Post: Sep. 14, 2022
PPI = 8.7 Better, But Not Great
The producer price index, a gauge of prices received at the wholesale level, declined 0.1%, according to a Bureau of Labor Statistics report Wednesday. Excluding food, energy and trade services, core PPI increased 0.2%. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been expecting headline PPI to decline 0.1% and core to rise 0.3%.
On a year-over-year basis, headline PPI increased 8.7%, a substantial pullback …
Post: Sep. 13, 2022
CPI = 8.3, Stocks Tank, Rates Rise as Fed Increases More Likely
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) in August reflected an 8.3% increase over last year and a 0.1% increase over the prior month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday. Economists had expected prices to rise 8.1% over last year and fall 0.1% over last month, according to estimates from Bloomberg.
The S&P 500 tumbled 4.32%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 3.94%, or about …
Post: Sep. 12, 2022
Pattern Report: Rental Housing Remains Unaffordable for Average Residents Across the Hudson Valley
The report found that a single person making average wages cannot afford rent and modest living expenses in any of the counties. A renter making average wages falls short of their bills by $336 to $2,908, depending on the county in which they live. The outlook is equally difficult for families in rental housing, and worse for single parents.
“The conclusions in Out of Reach should trouble anyone …
Post: Sep. 11, 2022
Model: Inflation Showed Signs of Easing in Several Industries in August
Looking ahead to a government inflation report to be released on Tuesday, many Wall Street analysts estimate the Labor Department’s overall consumer-price index was unchanged or dropped in August from July. If so, it would mark the second straight month of slower inflation since annual inflation surged to a four-decade high in June.
“We are experiencing a slowdown driven by the decline in …
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Mfg Day is October 7th – One Month Away
MFG Day is manufacturing’s biggest annual opportunity to inspire the next generation to start careers in modern manufacturing through a series of focused events to promote manufacturing to students, parents and educators on the first Friday of October continuing throughout the rest of the month.
Manufacturers across the region and the nation will be hosting events and inviting young people, as …
Post: Sep. 6, 2022
Mfg Day is October 7th – One Month Away
MFG Day is manufacturing’s biggest annual opportunity to inspire the next generation to start careers in modern manufacturing through a series of focused events to promote manufacturing to students, parents and educators on the first Friday of October continuing throughout the rest of the month.
Manufacturers across the region and the nation will be hosting events and inviting young people, as …
Post: Sep. 5, 2022
August Jobs Report: US Adds 315,000 Jobs, 22,000 in Manufacturing
Manufacturing employment trended up in August 2022. According to the latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics at the Department of Labor, the U.S. manufacturing sector hired 22,000 more people in August, mostly in the durable goods industries.
- The Bureau reported that manufacturing has added 461,000 new jobs so far over the year.
- In the overall economy, the unemployment rate rose slightly to 3.7%
- Payroll employment increasing by 315,000.
- Durable goods industries—notably fabricated metal products, computers and electronics, nonmetallic mineral products and machinery companies—added a total of 19,000 jobs.
- Average hourly earnings for manufacturing employees were flat in August at, $30.95 an hour.
- The average hourly earnings for all employees rose by 10 cents to $32.36 during August, a monthly increase of 0.3%.
Read more at IndustryWeek
War in Ukraine Headlines
ISM Report: U.S. Manufacturing Growth Remains Tepid Despite Gains in Employment
In its latest report on growth in the manufacturing sector, the Institute for Supply Management indicated that its purchasing …
Post: Aug. 31, 2022
Covid-19 Booster Shots Targeting Omicron Authorized, Likely to Be Offered Soon
U.S. health regulators cleared use of retooled Covid-19 vaccines that target the latest versions of Omicron, in preparation for a fall booster campaign that could start within days. The action by the Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday permits people 12 years and older to receive an additional shot of the vaccine from Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE, and people 18 and older to receive a Moderna Inc. …
Post: Aug. 30, 2022
OnSolve Global Risk Impact Report: “Black Swans” are Flying
Lately it seems that black swans swoop in from every direction on a regular basis—pandemic, fire, drought, social unrest, war. Resilience has replaced efficiency as the watchword of the day. But wasn’t it always this way? Well, no. A new report out Tuesday from OnSolve analyzed a database of more than 14 million events over the last two years and puts some numbers on the change.
From 2020 …
Post: Aug. 28, 2022
At Jackson Hole Retreat Powell Says Fed Must Show Resolve in Fighting Inflation
The Federal Reserve must continue raising interest rates and hold them at a higher level until it is confident inflation is under control, Chairman Jerome Powell said in a widely anticipated speech Friday. They are likely to weigh whether to raise rates by half point or 0.75 point at their next meeting, Sept. 20-21, after reaching consensus this summer that rates would need to reach levels that …
Post: Aug. 24, 2022
Durable Goods Orders Virtually Unchanged at $273.5 Billion in July
New orders for manufactured durable goods orders in the US stayed virtually unchanged at $273.5 billion in July, the US Census Bureau reported on Wednesday. This reading followed June’s 2.2% expansion and came in worse than the market expectation for an increase of 0.6%. Overall orders for durable goods—which include factory equipment, computers and washing machines—increased in nine of …
Post: Aug. 23, 2022
Pat Ryan Defeats Marc Molinaro in 19th Congressional Special Election
Ryan fended off Molinaro in a special election Tuesday for the vacated 19th district seat, in unofficial results. Ryan garnered 51.07% of the vote to Molinaro’s 48.75%, according to the state Board of Elections. More than 129,000 ballots were cast, not counting absentees, of roughly 476,000 active registered voters in the district. Ryan won his home county by more than 9,000 votes.
