U.S. economic growth in Q1'18 moderated slightly more than earlier estimates. Real gross domestic product grew at a 2.0% annual rate, revised from 2.2% reported last month and 2.3% estimated initially. The rise followed 2.9% growth [...]

The European Commission indexes of economic activity for June continued to erode at the pace of oxidation. In three months the headline index has lost only 0.5 points, but it has declined in each month. Only two of the five sector [...]

Initial claims for unemployment insurance rose to 227,000 during the week ended June 23, an increase of 9,000 from the 218,000 of the prior week; that earlier figure was unrevised. The Action Economics Forecast Survey looked for [...]

U.S. economic growth in Q1'18 moderated slightly more than earlier estimates. Real gross domestic product grew at a 2.0% annual rate, revised from 2.2% reported last month and 2.3% estimated initially. The rise followed 2.9% growth [...]

The Mortgage Bankers Association reported that its total Mortgage Applications Volume Index fell 4.9% last week (-12.5% y/y), following a 5.1% increase during the prior week. The effective interest rate on a 15-year mortgage was [...]

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported that pending sales of existing homes fell 0.5% during May (-2.2% y/y) following a 1.3% April decline. Sales fell to an index level of 105.9 (2001=100) which was the lowest level [...]

EMU money and credit growth both picked up in May but mainly in nominal terms. The graph shows the nominal year-on-year growth rates and in that depiction the advance in money and credit growth in May hardly stands out. When deflated [...]

New orders for durable goods fell 0.6% during May (+9.2% y/y) following a 1.0% April decline, revised from -1.7%. A 0.7% drop had been expected in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. During the last three months, orders have risen [...]