As expected, the US economy rebounded in the third quarter, with strength in consumption supplemented by rebounds in the fixed investment categories. Third quarter GDP rose by 33.1%, compared with the 30.9% increase expected, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. Still, GDP was down 2.9% from the third quarter of 2019, an indication of the impact […]
Second quarter GDP was revised up due to upward adjustments to all its components. Even with the small improvement, though, the second quarter reading remains the largest quarterly decline since the Great Depression. As a result, analysts will look past this data and toward the third quarter’s partial recovery. July data have been generally positive, […]
US Retail sales rose further in June, as social distancing was eased further in many states, but a rebound of COVID-19 cases in July may result in a pullback in next month’s data. Total retail sales rose by 7.5%, ahead of the 5.2% gain expected, the Commerce Department reported Thursday, with increases seen in almost […]
The massive amount of US data released simultaneously Thursday ultimately showed that the rate of claims declines continued to slow even as economic activity picked up in the manufacturing sector. US initial jobless claims filings fell further in the June 20 week, but the level of new filings remains well above one million more than […]
US initial jobless claims filings fell further in the current week, but the pace of weekly declines has slowed and the level itself remains extremely elevated. In other data Thursday, manufacturing conditions in the Philadelphia Fed region improved drastically in June, showing growth for the first time since the COVID-19 crisis started. The Labor Department […]
The US initial claims data came in above expectations Thursday, but still posted a ninth straight weekly decline that suggests the backlog of claims continues to be worked down. However, after a sharp dip in the previous week, the level of continuing claims partially rebounded in the most recent data. The Labor Department reported Thursday […]
The US data released earlier Thursday offered few surprises, with the level of initial claims continuing to slide, durable goods orders down sharply in April and first-quarter GDP slightly worse than previously reported. However, a dip in continuing claims suggests that some displaced workers returned to their jobs in mid-May, a positive sign. Initial claims […]
US initial claims fell by 603,000 to 3.839 million in the April 25 week, ahead of the 3.50 million level expected, as reports suggest that displaced workers continue to encounter filing issues. Add that to additional announced layoffs, and the actual level of initial filings will remain high for several more weeks. The total number […]
