Economy in Brief: January 2018

Import prices overall ticked 0.1% higher during December following a 0.8% November increase, revised from 0.7%. From December of 2016 to December of 2017, prices increased 3.0%. A 0.4% gain had been expected during last month in the [...]

Among the original 11 EMU member countries, only four countries: Austria, Italy, Portugal and Luxembourg have unemployment rates above their median values back to January 1991. Belgium and Germany have exceptionally low rates (vis-a- [...]

Retail gasoline prices were unchanged at $2.52 per gallon (5.6% y/y) last week at the highest level since late November. Haver Analytics constructs factors adjusting for the seasonal variation in gasoline pump prices. The price edged [...]

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the total job openings rate in November fell to 3.8%, its lowest level in six months. The hiring rate also fell slightly to 3.7% from the expansion high of 3.8%. These figures are from the [...]

Last year, the Small Business Optimism Index from the National Federation of Independent Business rose to a record 104.8 (1986=100). For December alone, the index eased 2.4% to 104.9 and was 0.9% below one year earlier. A stable 27% [...]

Consumer credit outstanding strengthened $27.96 billion (5.3% y/y) during November after a little-revised $20.53 billion October rise. It was the strongest increase since November 2001. An $18.0 billion gain had been expected in the [...]

The Industrial Materials Price Index from the Foundation for International Business and Economic Research (FIBER) rose 2.4% during the last four weeks following a 6.7% during all of last year. Recent price improvement came as U.S. [...]

Retail sales across the EMU and in other early reporting EMU and EU nations largely show a rebound or accelerating in November. The EMU and the seven countries in the table show declines in October in six of these eight jurisdictions. [...]