Our preferred metric of new claims—the 13-week moving average—rose slightly to 211,000, still below the pre-pandemic level. … READ MORE >
Tuan Nguyen
Fed holds rates steady as rebound in inflation hampers progress
Citing a lack of progress in reducing inflation, the Federal Reserve kept its policy rate unchanged at 5.5% at its meeting on Wednesday, the same rate it has had since July. … READ MORE >
Labor costs rise, complicating Fed’s decision on rate cuts
The employment cost index rose by 1.2% in the first quarter, up from 0.9% previously, while the year-over-year growth stayed elevated at 4.2%. … READ MORE >
American consumers continue to spend despite sticky inflation
Spending remained strong in March on the heels of robust income growth despite sticky inflation, according to Commerce Department released on Friday. … READ MORE >
Business equipment spending grows in March
The core capital goods shipments rose by 0.2% on a monthly basis, bringing the three-month moving average annualized pace to 2.0%. … READ MORE >
Existing home sales plunge amid stable jobless claims
March proved challenging for the housing market, as sales of existing homes plummeted by 4.3%, marking the steepest drop since November 2022. … READ MORE >
Industrial production rebounds as housing starts plunge
Housing starts dropped by 14.7% to 1.32 million on an annualized rate, the lowest level since last August. … READ MORE >
U.S. retail sales show surprising resilience
Total retail sales jumped 0.7% on the month, while February’s number was revised up to 0.9% from 0.6%. … READ MORE >
U.S. consumer sentiment falls as inflation stays sticky
The University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index fell to 77.9 in April from 79.4, according to data released on Friday. … READ MORE >
Hot inflation data dims prospects for a Fed rate cut in June
The year-ago consumer price index rose to 3.5% from 3.2% for overall inflation and stalled at 3.8% for the core inflation reading. … READ MORE >