Texas factory activity continued to expand in September, according to business executives responding to the Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey. The production index, a key measure of state manufacturing conditions, fell four points to 13.9, suggesting output growth continued but at a slightly slower pace than ...

The Chicago Business BarometerTM, produced with MNI, fell 3.3 points to 47.1 in September, following August’s rebound to 50.4.

Business confidence dropped below the 50-mark to 47.3 in Q3, leaving the index at the lowest level on a quarterly basis since Q3 2009. The index fell 4.9 points compared to the previous quarter. ...

Consumer sentiment improved in September from its depressed August reading due to more favorable income trends, especially among middle income households, according to the University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers.

The overall trends in confidence remain favorable, but have begun to slowly erode, said U-M economist Richard Curtin, director of the surveys. The Sentiment Index for the 3rd quarter of 2019 (93.8) was only slightly below the averages for the first half of 2019 (96.5) as ...

Personal income increased $73.5 billion (0.4 percent) in August according to estimates released today by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Disposable personal income (DPI) increased $77.7 billion (0.5 percent) and personal consumption expenditures (PCE) increased $20.1 billion ...

New Orders
New orders for manufactured durable goods in August increased $0.5 billion or 0.2 percent to $250.7 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau announced today. This increase, up three consecutive months, followed a 2.0 percent July increase. Excluding transportation, new orders increased 0.5 percent. Excluding defense, new orders decreased ...

Tenth District manufacturing activity edged down in September, and expectations for future activity moderated but remained positive. The month-over-month price index for raw materials continued to fall, while the price index for finished products inched higher. Firms continued to expect prices to rise over the next 6 months, but at a ...

Pending home sales increased in August, a welcome rebound after a prior month of declines, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Each of the four major regions reported both month-over-month growth and year-over-year gains in contract activity.

The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI), a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, climbed 1.6% to 107.3 in August, reversing the prior month’s decrease. Year-over-year contract signings jumped 2.5%. An index of 100 is equal to the average level of contract ...

Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 2.0 percent in the second quarter of 2019 (table 1), according to the "third" estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the first quarter, real GDP increased 3.1 percent.

The GDP estimate released today is based on more complete source data than were available for the "second" estimate issued last month. In the second estimate, the increase in real GDP was also 2.0 percent. Downward revisions to personal consumption expenditures (PCE) and ...

In the week ending September 21, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 213,000, an increase of 3,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 2,000 from 208,000 to 210,000. The 4-week moving average was 212,000, a decrease of 750 from the previous week's revised average. ...

New Home Sales
Sales of new single‐family houses in August 2019 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 713,000, according to estimates released jointly today by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This is 7.1 percent (±20.3 percent)* above the revised July rate of 666,000 and is 18.0 percent ...

Mortgage applications decreased 10.1 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending September 20, 2019.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 10.1 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 11 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index decreased 15 ...

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index® decreased in September, following a slight decline in August. The Index now stands at 125.1 (1985=100), down from 134.2 in August. The Present Situation Index – based on consumers’ assessment of current business and labor market conditions – decreased from 176.0 to 169.0. The Expectations Index ...

Fifth District manufacturing activity softened in September, according to the most recent survey from the Richmond Fed. The composite index dropped from 1 in August to −9 in September, as both shipments and new orders fell. However, the third component, employment, rose. Firms also reported a drop in backlog of orders and weakening local ...

S&P Dow Jones Indices today released the latest results for the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices, the leading measure of U.S. home prices. Data released today for July 2019 shows that the rate of home price increases across the U.S. continues to slow.

YEAR-OVER-YEAR
The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index, covering all nine U.S. census divisions, reported a 3.2% annual gain in July, remaining the same from the previous month. The 10-City Composite annual increase came in at 1.6%, down from 1.9% ...

Responses to the September Nonmanufacturing Business Outlook Survey suggest an expansion of nonmanufacturing activity in the region. The index for general activity at the firm level and the index for sales/revenues both moderated slightly, while the new orders index held steady. The index for full-time employment remained stable. The ...

Led by improvements in production-related indicators, the Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI) rose to +0.10 in August from –0.41 in July. All four broad categories of indicators that make up the index increased from July, but three of the four categories made negative contributions to the index in August. The index’s three-month ...

