Key Economic Indicators – October 17, 2016

  • Advance estimates of retail and food services sales for September were up 0.6%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Excluding motor vehicle & parts, retail sales were up 0.5%.
  • Total manufacturing and trade sales and inventories for August were both up 0.2%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The total business inventories/sales ratio was 1.39 for the third month.
  • The producer price index for total final demand, which was unchanged in August, increased 0.3% in September. The index for final demand goods less foods and energy increased 0.3%, following an increase of 0.1% in the previous month. The producer price index for final demand increased 0.7% from September 2015 to September 2016.
  • The import price index increased 0.1% in September, while the export price index increased 0.3%. The import price index decreased 1.1% from September 2015 to September 2016, while the price index for exports decreased 1.5%.
  • The advance figure for initial claims for unemployment insurance was 246 thousand in the week ending October 8, unchanged from the previous week’s revised level. The 4-week moving average was 249.25 thousand, a decrease of 3.5 thousand from the previous week’s revised average.
  • Mortgage applications decreased 6.0% from a week earlier, according to data from Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Applications Survey for the week ending October 7th.

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