Research >> Economics
BTMU U.S. Business Barometer increased by 0.5%
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For the week ending June 27 2015, the BTMU U.S. Business Barometer increased by 0.5 percent to 99.5, following a gain of 0.5 percent in the previous week. This week’s barometer was driven by strong performances in both consumption and production indexes. Chain store sales rose by 2.2 percent, extending the positive trend for three consecutive weeks. As to the production side, electric output went up by 5.0 percent, and coal bituminous and lignite production picked up by 5.1 percent versus a decrease of 5.4 percent in the previous week. Although those gains were somewhat offset by losses in lumber and auto production.
On a year-over-year basis, the barometer showed a gain of 1.0 percent, which compares to an average -3.3 percent decline over the Great Recession (ended in June 2009 according to the NBER). After flat lining in 2006, and declining from 2007 through 2009, the barometer bounced back in 2010 to rise by 3.4 percent, which was the strongest increase since 1994 (+4.0 percent), but not so impressive when compared to an -8.0 percent drop in 2009. The rate of increase for the 2013 slowed to 0.7 percent following 1.5 percent in 2012.
The smoothed version of the barometer, which attempts to account for weekly volatility, increased by 0.2 percent to 99.1. Its year-over-year growth rate was 0.5 percent.
Posted: July 9, 2015 Thursday 10:00 AM