Online advertised vacancies increased 1,900 to 4,816,100 in August, according to The Conference Board Help Wanted OnLine® (HWOL) Data Series,released today. The July Supply/Demand rate stands at 1.61 unemployed for each advertised vacancy with a total of 3.0 million more unemployed workers than the number of advertised vacancies. The number ...

The MNI Chicago Business Barometer fell 4.3 points to 51.5 in August from 55.8 in July, led by a large setback in Order Backlogs and a deceleration in New Orders.

Four of the five Barometer components fell between July and August. Only Employment increased, hitting a 16-month high. The latest fall left the Barometer, New Orders and Production running at the slowest pace since May, when they all slipped below 50. ...

Private sector employment increased by 177,000 jobs from July to August according to the August ADP National Employment Report®.

Payrolls for businesses with 49 or fewer employees increased by 63,000 jobs in August, down from 68,000 in July. Employment at companies with 50-499 employees increased by 44,000 jobs, down from last month’s 71,000. Employment at large companies – those with 500 or more ...

Mortgage applications increased 2.8 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 26, 2016.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 2.8 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 2 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index increased 4 ...

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index®, which had decreased slightly in July, increased in August. The Index now stands at 101.1 (1985=100), compared to 96.7 in July. The Present Situation Index rose from 118.8 to 123.0, while the Expectations Index improved from 82.0 last month ...

Pending home sales expanded in most of the country in July and reached their second highest reading in over a decade, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Only the Midwest saw a dip in contract activity last month.

The Pending Home Sales Index,* a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, rose 1.3 percent to 111.3 in July from a downwardly revised 109.9 in June and is now 1.4 percent higher than July 2015 (109.8). The index is now at its second highest reading this year ...

S&P Dow Jones Indices today released the latest results for the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices, the leading measure of U.S. home prices. Data released today for June 2016 shows that home prices continued their rise across the country over the last 12 months.

YEAR-OVER-YEAR
The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index, covering all nine U.S. census divisions, reported a 5.1% annual gain in June, unchanged from last month. The 10-City Composite posted a 4.3% annual increase, down from 4.4% the previous month. ...

The Paychex | IHS Small Business Jobs Index remained steady in August, up modestly, 0.02 percent, from the previous month. At 100.70, the national index is up 0.22 percent from a year ago. Mountain reclaimed its lead among regions, pushing South Atlantic to the second-ranked spot. Washington continued as the top-ranked state index at 104.30, ...

Texas factory activity held steady in July, according to business executives responding to the Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey. The production index, a key measure of state manufacturing conditions, came in near zero after two months of negative readings, suggesting output stopped falling ...

Personal income increased $71.6 billion (0.4 percent) in July according to estimates released today by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Disposable personal income (DPI) increased $60.1 billion (0.4 percent) and personal consumption expenditures (PCE) increased $42.0 billion ...

Consumers were a bit less optimistic in August than one month or one year ago, although consumer confidence remains at a reasonably high level. Less favorable personal financial prospects were largely offset by a slight improvement in the outlook for the overall economy. Most of the weakness in personal finances was among younger households ...

Real gross domestic product increased at an annual rate of 1.1 percent in the second quarter of 2016, according to the "second" estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the first quarter, real GDP increased 0.8 percent.

The GDP estimate released today is based on more complete source data than were available for the "advance" estimate issued last month. In the advance estimate, the increase in real GDP was 1.2 percent. With this second estimate for the second quarter, the general picture ...

Tenth District manufacturing activity continued to decline modestly. Expectations for future activity remained solid, and the price indexes were mixed. In a special question this month, most firms reported no plans to change employee benefits for next year, but more firms expect decreases in benefits than ...

New Orders
New orders for manufactured durable goods in July increased $9.7 billion or 4.4 percent to $228.9 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau announced today. This increase, up following two consecutive monthly decreases, followed a 4.2 percent June decrease. Excluding transportation, new orders increased 1.5 percent. Excluding defense, new ...

In the week ending August 20, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 261,000, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 262,000. The 4-week moving average was 264,000, a decrease of 1,250 from the previous week's unrevised average of 265,250. There were no special factors impacting this week's ...

Slowed by frustratingly low inventory levels in many parts of the country, existing-home sales lost momentum in July and decreased year-over-year for the first time since November 2015, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Only the West region saw a monthly increase in closings in ...

