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Producer Price Index
Producer prices fell more steeply than expected in February as energy costs fell, giving the Federal Reserve leeway to hold interest rates exceptionally low for an extended period as it has promised. The Labor Department on Wednesday said the index for prices paid at the farm and factory gate fell 0.6 percent, the largest decline since July, after increasing 1.4 percent in January. Even excluding volatile energy and food costs, core producer prices rose just 0.1 percent last month.
Price producer price pressure is pretty moderate.
Mar 17 · 11:01:00 AM
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by Larry Etter
Retail Sales
Retail sales rose in February, the government said Friday, surprising economists who expected a decline.
The Commerce Department said total retail sales edged up 0.3% to $355.5 billion last month. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had anticipated that February sales would drop 0.2%.
February's increase showed that Americans were still making it to the stores despite the snow and cold weather last month and customers were splurging on electronics for the Super Bowl, said Chris Donnelly, a senior executive at consulting firm Accenture.
February retail sales jumped 3.9% compared to the same month in 2009.
Mar 12 · 12:28:00 PM · Source: CNN Money
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by Michael Oliveto
Unemployment
The U.S. Labor Department said today that in the week ending Feb. 27 the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 469,000, a decrease of 29,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 498,000. The 4-week moving average was 470,750, a decrease of 3,500 from the previous week's revised average of 474,250.
This points to an improvement in the labor market that is slow to develop.
Mar 4 · 9:18:00 AM
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by Larry Etter
GDP
The nation's gross domestic product, the broadest measure of the nation's economic activity, grew at an annual rate of 5.9% in the quarter, the Commerce Department reported today.
The numbers show the economy grew at a slightly faster pace than originally thought during the last three months of 2009.
Feb 26 · 10:19:00 AM
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by Larry Etter
Unemployment
New orders for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods excluding transportation unexpectedly fell in January, while the number of workers filing for jobless benefits rose last week, suggesting a loss of momentum in the pace of economic recovery.
The Commerce Department said on Thursday orders excluding transportation fell 0.6 percent last month after increasing 2.0 percent in December. That was below market expectations for a 1.0 percent rise.
However, overall orders jumped 3.0 percent, the biggest gain since July, as aircraft bookings soared. That was well above market expectations for a 1.5 percent rise. Orders increased 1.9 percent in December.
Separately, initial claims for unemployment benefits rose 22,000 to 496,000 last week, the Labor Department said.
Analysts had expected jobless claims to fall to 455,000.
Feb 25 · 5:10:00 PM · Source: CNBC
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by Michael Oliveto
Housing
Sales of new homes in January fell 11 percent to an annual pace of 309,000, figures from the Commerce Department showed today. The median sales price dropped 2.4 percent from January 2009 and the supply of unsold homes increased.
The dip in new home sales number was unexpected and the number is the lowest level on record, a sign that an extension of a government tax credit may not be enough to respark demand.
Feb 24 · 10:15:00 AM
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by Larry Etter
Housing
U.S. home prices slipped in December but the annual rate of decline slowed, according to Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller indexes. The S&P composite index of home prices in 20 metropolitan areas dipped 0.2 percent in December, matching the decrease in November. This amounts to a 3.1 percent annual drop.
The numbers reinforce the housing recovery is still rocky.
Feb 23 · 10:09:00 AM
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by Larry Etter
Interest Rates
The Fed said late Thursday it is raising its discount rate by a quarter percentage point, or 25 basis points, to 0.75%. The central bank said in a statement it made the move in response to improving financial market conditions.
Ben Bernanke's Fed is taking a small step toward normal policy.
The move is largely symbolic, because banks do little borrowing at the discount window.
The unanimous decision to boost the discount rate also has no effect on the more widely watched federal funds rate, which measures the rate banks charge each other for overnight loans. That rate is expected to remain between 0% and 0.25% for the foreseeable future, given the slack in the labor market and the still fragile state of the economy.
Feb 19 · 11:05:00 PM · Source: CNN Money
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by Michael Oliveto
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