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May 1, 2014 New Orders, Employment and Production Growing; Inventories Growing; Supplier Deliveries Slowing Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in April for the 11th consecutive month, and the overall economy grew for the 59th consecutive month, say the nation’s supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business.  The report was issued today by... Read more »

May 1, 2014 American workers have endured six years of depleted wealth, stagnant wages, and general insecurity.  But their fortunes are about to change, according to a surprising new study from The Conference Board.  ‘From a Buyer’s Market to a Seller’s Market’ predicts unemployment in the United States – currently 6.7 percent and falling rapidly... Read more »

April 29, 2014 Lowe’s and Porch.com have expanded their strategic partnership to the more than 1,700 Lowe’s home improvement stores across the U.S. Every Lowe’s store in the country now features Porch as the in-store resource to help homeowners find the right home improvement professionals for nearly any project outside of Lowe’s current installation services. ... Read more »

April 30, 2014 The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis today reported 0.1 percent annualized growth in real Gross Domestic Product for the first quarter of 2014. Economic growth in the first quarter was disappointing, beyond the anticipated slowdown related to the brutal winter weather conditions affecting major parts of the nation.  Based on these preliminary... Read more »

April 29, 2014 The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had increased in March, declined slightly in April.  The Index now stands at 82.3, down from 83.9 in March.  The Present Situation Index decreased to 78.3 from 82.5, while the Expectations Index was virtually unchanged at 84.9 versus 84.8 in March. “Consumer confidence declined slightly... Read more »

April 25, 2014 Probably.  Starting in 2007, U.S. consumers began to build up savings, and pay off more old debt than the amount of new credit card, mortgage, or other household debt they incurred.  Of course, this had the impact of delaying the replacement of old vehicles or household appliances and furniture.  The bottom line,... Read more »

April 25, 2014 Last week: The Conference Board Leading Economic Index pointed to some faster growth in the U.S. economy this spring and summer.  Two important ingredients, beyond recovery from a bad winter, are improving sentiment and a pickup in demand, signaled by improving orders.  This past week, data on orders for durable goods suggested... Read more »

April 25, 2014 Weather Trends International expects May to trend the coldest in three years and drier than last year.  On the West Coast, it will be cooler than last year, but still above normal, while the South trends warmer than last year and normal.  There is a good chance that a large portion of... Read more »

April 24, 2014 Against the backdrop of unusually severe winter weather, the Remodeling Market Index (RMI) declined to 53 in the first quarter of 2014, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).  This reading is down from the historically high level of 57 in the two most recent quarters, but remains above the... Read more »