Mortgage applications decreased 2.1 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 19, 2016.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 2.1 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 3 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index decreased 3 ...

Sales of new single-family houses in July 2016 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 654,000, according to estimates released jointly today by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This is 12.4 percent (±12.7%)* above the revised June rate of 582,000 and is 31.3 percent (±19.9%) above the July ...

Fifth District manufacturing activity declined in August, according to the most recent survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. New orders and shipments decreased this month, while backlogs fell. Hiring increases in the sector expanded modestly across firms, and wage increases were more widespread. Raw materials prices rose at a ...

The August Nonmanufacturing Business Outlook Survey suggests that business activity continued to expand at a steady pace. The survey’s broadest indicators of general activity and sales/revenues remained positive and near their readings in July. The employment indexes suggest continued expansion in employment for both full-time and ...

The index’s three-month moving average, CFNAI-MA3, increased to –0.10 in July from –0.19 in June. July’s CFNAI-MA3 suggests that growth in national economic activity was slightly below its historical trend. The economic growth reflected in this level of the CFNAI-MA3 suggests subdued inflationary pressure from economic activity over the ...

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for the U.S. increased 0.4 percent in July to 124.3 (2010 = 100), following a 0.3 percent increase in June, and a 0.2 percent decline in May.

“The U.S. LEI picked up again in July, suggesting moderate economic growth should continue through the end of 2016,” said Ataman Ozyildirim, Director of Business Cycles and Growth Research at The Conference Board. “There may even be some moderate upside growth potential if ...

Firms responding to the Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey suggest that growth was positive but tenuous this month. The diffusion index for current general activity moved from a negative reading to a marginally positive reading, while the indicators for new orders and employment suggested continued general weakness in business conditions. ...

In the week ending August 13, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 262,000, a decrease of 4,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 266,000. The 4-week moving average was 265,250, an increase of 2,500 from the previous week's unrevised average of 262,750. There were no special factors impacting this week's ...

Mortgage applications decreased 4.0 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 12, 2016.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 4.0 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 5 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index decreased 4 ...

Industrial production rose 0.7 percent in July after moving up 0.4 percent in June. The advance in July was the largest for the index since November 2014. Manufacturing output increased 0.5 percent in July for its largest gain since July 2015. The index for utilities rose 2.1 percent as a result of warmer-than-usual weather in July boosting ...

BUILDING PERMITS
Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in July were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,152,000. This is 0.1 percent (±1.2%) below the revised June rate of 1,153,000, but is 0.9 percent (±1.5%) above the July 2015 estimate of 1,142,000. Single-family authorizations in July were at a rate of ...

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) was unchanged in July on a seasonally adjusted basis, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the all items index rose 0.8 percent before seasonal adjustment.

The energy index declined in July and the food index was unchanged. The index for all items less food and energy rose, but posted its smallest increase since March. As a result, the all items index was unchanged after rising in each of the 4 previous months. ...

Real average hourly earnings for all employees increased 0.4 percent from June to July, seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. This result stems from a 0.3-percent increase in average hourly earnings combined with essentially no change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban ...

The U.S. Department of the Treasury today released Treasury International Capital (TIC) data for June 2016. The sum total in June of all net foreign acquisitions of long-term securities, short-term U.S. securities, and banking flows was a monthly net TIC outflow of $202.8 billion. Of this, net foreign private outflows were $162.4 billion, and ...

Builder confidence in the market for newly constructed single-family homes in August rose two points to 60 from a downwardly revised reading of 58 in July on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI).

“New construction and new home sales are on the rise in most areas of the country, and this is helping to boost builder sentiment,” said NAHB Chairman Ed Brady, a home builder and developer from Bloomington, Ill. ...

Business activity in New York State declined slightly this month, according to firms responding to the August 2016 Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index fell five points to -4.2. The new orders index remained near zero, a sign that orders were little changed, while the shipments index climbed ...

The U.S. Census Bureau announced today that the combined value of distributive trade sales and manufacturers’ shipments for June, adjusted for seasonal and trading-day differences but not for price changes, was estimated at $1,307.8 billion, up 1.2 percent (±0.2%) from May 2016, but was down 0.6 percent (±0.4%) from ...

