Economy in Brief: September 2020

• Housing market activity continues to strengthen. • Improvement remains broad-based regionally. • Number of prospective buyers reaches new record. The Composite Housing Market Index from the National Association of Home Builders- [...]

• Business inventories edged up 0.1% in July after six consecutive monthly declines. • Sales jump 3.2%, but still 1.9% below January peak. • Inventory-to-Sales ratio falls to six-year low. Total business inventories ticked up 0.1% in [...]

• Growth in consumer spending was below expectations last month. • Slower growth was widespread. The consumer pulled back on visits to retail outlets last month, despite limited openings of some stores after shutdowns due to COVID-19. [...]

• Applications for both purchase and refinancings declined. • Mortgage rates edged down to record lows. The Mortgage Bankers Association Mortgage Loan Applications Index decreased 2.5% w/w (+33.0% y/y) in the week ended September 11, [...]

Meanwhile, back on earth, conditions remain weak and mixed ZEW expectations rose in September in five of the six countries surveyed; the United Kingdom was the exception. Current conditions improved everywhere up and down the line but [...]

• Manufacturing output remains strong. • High Tech and nondurable goods sectors are notably firm. • Capacity usage is unconstrained. Industrial production increased 0.4% (-7.7% y/y) during August following a 3.5% jump in July, revised [...]

Economic activity in New York surprised market expectations in September with the Empire State General Business Conditions Index, jumping up to 17.0 from 3.7 in August and almost recouping all its lost ground in August. The Action [...]

• Price increases are broad-based. • Oil import prices firm but farm export prices ease. Import prices increased 0.9% (-1.4% y/y) during August following a 1.2% July rise, revised from 0.7%. A 0.5% gain had been expected in the Action [...]