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® (LEI)for theU.S. was unchanged in August, remaining at 112.1 (2016 = 100), following a 0.4 percent increase in July, and no change in June.

“The US LEI remained unchanged in August, following a large increase in July. Housing permits and the Leading Credit Index offset the weakness in the index from the manufacturing sector and the interest rate spread,” said Ataman Ozyildirim, Senior Director of Economic ...

Existing-home sales inched up in August, marking two consecutive months of growth, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Three of the four major regions reported a rise in sales, while the West recorded a decline last month.

Total existing-home sales, completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, rose 1.3% from July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.49 million in August. Overall sales are up 2.6% from a year ago (5.35 million in August ...

Manufacturing activity in the region continued to expand this month, according to results from the September Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey. The survey's broad indicators remained positive, although their movements were mixed: The indexes for general activity and new orders fell, while the indexes for shipments and employment increased. ...

The U.S. current account deficit narrowed by $8.0 billion, or 5.9 percent, to $128.2 billion in the second quarter of 2019, according to statistics from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The revised first quarter deficit was $136.2 billion. The second quarter deficit was 2.4 percent of current dollar gross domestic product, down from 2.6 percent ...

In the week ending September 14, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 208,000, an increase of 2,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 2,000 from 204,000 to 206,000. The 4-week moving average was 212,250, a decrease of 750 from the previous week's revised average. ...

Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in July indicates that the labor market remains strong and that economic activity has been rising at a moderate rate. Job gains have been solid, on average, in recent months, and the unemployment rate has remained low. Although household spending has been rising at a strong ...

Building Permits
Privately‐owned housing units authorized by building permits in August were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,419,000. This is 7.7 percent (±1.2 percent) above the revised July rate of 1,317,000 and is 12.0 percent (±1.6 percent) above the August 2018 rate of 1,267,000. Single‐family authorizations in August were at a ...

Mortgage applications decreased 0.1 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending September 13, 2019. Last week's results included an adjustment for the Labor ...

The U.S. Department of the Treasury today released Treasury International Capital (TIC) data for July 2019. The sum total in July of all net foreign acquisitions of long-term securities, short-term U.S. securities, and banking flows was a net TIC inflow of $43.8 billion. Of this, net foreign private inflows were $59.8 billion, and net ...

Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes rose one point to 68 in September from an upwardly revised August reading of 67, according to the latest NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) released today. Sentiment levels have held in the mid- to upper 60s since May and September’s reading matches the highest ...

Industrial production rose 0.6 percent in August after declining 0.1 percent in July. Manufacturing production increased 0.5 percent, more than reversing its decrease in July. Factory output has increased 0.2 percent per month over the past four months after having decreased 0.5 percent per month during the first four months of the year. ...

Business activity was little changed in New York State, according to firms responding to the September 2019 Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index edged down three points to 2.0. New orders were marginally higher than last month, and shipments grew modestly. Delivery times were steady, and ...

The combined value of distributive trade sales and manufacturers’ shipments for July, adjusted for seasonal and trading day differences but not for price changes, was estimated at $1,462.9 billion, up 0.3 percent (±0.1 percent) from June 2019 and was up 1.3 percent (±0.3 percent) from ...

Consumer sentiment posted a small rebound from the sharp August decline, marking the third lowest level since Trump's election. While the uptick was across both current and expected economic conditions, the early September rebound was not widespread across age or income subgroups as it only fell among consumers under age 45 and among ...

U.S. import prices decreased 0.5 percent in August, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, after rising 0.1 percent the previous month. The August decline was driven by a drop in fuel prices; prices for nonfuel goods were unchanged. Prices for U.S. exports fell 0.6 percent in August following a 0.2-percent increase ...

Advance estimates of U.S. retail and food services sales for August 2019, adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes, were $526.1 billion, an increase of 0.4 percent (±0.5 percent)* from the previous month, and 4.1 percent (±0.7 percent) above August 2018. Total sales for the June ...

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.1 percent in August on a seasonally adjusted basis after rising 0.3 percent in July, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 1.7 percent before ...

Real average hourly earnings for all employees increased 0.4 percent from July to August, seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. This result stems from a 0.4-percent increase in average hourly earnings combined with a 0.1-percent increase in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban ...

