DATA FLASH: US MAY CONFIDENCE STOPS SLIDE; NEW HOMES UP

–Dallas Manufacturing Reading in Line with Other Regional Data By Kevin Kastner WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The Conference Board’s U.S. consumer confidence index rose slightly to a reading of 86.6 in May from a downward revised 85.7 reading in April, stopping the slide at two months but leaving the index well below the recent peak in […]

IFO GERMAN BUSINESS SENTIMENT BETTER IN MAY AS LOCKDOWNS EASE

By Marco Babic VIENNA (MaceNews) – German business sentiment improved overall as a more positive view of future developments overcame a more pessimistic assessment of current conditions. It appears that expectations are improving as lockdown measures due to the coronavirus are being eased. Germany’s Ifo institute reported Monday that business sentiment improved to 79.5 in […]

DATA PREVIEW: US REGIONAL DATA, CONFIDENCE KEY RELEASES

By Kevin Kastner WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The May 25 week starts off with the Memorial Day holiday, but it quickly speeds up from there. Regional conditions data for May are the highlight of the week, with reports from the Philadelphia, Dallas, Richmond and Kansas City Federal Reserve banks and the Chicago PMI on tap ahead […]

DATA FLASH: US INITIAL CLAIMS SLOW; EXISTING HOME SALES PLUNGE

–Initial Claims -249,000 to 2.438 Mln; 35.3 Mln Unadjusted Under COVID–May Philly Fed Manufacturing Index Improved to -43.1 From -56.6 in April–April Existing Home Sales Fell to 4.33 Mln from 5.27 Mln In March By Kevin Kastner WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The U.S. data released on Thursday were a mixed bag, with data for May showing […]

WHITE HOUSE WATCH COMMENTARY: AN INCONSEQUENTIAL VIRUS OBITUARY

By Denny Gulino WASHINGTON (MaceNews) –  With by one count 93,382 deaths blamed on the corona virus through Wednesday, each one a life-altering  tragedy for a family, there is hardly any point chronicling the death of an inanimate process which few could care about or should. Yet the passing of the early morning ritual of […]

DATA FLASH: LACK OF DEMAND KEEPS US HOME BUILDING DEPRESSED

By Kevin Kastner WASHINGTON (MaceNews) -The U.S. April home building data, released Tuesday, reflected the lack of buyer traffic and reduced demand that has been in place since mid-March, even as mortgage rates remain near record lows. Construction was labeled as an essential business in most states during the social distancing shutdowns, but without demand […]

ZEW GERMAN EXPECTATIONS INDEX RISES AS INVESTORS SEE RECOVERY IN 2H

By Marco Babic VIENNA (MaceNews) – Expectations for Germany’s economy improved in May, rising to a reading of 51.0 from 28.2 the previous month while the assessment of current conditions fell slightly to -93.5 from -91.5, the ZEW institute said Tuesday. Markets were expecting the ZEW expectations index at about 33.5, and the current conditions […]

DATA PREVIEW: FEWER DATA POINTS IN THE MAY 18 WEEK, BUT NOT LESS NEGATIVITY

By Kevin Kastner WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – After an overflow of data Friday, there is a breather coming in the May 18 week, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be anything for markets and analysts to focus on. Housing data takes up much of the schedule, starting with the National Association of Home Builders’ Housing Market […]

DATA FLASH: US APRIL RETAIL SALES DOWN 16.4% AS CRISIS CONTINUED

–Non-store Retail Sales Rose 8.4%, Other Categories Down–Empire State Index Rose to -48.5 in May from -78.2 in April–Industrial Production -11.2%, Manufacturing -13.7% on Vehicles By Kevin Kastner WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – Social distancing continued in April, cutting further in almost every retail sale category, data released Friday morning showed. At the same time, industrial production […]

FED’S POWELL WARNS OF DANGERS OF LONG SHALLOW RECOVERY

–Emergency Aid So Far May Be Only the Beginning –‘Recovery May Take Some Time to Gather Momentum’ — ‘Additional Fiscal Support Could Be Costly’ –Negative Rates ‘Not Something That We’re  Looking At.” By Denny Gulino WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The battle of recovery narratives – swift and sharp versus shallow and long – Wednesday saw one […]