Supply chains in the United States continued to recover in December, remaining at the pre-COVID level for the sixth straight month as most of the damage from the pandemic has now faded, according to the RSM US Supply Chain Index. The recovery in supply chains has been one of the most important factors ... READ MORE >
Home sales dropped by 17.8% last year in biggest drop since 2008
Sales of existing homes fell for the 11th straight month in December, finishing their worst year since 2008, the National Association of Realtors reported on Friday. Still, there is some room left for sales to fall further as the Federal Reserve has signaled that it will continue to tighten monetary ... READ MORE >
Housing starts fell last year for the first time since 2009
The housing market continued to show little sign of reaching a bottom in December as housing starts and permits fell again to cap off the first year of decline since 2009. Housing starts dropped by 1.4% on an annualized month-ago basis, while building permits fell by 1.6%. For all of last year, housing ... READ MORE >
U.S. retail sales and producer inflation fall as spending weakens
Retail sales and producer inflation data came in lower than expected in December, giving the Federal Reserve more reasons to begin to slow down its rate hikes. Sales at retail stores and online showed broad declines in the last month of the year, dropping by 1.1%. November's number was also ... READ MORE >
Canada job gains top forecast, complicating decision on rates
The Canadian labour market once again kept managers, investors and, most important, the Bank of Canada on edge as it added 104,000 net jobs in December, significantly higher than the forecast of 5,000. December was the second month in the last three that job gains exceeded 100,000. The ... READ MORE >
Manufacturing posts first decline in nearly 3 years
Industry and government data on Wednesday continued to paint a mixed picture of the economy as the end of the business cycle is approaching. The manufacturing sector showed its first monthly contraction following 30 straight months of growth, highlighting the impact of restrictive monetary conditions that ... READ MORE >
Canada inflation eases, but the fight is not over
Inflation in Canada inched down in November, implying more room for the Bank of Canada to raise interest rates despite a slowing economy. November's headline Consumer Price Index dropped to a 6.8% increase from 6.9% on a year-ago basis, remaining significantly above the 2% target rate, ... READ MORE >
Housing starts and permits fall as the correction continues
Housing starts dropped for the third month in a row in November as the housing market continued to be in correction mode, the Commerce Department reported on Tuesday. There were 1.4 million residential starts on an annualized basis, falling short of the 1.7 million that we estimate are needed to meet ... READ MORE >
Retail sales fall more than expected as spending and inflation cool
Retail sales in November posted the sharpest decline of the year, falling by 0.6% as shoppers pulled back from holiday spending, the Commerce Department reported on Wednesday. Early shopping in October and falling prices were important factors that contributed to the pullback, which exceeded analysts' ... READ MORE >
Producer price inflation hotter than expected ahead of Fed’s meeting
Wholesale prices grew faster than expected in November, driven mostly by services which have become the new focus of the Federal Reserve in its fight against inflation. The producer price index for final demand rose by 0.3% in November and by 7.4% year-over-year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported ... READ MORE >