Economy in Brief

Retail gasoline prices fell to $2.82 per gallon last week from $2.84 during the prior week. Despite recent declines, prices remained up 19.5% y/y. Haver Analytics constructs factors to adjust for the marked seasonal variation in [...]

Inflation trends in Germany continue to move up toward or to the 2% mark. And 2% is a micro-step over the line to Germans and to the ECB. The German CPI has just got to that mark while the ex-energy CPI continues to pace at a good [...]

The Industrial Materials Price Index from the Foundation for International Business and Economic Research (FIBER) fell 3.7% last month and extended the retreat in prices since the peak two months ago. The decline left the index [...]

The EMU inflation picture has begun to get dicey with headline inflation at or above 2% for two months running and the core rate (excluding food and energy) running at a pace closer to 1%. Even Alice in Wonderland did not have it so [...]

The Conference Board's Composite Index of Leading Economic Indicators increased 0.6% (6.3% y/y) during July. The improvement followed an unrevised 0.5% June gain and an upwardly revised 0.1% uptick. A 0.4% increase had been expected [...]

The Conference Board's Composite Index of Leading Economic Indicators increased 0.6% (6.3% y/y) during July. The improvement followed an unrevised 0.5% June gain and an upwardly revised 0.1% uptick. A 0.4% increase had been expected [...]

U.K. retail sales are advancing and accelerating on the heels of a rebound in sales in Germany. It's an unlikely development as the U.K. faces all sorts of challenges including a program of rate hikes from the BOE, ongoing concerns [...]

Initial claims for unemployment insurance decreased to 212,000 during the week ended August 11 from 214,000 the week before, which was revised up by 1,000. The Action Economics Forecast Survey called for a 215,000 reading. The four- [...]