- Advance estimates of retail and food services sales for November were up 0.1% from the previous month, and were up 3.8% from a year ago, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Excluding motor vehicle & parts, retail sales were up 0.2% from October, and were up 3.9% from a year ago. Year-to-date, retail sales were up 3.1% from the first eleven months of 2015.
- Total manufacturing and trade sales for October were up 0.8% from September, while inventories were down 0.2%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The total business inventories/sales ratio was 1.37 in October, compared with 1.39 a year ago.
- Total Industrial production decreased 0.4% in November, following a 0.1% increase in October. Total industrial production in November was 0.6% below its level a year earlier. The rate of capacity utilization decreased 0.4 percentage point to 75.0%, 5.0 percentage points below its 1972-2015 average.
- The U.S. current account deficit decreased to $113.0 billion in the third quarter of 2016, from $118.3 billion in the previous quarter. The deficit decreased to 2.4% of GDP, from 2.6% of GDP in the second quarter.
- The federal budget had a deficit of $136.7 billion in November, compared with a deficit of $44.2 billion in October and a deficit of $65.5 billion in November of 2015.
- Housing starts in November were down 18.7% from the previous month, and were down 6.9% from November 2015. Building permits in November were down 4.7% from the previous month, and were down 6.6% from a year ago.
- The National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo Housing Market Index increased 7 points to 70 in December. The index was 63 in the previous month, and 60 in December of 2015.
- The results of Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey showed mortgage rates rising. 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.16% for the week ending December 15th, up from last week when it averaged 4.13%. A year ago at this time, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.97%.
- Mortgage applications decreased 4.0% from a week earlier, according to data from Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Applications Survey for the week ending December 9th.
- The consumer price index increased 0.2% in November, following a 0.4% increase in the previous month. The core index increased 0.2%, following a 0.1% increase as in the previous month. The consumer price index increased 1.7% for the 12-month period ending in November, while the core index rose 2.1%.
- The producer price index for total final demand increased 0.4% in November, after holding steady in October. The index for final demand goods less foods and energy increased 0.2%, following a 0.1% increase in the previous month. The producer price index for final demand increased 1.3% from November 2015 to November 2016.
- The import price index decreased 0.3% in November, while the export price index decreased 0.1%. The import price index decreased 0.1% from November 2015 to November 2016, while the price index for exports decreased 0.3%.
- The advance figure for initial claims for unemployment insurance was 254 thousand in the week ending December 10, a decrease of 4 thousand from the previous week’s unrevised level. The 4-week moving average was 257.75 thousand, an increase of 5.25 thousand from the previous week’s unrevised average.
- Real average hourly earnings for all employees decreased 0.4% from October to November. This result stems from 0.1% decrease in average hourly earnings, being more than offset by a 0.2% increase in the consumer price index.
- The December 2016 Empire State Manufacturing Survey indicated that business activity grew modestly for New York manufacturers. The headline index, which was 1.5 in November, increased to 9.0 in December.
- The Philadelphia FED business outlook survey indicated that regional manufacturing activity picked up in December. The headline index rose to 21.5 in December, from 7.6 in November.
- The Federal Open Market Committee decided to raise the target range for the federal funds rate to 0.25% to 0.75%. The Committee stated that “The stance of monetary policy remains accommodative, thereby supporting some further strengthening in labor market conditions and a return to 2% inflation.”
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