EIA, Auto Sales, Productivity, Initial Claims, Housing, ISM
05/26 EIA Inventory: Crude +1.6M barrels, Gasoline +0.8M, Distillate +1.8M, oil prices dropped.
May Auto Sales GM -16%, Ford -1.9%, Chrysler -11%, Toyota +17%. No comment other than ones we have already made. Just use blog search and type in GM for this blog.
Productivity +3.7% Q106
Inside the number: Unit labor costs Q105 -0.6%, Q106 revised down to +1.6% vs reported 2.5%.
Why? Real hourly compensation is down 0.9% in the past year, matching the largest YOY decline in 11 years and productivity gains have hit a technological wall, AKA Malthusian Impasse.
Initial Claims +7K to 336K
Inside the number: the number of people collecting unemployment benefits rose by 19,000 to 2.43 million.
May Chicago purchasing managers' index UP to 61.5% vs prior 57.2%
Inside the number: It was the highest level since October. Prices paid index fell to 76.9% from 77.2%. New orders index rose to 69.6% from 60.8%. The employment index rose to 52.8% vs. 47.2%. Good activity in the Chicago area, contrasting the ISM numbers.
April Construction Spending -0.1%, Pending Sales & Housing Prices
Inside the number: Slowing, dropping & slowing. A 1.1% drop in spending on home construction. The lowest level since Jan 04. Pending home sales index dropped 3.7% in April, the 3rd straight month. U.S. home prices rose at the slowest pace in two years in the first quarter as some once-hot markets in California saw prices fall.
The OFEHO said Thursday its home price index was up 12.5% in the past year and up 2% from the fourth quarter to the first quarter. It was the slowest quarterly gain in prices since the first quarter of 2004.
May ISM index DOWN to 54.4% vs prior 57.3%.
Inside the number: This is the lowest level since August. New orders index DOWN to 53.7% vs prior 57.6, its lowest level in a year.
There has been a significant loss of momentum in new orders after it reached 61.9% in February.
Production index DOWN to 57.2% vs prior 60.4%. Employment index DOWN to 52.9% vs prior 55.8%.
Prices paid index UP to 77.0% vs prior 71.5%. While 56% of firms said they were paying higher prices, only 2% were paying less.
Backlogs of orders DOWN to 53.0% vs prior 57.0%. Inventories DOWN to 48.0% vs prior 51.3%.
Its very interesting how Chicago PMI, Philly Fed and NY Empire Index all tell a much different story than the ISM. Is someone trying to aleviate inflation fears? Or goose the numbers?
May Auto Sales GM -16%, Ford -1.9%, Chrysler -11%, Toyota +17%. No comment other than ones we have already made. Just use blog search and type in GM for this blog.
Productivity +3.7% Q106
Inside the number: Unit labor costs Q105 -0.6%, Q106 revised down to +1.6% vs reported 2.5%.
Why? Real hourly compensation is down 0.9% in the past year, matching the largest YOY decline in 11 years and productivity gains have hit a technological wall, AKA Malthusian Impasse.
Initial Claims +7K to 336K
Inside the number: the number of people collecting unemployment benefits rose by 19,000 to 2.43 million.
May Chicago purchasing managers' index UP to 61.5% vs prior 57.2%
Inside the number: It was the highest level since October. Prices paid index fell to 76.9% from 77.2%. New orders index rose to 69.6% from 60.8%. The employment index rose to 52.8% vs. 47.2%. Good activity in the Chicago area, contrasting the ISM numbers.
April Construction Spending -0.1%, Pending Sales & Housing Prices
Inside the number: Slowing, dropping & slowing. A 1.1% drop in spending on home construction. The lowest level since Jan 04. Pending home sales index dropped 3.7% in April, the 3rd straight month. U.S. home prices rose at the slowest pace in two years in the first quarter as some once-hot markets in California saw prices fall.
The OFEHO said Thursday its home price index was up 12.5% in the past year and up 2% from the fourth quarter to the first quarter. It was the slowest quarterly gain in prices since the first quarter of 2004.
May ISM index DOWN to 54.4% vs prior 57.3%.
Inside the number: This is the lowest level since August. New orders index DOWN to 53.7% vs prior 57.6, its lowest level in a year.
There has been a significant loss of momentum in new orders after it reached 61.9% in February.
Production index DOWN to 57.2% vs prior 60.4%. Employment index DOWN to 52.9% vs prior 55.8%.
Prices paid index UP to 77.0% vs prior 71.5%. While 56% of firms said they were paying higher prices, only 2% were paying less.
Backlogs of orders DOWN to 53.0% vs prior 57.0%. Inventories DOWN to 48.0% vs prior 51.3%.
Its very interesting how Chicago PMI, Philly Fed and NY Empire Index all tell a much different story than the ISM. Is someone trying to aleviate inflation fears? Or goose the numbers?
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