- Total non-farm payroll employment rose 280 thousand in May, following an increase of 221 thousand in the previous month. Private-sector payrolls increased by 262 thousand in the month, while government employment increased by 18 thousand.
- The unemployment rate edged up to 5.5% in May, from 5.4% in April.
- The average workweek of all employees on private nonfarm payrolls was unchanged at 34.5 hours.
- Average hourly earnings of all employees on private nonfarm payrolls increased by 8 cents to $24.96. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings were up 2.3%.
- The advance figure for initial claims for unemployment insurance decreased 8 thousand to 276 thousand in the week ending May 30. The 4-week moving average was 274.75 thousand, an increase of 2.75 thousand from the previous week’s average.
- First quarter productivity decreased 3.1% (seasonally adjusted annual rate) in the non-farm business sector, following a 2.1% decrease in the previous quarter. Unit labor costs increased 6.7%, following a 5.6% increase in the previous quarter. Productivity in the non-farm business sector increased 0.3% from the first quarter of 2014, while unit labor costs increased 1.8%.
- Personal income increased 0.4% in April, while personal consumption expenditures decreased less than 0.2%. The price index for personal consumption expenditures held steady, while the core index increased 0.1%. The price index for personal consumption expenditures was up 0.1% from April 2014, while the core index was up 1.2%
- Sales of domestic cars increased 11.9% in May, while total light vehicle (cars and light trucks) sales increased 7.6%. Total vehicle sales were 17.7 million units in May, at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, compared to 16.7 million in May of 2014.
- New orders for manufactured goods decreased 0.4% in April, while shipments held steady. Year-to-date new orders were down 5.6%, and shipments were down 3.4%.
- In April international trade deficit was $40.9 billion, $9.8 billion less than the revised March figure. The cumulative deficit was $171.1 billion for the first four months of 2015, compared with a deficit of $169.7 billion for the same period of the previous year.
- April consumer credit outstanding increased at an annual rate of 7.3%. Revolving credit increased 11.6%, while non-revolving credit increased 5.8%.
- April construction spending was up 2.2% from the previous month, and was up 4.8% from a year ago. Private construction increased 1.8%, while public construction increased 3.3%.
- The results of Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey showed average fixed mortgage rates remaining near their highest level for the year. The 30-year fixed mortgage rate averaged 3.87% for the week ending June 4, unchanged from last week. A year ago at this time, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 4.14%.
- Mortgage applications decreased 7.6% from a week earlier, according to data from Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Applications Survey for the week ending May 29th.
- The Institute for Supply Management’s (ISM) manufacturing survey indicated that the manufacturing sector expanded in May for 29th consecutive month, and the overall economy grew for the 72nd consecutive month.
- In May, the Institute for Supply Management’s (ISM) non-manufacturing survey results indicated growth in the non-manufacturing business activity for the 64th consecutive month.
- The FED’s “Beige Book” indicated that overall economic activity expanded during the reporting period from early April to late May.
This entry was posted on Sunday, June 7th, 2015 at 3:52 AM and is filed under Key Economic Indicators. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.