DATA FLASH: US MAY RETAIL SALES SURGE BY 17.7% ON REOPENINGS
–Retail Sales Excluding Motor Vehicles Rose 12.4%; Vehicle Sales Surge 44.1%–Industrial Production Rose 1.4%, Motor Vehicle Production Rebounds by 120.8%–NAHB Index Jump To 58 in June From 37 in May, Suggests Stronger Home Building Ahead–Business Inventories Down 1.3% in April, Business Sales Down 14.4% By Kevin Kastner WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – As social distancing eased in […]
FED’S DALY: READY TO ‘PIVOT’ TO STIMULUS WHEN VIRUS CRISIS ENDS
WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The Federal Reserve’s emergency relief programs will give way to stimulus and a focus on lowering unemployment whenever the coronavirus crisis has ebbed, San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said Monday. Speaking at a National Press Club-sponsored event and later to reporters, Daly said it would make no sense to focus on […]
FED’S KAPLAN Q&A: DUBIOUS ON YIELD CURVE TARGETING
–Dallas Fed President Says Businesses Face ‘Gut Check’ in August/September NEW YORK (MaceNews) – Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan said Monday he is dubious about suggestions the Fed target interest rate levels along the US Treasury yield curve as a policy tool. Kaplan, responding to a question during a web appearance, said he would not […]
WHITE HOUSE WATCH COMMENTARY: NECESSITY BRINGS INNOVATION AMID TURMOIL
By Denny Gulino WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – Who would have guessed you can track government spy planes above Washington protests via certain Web sites, or that a bankrupt Hertz can consider issuing stock or that the ubiquity of smartphones would transform the legacy of slavery forever? We’re learning so much as 2020’s second half begins. That […]
DATA PREVIEW: WAS MAY THE TURNING POINT? LET’S FIND OUT
By Kevin Kastner WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The May U.S. data have been modestly uplifting to this point, specifically the surprise payrolls gain and lower unemployment rate, improved inflation data, and a smaller contraction in manufacturing conditions. None of it came close to making up for the terrible March and April readings, but it’s a start. […]
COVID-19 CRISIS SPEEDS UP USE OF DIGITAL PAYMENTS
–Wider Use Of Central Bank Digital Currencies Explored By Vicki Schmelzer NEW YORK MaceNews) – The coronavirus pandemic has forced world central banks, already struggling to deal with cryptocurrencies, stable coins and other non-traditional monies, to up their game on the use of digital currencies and other new technologies. “COVID-19 has forced an unprecedented experiment in […]
DATA FLASH: US INITIAL CLAIMS SLOW FURTHER; MAY PPI ABOVE EXPECTED
–Initial Claims -355,000 to 1.542 Mln; 40.4 Mln Unadj Total Under COVID–May PPI Up 0.4%, But Down 0.1% Ex Food and Energy; Gasoline +43.9%. By Kevin Kastner WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The U.S. jobless claims data released earlier Thursday pointed to continued improvement for both new filings and existing filings, but the levels of both remain extremely […]
FED’S POWELL: DOING ALL WE CAN; WILL IT BE ENOUGH?
–‘Dot Plot’ Shows Assumptions of No Rate Hikes Through 2022 –To Sustain Pace of Treasuries, MBS Purchases By Denny Gulino WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell Wednesday offered reassurance policymakers are not even “thinking about thinking” about raising rates and shared his worries about possible long-term post-crisis unemployment. Answering questions after the Federal […]
FOMC POLICY STATEMENT JUNE 10, 2020
The Federal Reserve is committed to using its full range of tools to support the U.S. economy in this challenging time, thereby promoting its maximum employment and price stability goals. The coronavirus outbreak is causing tremendous human and economic hardship across the United States and around the world. The virus and the measures taken to […]
DATA FLASH: US MAY CPI FALLS 0.1% BEFORE JUNE DEMAND PICKUP
–Core Prices Also Down 0.1%; Ex. Only Energy, CPI Up 0.1%.–Energy Prices Again Down Sharply; Foods Prices Rise on Food at Home–Owners’ Equivalent Rents Up 0.3%, Lodging Away from Home Down 1.5% By Kevin Kastner WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – U.S. consumer prices were below the flat reading expected, as energy prices declined further, but demand is […]