Market Updates
Retail sales rose 17.7% in May, well above the 8% forecast. Although still below prior levels, it was the biggest one-month jump of all time. Fed Chair Jerome Powell warned of ‘significant uncertainty’ about the economic recovery in his semi-annual testimony before...
Market Updates
Consumer prices fell for the 3rd straight month in May. Underlying inflation was weak, as demand remained subdued. Low inflation typically helps keep rates low. At their June meeting, the Fed renewed their commitment to purchasing mortgage bonds. Their purchases...
Market Updates
Manufacturing activity rebounded from an 11-yr low in May, the strongest sign yet that the worst of the economic downturn is behind us as businesses reopen. Construction spending rose year over year in April, despite a dip due to the recent lockdowns. Residential...
Market Updates
Consumer Confidence Rises Consumer confidence nudged up in May, suggesting a positive turn for the pandemic-driven economic slump as the country starts to reopen. U.S. retail traffic jumped over Memorial Day weekend, according to cell phone data. Unacast reported...
Market Updates
Mortgage rates continue to hit record lows, and mortgage applications point to a remarkable recovery in homebuying. Purchase apps rose 6% last week, only 1.5% lower than a year ago. More than 8% of U.S. mortgages are now in forbearance, equating to roughly 4.1 million...
Market Updates
Consumer prices saw their largest drop ever in April, as the economy reeled from restrictions imposed to control the coronavirus. The CPI excluding food and energy fell 0.4%. Producer prices also tumbled in April, the largest annual decline since 2015. The data could...
Market Updates
The U.S. services sector contracted for the first time in about a decade last month, as the coronavirus pandemic brought economic activity to a screeching halt. Household debt increased to a total of $14.3 trillion last quarter, the 23rd straight quarterly increase....
Market Updates
The Fed met this week, leaving policy rates unchanged as expected. The Fed committed to continue buying bonds, which should help keep rates low. The 1st qtr GDP declined more than expected, down 4.8% versus estimates of 3.5%. This was the first negative reading since...
Market Updates
A recent Reuters poll shows a majority of economists believe we will see a "U-shaped" economic recovery, in which the economy will stabilize a while before climbing to previous levels. After the first round of paycheck protection funding disappeared quickly, Congress...
Market Updates
Retail sales suffered a record drop of 8.7% in March, as stay-at-home orders and mandatory business closures to control the spread of COVID-19 curbed spending. Over 1.3 million Paycheck Protection Program loans were approved for more than $296 billion through...
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