Molinaro …
Post: Aug. 22, 2022
Pandemic Bolsters China’s Position as the World’s Manufacturer
Though some of China’s gains in global markets may unwind as the effects of the pandemic fade, the trend nonetheless highlights just how hard it is to unplug from the world’s largest factory floor. Such “decoupling,” as it is known in policy circles, is especially challenging as Chinese factories extend their reach into higher-end products like chips and smartphones and new technologies …
Post: Aug. 21, 2022
PwC Survey: 50% of Companies Want to Cut Headcount
A new survey from consultancy PwC released this month showed 50% of companies are planning to reduce overall headcount. Additionally, 46% of companies said they are dropping or reducing signing bonuses, while 44% are rescinding offers. Reducing overall headcount doesn’t mean all of the respondents to PwC’s survey are planning layoffs, but at least indicates plans similar to what we’ve …
Post: Aug. 17, 2022
Conference Board: CEO Confidence Deteriorated Further in Q3
The Conference Board Measure of CEO Confidence declined for the fifth consecutive quarter in Q3 2022. The Measure now stands at 34, down from 42 in Q2. The Measure has fallen deeper into negative territory, to lows not seen since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, but consistent with prior contractionary periods. (A reading below 50 points reflects more negative than positive responses.)
The …
Post: Aug. 16, 2022
US Industrial Output Jumps in July on Solid Manufacturing Gain
A solid rebound in American manufacturing, especially vehicles, following two months of declines, help push overall industrial production up in July, the Federal Reserve said Tuesday. A massive 6.6% surge in motor vehicle and parts production was a key driver the 0.7% rise in manufacturing, which was the biggest gain since March, the data showed. That boosted total industrial output by 0.6% …
Post: Aug. 15, 2022
Empire State Manufacturing Survey – Activity Declines in August
Manufacturing activity declined significantly in New York State, according to the August survey. The general business conditions index plunged forty-two points to -31.3, the second largest monthly decline in the index on record, and among the lowest levels in the survey’s history. Forty-four percent reported that conditions had worsened. Here are some of the details
- The new orders index dropped thirty-six points to -29.6.
- The shipments index plummeted nearly fifty points to -24.1.
- The unfilled orders index fell to -12.7, indicating that unfilled orders shrank for a third consecutive month.
- The delivery times index declined to around zero the first month they have not lengthened in nearly two years.
- The inventories index fell to 6.4, signaling that inventories increased marginally.
- The index for number of employees moved down eleven points to 7.4, pointing to a small increase in employment.
- The average workweek index fell to -13.1, indicating a decline in hours worked.
- The prices paid index fell nine points to 55.5
- The prices received index was little changed at 32.7.
Looking ahead the index for …
Post: Aug. 14, 2022
House Passes Inflation Reduction Act, Sends it to Biden
The House on Friday passed the Inflation Reduction Act along party lines, rounding out a series of recent wins for President Joe Biden. The House voted 220-207, with no Republicans joining Democrats in supporting the act. It now heads to Biden, who is expected to sign it into law next week after months of negotiations between moderate and progressive Democrats, who ultimately reached an agreement …
Post: Aug. 8, 2022
Senate Passes Democrats’ Climate, Healthcare and Tax Bill
The Senate passed a bill spending hundreds of billions of dollars on climate and healthcare programs while raising taxes on large, profitable companies, as Democrats unified around elements of President Biden’s agenda after a year of frustrated efforts to advance a broader package.
The legislation, which passed the Senate 51-50 on Sunday with a tiebreaking vote by Vice President Kamala Harris, …
Post: Jul. 27, 2022
GDP Fell at 0.9% Annual Rate in Second Quarter
The U.S. economy shrank at a 0.9% annual rate last quarter, the Commerce Department said Thursday. That marks a second straight quarterly decline in gross domestic product–a common definition of recession. Inflation hit a fresh four-decade high during the second quarter, hammering consumer sentiment and eroding Americans’ purchasing power. The Federal Reserve responded by aggressively raising …
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The IMF Warns that a Global Recession Could Soon be at Hand
In an update of the World Economic Outlook, the I.M.F. said economic prospects had darkened significantly in recent months as war in Ukraine, inflation and a resurgent pandemic inflicted pain on every continent. If the thicket of threats continues to intensify, the world economy faces one of its weakest years since 1970, a period of intense stagflation across the globe.
The I.M.F. downgraded its …
Post: Jul. 25, 2022
Dems Make Another Push to Pass their Agenda Before August Recess
Congress nears the close of a packed legislative session this week, aiming to pass legislation providing about $54 billion to boost U.S. semiconductor manufacturing while also juggling a raft of other bills ahead of the monthlong August recess. The priority for both Republican and Democratic leaders is passing the long-stalled semiconductor package.
Along with the bipartisan bill subsidizing chips, …
Post: Jul. 24, 2022
Supply Chain: Truckers Block Oakland Port to Protest a California Labor Law
Independent truckers who have been protesting at California’s busy Oakland seaport over the past week against a new state law known as the “gig-worker” law took a break on Saturday, when the port business slowed to a crawl. Operations at the Northern California port ground to a near standstill after protesters used pickets and tractor-trailers to block terminal gates. But some …
Post: Jul. 20, 2022
U.S. Home Sales Fell Again in June, But Prices Kept Rising
U.S. existing home sales fell for a fifth straight month in June to the lowest level in two years, as fast-rising interest rates and record-high selling prices make buying a home too expensive for a growing share of American households. In June, sales of previously owned homes fell 5.4% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.12 million units, the lowest level since June 2020. Sales have now fallen …