· Advance estimates of retail and food services sales for February were up 0.1% from January, and were up 5.7% from February 2016. Excluding motor vehicle & parts, sales were up 0.2% from the previous month, and were up 5.7% from a year ago. Year-to-date, retail sales and food services were up 3.7% from the same period of 2016.
· Total manufacturing and trade sales for January were up 0.2% from the previous month, and were up 6.4% from January 2016. Total business inventories were up 0.3% from the previous month, and were up 2.3% from a year ago. The inventories/sales ratio was 1.35, compared with 1.41 in January of 2016.
· Total Industrial production held steady in February, after decreasing 0.1% in the previous month. Total Industrial production was up 0.3% from February 2016. The capacity utilization rate was 75.4 in February, 4.5 percentage points below the average for the 1972-2016 period.
· Housing starts in February were 1,275 thousand, up 3.0% from the previous month and were up 6.2% from a year ago. Building permits in February were 1,213 thousand units, down 6.2% from January, but were up 4.4% from February 2016.
· The housing market index of National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and Wells Fargo increased to 71 in March, from 65 in February. The index was 55 in March of 2016, and 67 in January 2017.
· The results of Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey showed average fixed mortgage rates moving higher. 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.30% for the week ending March 16, up from last week when it averaged 4.21%. A year ago at this time, the 30-year fixed-rate averaged 3.73%. 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.50% for the week ending March 16, up from last week when it averaged 3.42%. A year ago at this time, the 15-year fixed-rate averaged 2.99%.
· Mortgage applications decreased 3.1% from a week earlier, according to data from Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Applications Survey for the week ending March 10th.
· The producer price index for final demand (headline index) increased 0.3% in February, following an increase of 0.6% in the previous month. The index for final demand less foods, energy, and trade increased 0.3%, following an increase of 0.2% in the previous month. The producer price index for final demand (headline index) was up 2.2% from February 2016 to February 2017, while the index for final demand less foods, energy, and trade was up 1.8%. The index for processed goods for intermediate demand increased 0.4% in February, while the index for unprocessed goods for intermediate demand decreased 0.2%. The index for services for intermediate demand increased 0.5%, following a 0.3% increase in the previous month.
· The consumer price index (headline index), which surged 0.6% in January, increased 0.1% in February. The core index increased 0.2%, following a 0.3% increase as in the previous month. The consumer price index increased 2.7% for the 12-month period ending in February, while the core index rose 2.2%.
· Real average hourly earnings for all employees increased 0.1% from January to February. This result stems from a 0.2% increase in average hourly earnings combined with a 0.1% increase in the consumer price index for all urban consumers.
· The advance figure for initial claims for unemployment insurance decreased 7 thousand to 241 thousand in the week ending March 11. The 4-week moving average was 237.25 thousand, an increase of 0.75 thousand from the previous week’s unrevised average. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending March 4 was 2,030 thousand, a decrease of 30 thousand from the previous week’s revised level.
· There were 5.6 million job openings on the last business day of January, an increase of 87 thousand from December, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Hires edged up to 5.4 million, while separations inched up to 5.3 million.
· Unemployment rates were significantly lower in January in five states and the District of Columbia, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Six states had notable jobless rate decreases from a year earlier and 44 states and the District of Columbia had no significant change. Over the year, nonfarm payroll employment increased in 28 states, decreased in 2 states, and virtually unchanged in 20 states and the District of Columbia.
· The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment, preliminary, for March increased to 97.6, from 96.3 in February. The index was 91.0 a year ago.
· The March Empire State Manufacturing Survey indicated that business activity continued to grow at a solid pace in New York. The general business conditions index was 16.4 in March, compared with 18.7 in February and 6.5 in January. The index was negative 1.5 in March of 2016.
· The Philadelphia FED manufacturing business outlook survey for March reported that business activity continued to expand. The indicator for general activity was 32.8 in March, compared with 43.3 in February and 23.6 in January. The index was 10.6 in March of 2016.
· The Conference Board index of leading economic indicators increased 0.6% in February for the third consecutive month. The coincident index increased 0.3% in February, following a 0.1% increase in January.
· The Federal Open Market Committee decided to raise the target range for the federal funds rate to 0.75% to 1.00%. “The Committee expects that economic conditions will evolve in a manner that will warrant gradual increases in the federal funds rate; the federal funds rate is likely to remain, for some time, below levels that are expected to prevail in the longer run.”