Conference Board Warns About Future U.S. Growth
- The Conference Board’s Leading Economic Index fell 0.1 percent in December. Ataman Ozyildirim, Director of Economic Research at The Conference Board warned, “[T]he LEI suggests that the US economic growth rate may slow down this year … While the effects of the government shutdown are not yet reflected here, the LEI suggests that the economy could decelerate towards two percent growth by the end of 2019.”
- According to Statistics Canada, wholesale trade in the country declined one percent in November and manufacturing sales dropped 1.4 percent. Both readers were worse than analysts had expected. Click here to read the report on wholesale trade and here to read the report on manufacturing sales.
- Readings for regional manufacturing sectors in the United States were mixed in January. The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond said its manufacturing index for the Central Atlantic region increased to -2 in January from -8 in December due to slight increases in the readings for employment and shipments. The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City said the manufacturing sector in the Midwest held steady in January as “slow and steady increase in factory activity was driven by durable goods producers, particularly wood products, fabricated metals, electrical equipment and appliances, and furniture manufacturing.”
- According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the number of individuals who filed for federal unemployment benefits fell to 199,000 for the week that ended Jan. 19, down from 212,000 the week before. That figure was at its lowest level since November 1969. The four-week moving average of first-time also fell, as did the number of individuals who continued to file for jobless benefits. That figure declined to 1.713 million for the week that ended Jan. 12 from 1.737 million the week before. The four-week moving average of continuing claims increased, however.
- In other economic news: existing home sales in the United States fell 6.4 percent from November 2018 to December 2018 and 10.3 percent from December 2017 to December 2018.