In the week ending September 7, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 204,000, a decrease of 15,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 2,000 from 217,000 to 219,000. The 4-week moving average was 212,500, a decrease of 4,250 from the previous week's revised average. ...

July 2019 sales of merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, after adjustment for seasonal variations and trading day differences but not for price changes, were $499.6 billion, up 0.3 percent (±0.4 percent)* from the revised June level, but were virtually unchanged (±0.9 percent)* from the July 2018 level. The ...

The Conference Board Help Wanted OnLine® (HWOL) Index rose in August and now stands at 103.6 (July 2018=100), up from 103.2 in July. The Index declined 1.2 percent from the prior month but is up 3.5 percent from a year ago.

In the Midwest, Iowa increased 2.9 percent and Ohio increased 2.5 percent. In the Northeast, Maine grew 3.3 percent and Connecticut increased 2.3 percent. In the South, Kentucky grew 3.0 percent and Texas increased 1.1 percent. In the West, Wyoming grew 2.6 percent and ...

The Producer Price Index for final demand rose 0.1 percent in August, seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Final demand prices moved up 0.2 percent in July and 0.1 percent in June. (See table A.) On an unadjusted basis, the final demand index rose 1.8 percent for the 12 months ended ...

Mortgage applications increased 2.0 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending September 6, 2019. This week's results include an adjustment for the Labor Day holiday.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 2.0 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 9 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index increased 0.4 ...

The number of job openings was little changed at 7.2 million on the last business day of July, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the month, hires edged up to 6.0 million and separations increased to 5.8 million. Within separations, the quits rate and the layoffs and discharges rate were little changed at 2.4 percent and ...

The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index fell 1.6 points to 103.1, remaining within the top 15 percent of readings. Overall, August was a good month for small business. However, optimism slipped because fewer owners said they expect better business conditions and real sales volumes in the coming months. Job creation accelerated, positive ...

In July, consumer credit increased at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6-3/4 percent. Revolving credit increased at an annual rate of 11-1/4 percent, while nonrevoving credit increased at an annual rate of 5-1/4 percent.

...

The Conference Board Employment Trends Index™ (ETI) declined slightly in August, following an increase in July. The index now stands at 110.62, almost unchanged from 110.72 (a downward revision) in July. The decrease marks a 0.5 percent decline in the ETI over the past ...

Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 130,000 in August, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 3.7 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment in federal government rose, largely reflecting the hiring of temporary workers for the 2020 Census. Notable job gains also occurred in health care and ...

New Orders
New orders for manufactured durable goods in July increased $5.0 billion or 2.1 percent to $250.4 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau announced today. This increase, up two consecutive months, followed a 1.8 percent June increase. Excluding transportation, new orders decreased 0.4 percent. Excluding defense, new orders increased ...

Economic activity in the non-manufacturing sector grew in August for the 115th consecutive month, say the nation’s purchasing and supply executives in the latest Non-Manufacturing ISM® Report On Business®.

The report was issued today by Anthony Nieves, CPSM, C.P.M., A.P.P., CFPM, Chair of the Institute for Supply Management® (ISM®) Non-Manufacturing Business Survey Committee: “The NMI® registered 56.4 percent, which is 2.7 percentage points higher than the July reading of ...

Nonfarm business sector labor productivity increased 2.3 percent in the second quarter of 2019, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, as output increased 1.9 percent and hours worked decreased 0.4 percent. (All quarterly percent changes in this release are seasonally adjusted annual rates.) From the second quarter of 2018 to ...

In the week ending August 31, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 217,000, an increase of 1,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 215,000 to 216,000. The 4-week moving average was 216,250, an increase of 1,500 from the previous week's revised average. ...

Private sector employment increased by 195,000 jobs from July to August according to the August ADP National Employment Report®.

“In August we saw a rebound in private-sector employment,” said Ahu Yildirmaz, vice president and co-head of the ADP Research Institute. “This is the first time in the last 12 months that we have seen balanced job growth across small, medium and large-sized companies.” ...

U.S.-based employers ramped up the pace of downsizing in August, as companies announced plans to cut 53,480 jobs from their payrolls. This is up 37.7% from July’s total of 38,845, according to the latest report on job cuts released Thursday from global outplacement and business and executive coaching firm Challenger, Gray & ...