The impact of elevated interest rates continued to show up in the business equipment spending data, which came in lower than expected in the Commerce Department's data released on Wednesday. Overall orders for durable goods fell by 5.4% in October, led by a 49.6% decline in nondefense aircraft because ... READ MORE >
continuing claims
Industrial production posts biggest drop this year amid strikes
Industrial production dropped by more than expected in October as the United Auto Workers strike was felt in the economy. Production of motor vehicle parts fell by 10%, marking the biggest drop since the beginning of the pandemic. The industrial production index declined by 0.6% on the month, according ... READ MORE >
Initial jobless claims ease amid broader signs of a softening labor market
Even as initial jobless claims have stayed relatively steady recently despite major strikes, there are longer-term signs that the labor market is softening. New filings for jobless claims inched down by 3,000 to 217,000 last week, up from 200,000 last month. But continuing claims—a measure of ... READ MORE >
Initial jobless claims edge up as labor market remains strong
New claims for jobless benefits rose to 217,000 last week, yet they remained below the pre-pandemic level where they have been since September, the Labor Department reported on Thursday. So far, new jobless claims, which increased by a modest 5,000, have stayed remarkably resilient as the labor market ... READ MORE >
August retail sales and producer inflation show a hot summer finish
The U.S. economy ran hotter than expected in August even as the momentum in spending slowed down. Retail sales and producer inflation came in significantly higher than forecast, while initial jobless claims were lower than the market consensus. But the downward revisions to retail sales in the prior ... READ MORE >
U.S. economy was a lot stronger in first quarter, final GDP estimate shows
The U.S. economy was stronger in the first quarter than previous estimates indicated, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported on Thursday. The third and final estimate of gross domestic product showed a drastic upward revision to a 2.0% gain from 1.3% on a quarterly and annualized basis. The increase ... READ MORE >
Initial jobless claims spike to highest since 2021
New filings for jobless benefits spiked by 28,000 last week, another sign of a softening labor market. Total new filings rose to 261,000, the highest since October 2021, the Labor Department reported on Thursday. There were no distortions to the report like the fraudulent claims in ... READ MORE >
Initial jobless claims inch up, yet labor market remains tight
Initial jobless claims inched up by 2,000 last week to 232,000, slightly below expectations, according to the Labor Department on Thursday. The data pointed to more softening in the labor market based on our preferred metric of the long-term trend—the 13-week moving average. But the upward ... READ MORE >
Jobless claims and producer inflation show mixed results
Initial jobless claims rose by 9.1% for the week ending May 6, to 264,000, the most since 2021, the Labor Department reported on Thursday. The rise came as the Labor Department also reported the producer prices bounced back in April, in part because of favorable comparisons to surging prices of ... READ MORE >
Initial jobless claims post largest increase in six weeks
Jobless claims last week rose back up to 242,000 after a brief one-week drop, the Labor Department reported on Thursday. The increase underscored the upward trend in new filings for jobless benefits as the labor market continued to soften. New claims have remained consistently above the pre-pandemic ... READ MORE >