Wells Fargo Weekly Economic & Financial Commentary – June 26, 2015 Economic Activity Is Showing Encouraging Signs First-quarter real GDP growth was revised up to a decline of 0.2 percent in the third estimate. Although the negative reading is alarming, we suspect statistical noise is at the heart of the weak figure. Real GDI, which […]
Continue ReadingWells Fargo Weekly Economic & Financial Commentary – June 19, 2015 The Fed Gears Up for September Hike The June Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting points to a September rate hike despite some downward revisions to its economic forecast. Consumer prices gained strength in May, thanks to higher energy costs, although year-ago inflation remains […]
Continue ReadingWells Fargo Weekly Economic & Financial Commentary – June 12, 2015 Consumers Emerge From Hiding The slump in consumer spending that characterized the first part of the year looks to be over. Retail sales rose 1.2 percent in May while spending in March and April was revised higher. Job openings in April rose to the […]
Continue ReadingWells Fargo Weekly Economic and Financial Commentary for June 5, 2015: Payrolls Suggest Weakness Should Be Temporary · Payrolls jumped by 280,000 in May, with stronger average hourly earnings, keeping a September rate hike on the table. · Income gains remained strong in April, but consumer spending was merely flat over the month, pushing core inflation […]
Continue ReadingWells Fargo Weekly Economic & Financial Commentary – May 29, 2015 Terra Firma This week’s revision to first quarter GDP figures showed that the weakness in the first three months of the year was worse than initially reported as real GDP declined at a 0.7 percent annualized rate. Economic indicators for the second quarter were […]
Continue ReadingWells Fargo Weekly Economic & Financial Commentary – May 22, 2015 Modest Bounce Back for Q2 Industrial production weakened for a fifth straight month. Utilities and mining were predictably weak amid weather changes and a pullback in the energy industry, while manufacturing was flat. The Regional PMIs do not suggest much of a rebound in […]
Continue ReadingWells Fargo Weekly Economic & Financial Commentary – May 15, 2015 Retail Sales Disappoint Retail sales came in flat in April, which was weaker than the consensus estimate. With retail sales now registering a soft reading in four of the past five months, many are now expecting another lackluster quarter of economic activity in Q2, […]
Continue ReadingWells Fargo Weekly Economic & Financial Commentary – May 8, 2015 A Softer Bounce Back in the Second Quarter Nonfarm payrolls rose 223,000 in April, with the unemployment rate falling to 5.4 percent. The continued moderation in the pace of job growth suggests that second quarter economic growth may not see the same sharp turn […]
Continue ReadingSeeing Through the Winter Blues As anticipated, economic growth got off to a soft start in 2015. GDP in the first quarter increased at just a 0.2 percent annualized rate, with broad-based weakness. The manufacturing sector remains under pressure. At 51.5, the Institute for Supply Management’s (ISM) national index showed activity expanded at only a […]
Continue ReadingWells Fargo Weekly Economic & Financial Commentary – April 24, 2015 Soft Economic Data to Round Out the First Quarter Existing home sales posted a better-than-expected 6.1 percent rise in March, which should provide some support to residential investment in Q1. The report also showed that inventories were beginning to tighten, which could further support […]
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