Research >> Economics
DJ-BTMU U.S. Business Barometer dropped by 0.6%
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For the week ending July 12 2014, the DJ-BTMU U.S. Business Barometer dropped by 0.6 percent following a solid 0.9 percent gain in the previous week. The decrease in this week’s barometer is explained by weak performances in both consumption and production indexes. MBA’s purchase index dipped by 7.6 percent in line with railroad freight car loadings’ weak trend. As to the production side, auto and truck production plummeted sharply by 19.1 and 14.0 percent, respectively, after strong increases in the prior week.
On a year-over-year basis, the barometer showed a gain of 0.9 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, rose by a modest 0.1 percent. Its year-over-year growth rate remained at 1.0 percent.
Posted: July 24, 2014 Thursday 10:00 AM