Relevant and even prescient commentary on news, politics and the economy.

August jobs report: “Recession Watch”

A more detailed Jobs Report analysis by New Deal democrat. New Deal democrat was in Phoenix a while back. He let me know and we were able to meet at the Pomo Pizzeria on 1st Street. Great place to meet a friend or take your wife. The crowd is casual in dress. Good pizza too! […]

Jobless claims revert to neutral

 – by New Deal democrat In the last few weeks, there has been speculation that jobless claims may have been affected by the jihad against immigrants, the theory being enough were being deported or else were simply afraid to report to work that the number of jobless claims was held down. But I suspected it might […]

The “soft landing” scenario in the JOLTS report remains intact

 – by New Deal democrat In contrast to much other data in the jobs sector, the JOLTS reports have been very much consistent with a “soft landing scenario,” and that trend continued in this morning’s report for July. As a quick refresher, this survey decomposes the employment market into openings, hires, quits, and layoffs. So to […]

ISM manufacturing confirms rebound in new orders in August, but construction spending continues to decline

 – by New Deal democrat As usual, the new month begins with important manufacturing and construction reports which give us the pulse of the goods-producing economy. The ISM manufacturing report has been a recognized leading indicator for the past 60+ years, although of diminished importance since the turn of the Millennium and China’s accession to […]

New Deal democrats Weekly Indicators August 25 – 29

Weekly Indicators for August 25 – 29 at Seeking Alpha  – by New Deal democrat  My “Weekly Indictors” post is up at Seeking Alpha. The most significant benefit of these high frequency indicators is to alert you of possible changes in trend that are unexpected. In the case of the past several weeks, that would be the […]

July real income and spending rebound, keeping the expansionary trends intact

 – by New Deal democrat Last month I concluded: “This was a very weak report, although not negative. If there were not distortions from the front-running of tariffs earlier this year, it would come very close to meriting a ‘recession watch.’  But by next month, the payback from this previous front-running should have largely abated. If […]

Jobless claims suggest continuing, but resolving seasonality issues

– by New Deal democrat Initial jobless claims have been relatively subdued for the past month. Some have suggested that this is a byproduct of the large immigrant deportations which have recently taken place. Last week I noted that, “comparing the SA and NSA readings in the past several months suggests that [unresolved seasonality] has affected […]

New home sales: the final shoe in the housing sector has dropped

– by New Deal democrat In this month’s report on new home sales for July, the most important news was at the tail end, which I’ll get to last. As per my usual intro, while new home sales are the most leading measure of the housing market, they are very noisy and heavily revised – which […]

New Deal democrats Weekly Indicators for August 18 – 22

 – by New Deal democrat My “Weekly Indicators” post is up at Seeking Alpha. There were no big changes this week, but what continues to stick out in the data as far as I am concerned is just how strong consumer spending continues to be: weekly retail spending was up nearly 6% YoY, and restaurant reservations – […]

The rebalancing of the housing market continues, as existing home price increases have halted, and inventory finally exceeds 2020 levels

  – by New Deal democrat The housing market, for all of its economic importance, tends to move as slow as molasses. This is especially true as to prices, where sellers are loathe to realize a loss, even when compared to hypothetical gains they could have had by selling earlier. The pandemic, of course, through […]