In some good news for the economy, the U.S. Commerce Department reported earlier this morning that
orders for durable goods, which are usually big-ticket items designed to last several years, had
jumped up smartly in April gaining a much
better-than-expected 3.3% during the month. That gain was more than three times the expected increase of 1.0%, and served to underscore the continuing volatility in the now-mature business expansion.
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The Commerce Department has reported that
new home sales rose 2.3% last month, to a seasonally adjusted 454,000. In March, home sales had initially been estimated at 417,000. Subsequently, though, they were revised up to 444,000 for the month.
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Sales of existing homes inched forward in April, compared to March, as the increasingly resilient housing market continues to make headway, in small-to-modest increments.
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A major dichotomy developed in the U.S. housing market in April, as data issued earlier this morning noted that
housing starts had fallen sharply last month, but that
building permits, a more forward-looking survey, actually had risen nicely.
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Much like yesterday’s companion report from the U.S. Department of Labor on producer (wholesale) prices, this morning’s release of
consumer prices for the month of April made for another tame reading on inflation.
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The maturing U.S. economic expansion continues to move back and forth, or two and fro, as the sayings go. This uneven up cycle was underscored once again within the past hour when the U.S. Commerce Department reported that
industrial production fell by 0.5% last month.
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Once more, the figures show that this nation just
does not have an inflation problem, at least at this point, which explains the ability of the Federal Reserve to continue pursuing an easy and accommodative monetary policy.
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An hour before the commencement of trading today, the Commerce Department released its latest report on
retail sales for the month of April. That report, which was expected to be closely watched as a gauge to how the all-important consumer sector is faring, was encouraging.
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The U.S. Labor Department reported that
non-farm payrolls had increased by a better-than-forecast 165,000 in April.
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