The outlook for growth in the U.S. economy over the next three years looks slightly weaker than that of three months ago, according to 40 forecasters surveyed by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. The panel expects real GDP to grow at an annual rate of 2.6 percent this quarter and 2.3 percent next quarter. On an annual-average ...

The Producer Price Index for final demand decreased 0.4 percent in July, seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Final demand prices rose 0.5 percent in June and 0.4 percent in May. On an unadjusted basis, the final demand index moved down 0.2 percent for the 12 months ended ...

The U.S. Census Bureau announced today that advance estimates of U.S. retail and food services sales for July, adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes, were $457.7 billion, virtually unchanged (±0.5%)* from the previous month, and 2.3 percent (±0.7%) above July 2015. Total sales for ...

Prices for U.S. imports advanced 0.1 percent in July, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, following a 0.6-percent rise the previous month. In July, increasing nonfuel prices more than offset a downturn in fuel prices. The price index for U.S. exports rose 0.2 percent in July, after advancing 0.8 percent ...

In the week ending August 6, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 266,000, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised down by 2,000 from 269,000 to 267,000. The 4-week moving average was 262,750, an increase of 3,000 from the previous week's revised average. ...

The number of job openings was little changed at 5.6 million on the last business day of June, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Hires and separations were little changed at 5.1 million and 4.9 million, respectively. Within separations, the quits rate was 2.0 percent and the layoffs and discharges rate was 1.1 percent. ...

Mortgage applications increased 7.1 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 5, 2016.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 7.1 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 7 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index increased 10 ...

The U.S. Census Bureau announced today that June 2016 sales of merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, after adjustment for seasonal variations and trading-day differences but not for price changes, were $444.6 billion, up 1.9 percent (+/-0.5%) from the revised May level, but were down 0.4 percent (+/-1.1%) from ...

Nonfarm business sector labor productivity decreased at a 0.5-percent annual rate during the second quarter of 2016, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, as output increased 1.2 percent and hours worked increased 1.8 percent. (All quarterly percent changes in this release are seasonally adjusted annual rates.) From the ...

The Index of Small Business Optimism increased 0.1 points to 94.6, still well below the 40 year average of 98. Four of the 10 Index components posted a gain, four declined and two were unchanged. GDP growth in the last three quarters has averaged 1 percent, not a recession but only matching the growth in the population. The outlook for ...

The Conference Board Employment Trends Index™ (ETI) increased in July, after increasing in June. The index now stands at 128.28, up from 127.89 (a downward revision) in June. The change represents a 1.6 percent gain in the ETI compared to a year ago.

“The Employment Trends Index is still suggesting that job growth will slow in the coming months, despite strong employment numbers for June and July,” said Gad Levanon, Chief Economist, North America, at The Conference Board. “It is surprising that hiring has been so ...

Consumer credit increased at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5-1/4 percent during the second quarter. Revolving credit increased at an annual rate of 4-1/2 percent, while nonrevolving credit increased at an annual rate of 5-1/2 percent. In June, consumer credit increased at an annual rate of ...

Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 255,000 in July, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.9 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Job gains occurred in professional and business services, health care, and financial activities. Employment in mining continued to ...

The Nation's international trade deficit in goods and services increased to $44.5 billion in June from $41.0 billion in May (revised), as imports increased more than exports.

The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, through the Department of Commerce, announced today that the goods and services deficit was $44.5 billion in June, up $3.6 billion from $41.0 billion in May, revised. June exports were $183.2 billion, $0.6 ...

New orders for manufactured goods in June, down two consecutive months, decreased $6.9 billion or 1.5 percent to $447.4 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today. This followed a 1.2 percent May decrease.

Shipments, up four consecutive months, increased $3.1 billion or 0.7 percent to $460.0 billion. This followed a 0.1 percent May increase. ...

In the week ending July 30, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 269,000, an increase of 3,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 266,000. The 4-week moving average was 260,250, an increase of 3,750 from the previous week's unrevised average of 256,500. There were no special factors impacting this week's ...

The pace of layoffs ticked up in July, as employers announced plans to shed 45,346 workers from their payrolls. That represents a 19 percent increase from 38,536 job cuts in June, according to the report released Thursday by global outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & ...