- Advance estimates of retail and food services sales increased 0.1% in April, following a 1.5% increase in the previous month. Excluding autos, retail and food services sales held steady in April.
- Total manufacturing and trade sales for March were up 0.8%, while inventories were up 0.4%.
- Total Industrial production decreased 0.6% in April, following a 0.9% increase in the previous month. The rate of capacity utilization for total industry was 78.6%, down from 79.3% in March.
- Housing starts in April were up 13.2% from the previous month, and were up 26.4% from a year ago.
- The housing market index of National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and Wells Fargo decreased a point to 45 in May.
- The results of Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey of May 15th showed average fixed mortgage rates easing for the third consecutive week and remain at a six month low.
- Mortgage applications increased 3.6% from a week earlier, according to data from Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Applications Survey for the week ending May 9th.
- The federal government budget ran a surplus of $106.9 billion in April, after a deficit of $36.9 billion in the previous month.
- The advance figure for initial claims for unemployment insurance decreased 24 thousand to 297 thousand in the week ending May 10.
- The consumer price index (headline index) rose 0.3% in April, while the core index increased 0.2%. The consumer price index increased 2.0% for the 12-month period ending in April, while the core index rose 1.0%.
- The producer price index for final demand (headline index) increased 0.6% in April, while the core index increased 0.5%. The producer price index for final demand increased 2.1% from April 2013, while the core index increased 1.9%
- The import price index decreased 0.4% in April, while the export price index decreased 1.0%.The import price index decreased 0.3% from April 2013, while export prices increased 0.1%.
- The May 2014 Empire State Manufacturing Survey indicated that business activity surged for New York manufacturers.
- The Philadelphia FED business outlook survey for May reported strong growth in manufacturing activity.
- The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment, preliminary, decreased to 81.8 in early May, from 84.1 in April.
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