Bank of the West: Instant Analysis of Today’s GDP Report for Q1 2015 U.S. Q1 Real GDP Growth Stalls, Worse Than Advertised; +0.2% Annualized in Q1 Business investment, Exports, and Government Spending All Declined Consumer Spending Was As Weak As Expected (+1.9%) Down From +4.4% growth in Q4 Goods Exports Plunge (-13.3%) and Structures Drop […]
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 […]
Continue ReadingBank of the West U.S. Outlook Report for April 24, 2015 US Outlook Report: Monetary Policy Tighter without Tightening With the April FOMC meeting on tap for next week, and everyone, including me, looking for the Fed to delay somewhat its initial rate hike until September, I thought now would be a good time to […]
Continue ReadingWells Fargo Weekly Economic & Financial Commentary – April 17, 2015 Economic Spring Awakening Most economic indicators this week returned to positive growth after weakness earlier in the winter; however, the pace of that growth is still fairly low. Retail sales, producer prices, manufacturing production and housing starts all reversed prior negative trends […]
Continue ReadingBank of the West U.S. Outlook Report for April 17, 2015 US Outlook Report: Is Housing Ever Going to Recover? This week brought another round of lackluster housing news. Housing permits went south dropping 5.7 percent on the month. Building permits often lead housing starts by 1 to 3 months, suggesting homebuilding could remain moribund […]
Continue ReadingWells Fargo Weekly Economic & Financial Commentary – April 10, 2015 Not as Bad as It Looks The ISM non-manufacturing index edged down 0.4 points in March, but, at 56.5, remains firmly in expansion territory. The non-manufacturing index has held up well compared to the manufacturing index, suggesting that the headwinds from the stronger dollar […]
Continue ReadingBank of the West U.S. Outlook Report for April 10, 2015 US Outlook Report: Labor Market Recovery Not So Fast and Furious We already knew the economy has been slowing over the past two quarters. In contrast, labor market indicators have been a beacon of strength and resilience. This has provided the bedrock for macroeconomic […]
Continue ReadingWells Fargo Weekly Economic & Financial Commentary – April 3, 2015 A Softer Start to 2015 March employment data came in well below expectations. Nonfarm payrolls rose by 126,000, marking their smallest monthly gain since December 2013. Data from the manufacturing sector also came in weaker in March. The ISM manufacturing index fell 1.4 points […]
Continue ReadingBank of the West U.S. Outlook Report for April 3, 2015 – US Outlook Report: Flat Start But Stronger Finish Still in Focus It has been another ham-handed start to the year. Now we can add February real consumer spending, employment and the ISM manufacturing survey for March to the list of downbeat economic indicators. […]
Continue ReadingApril 2015 California Exports Fall California exports were down nearly 9% year-over-year in the latest numbers as a strong U.S. dollar, languid conditions in much of the world, and lingering effects from the recent West Coast ports dispute took a toll… Read Full Analysis Now SHARE: Meet Our Experts Christopher Thornberg Christopher Thornberg is […]
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