{"id":56088,"date":"2023-09-02T08:10:38","date_gmt":"2023-09-02T12:10:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ifintechworld.com\/news\/weekly-indicators-consumers-are-still-king\/"},"modified":"2023-09-02T08:10:42","modified_gmt":"2023-09-02T12:10:42","slug":"weekly-indicators-consumers-are-still-king","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ifintechworld.com\/?p=56088","title":{"rendered":"Weekly Indicators: Consumers Are Still King"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Purpose<\/h2>\n

I look at the high frequency weekly indicators<\/strong> because while they can be very noisy, they provide a good nowcast of the economy, and will telegraph the maintenance or change in the economy well before monthly or quarterly data is available. They are also an excellent way to “mark your beliefs to market.” In general, I go in order of long leading indicators, then short leading indicators, then coincident indicators.<\/span><\/p>\n

A Note on Methodology<\/h2>\n

Data is presented in a “just the facts, ma’am” format with a minimum of commentary so that bias is minimized.<\/p>\n

Where relevant, I include 12-month highs and lows in the data in parentheses to the right. All data taken from St. Louis FRED unless otherwise linked.<\/p>\n

A few items (e.g., Financial Conditions indexes, regional Fed indexes, stock prices, the yield curve) have their own metrics based on long-term studies of their behavior.<\/span><\/p>\n

Where data is seasonally adjusted, generally it is scored positively if it is within the top 1\/3 of that range, negative in the bottom 1\/3, and neutral in between. Where it is not seasonally adjusted, and there are seasonal issues, waiting for the YoY change to change sign will lag the turning point. Thus I make use of a convention: data is scored neutral if it is less than 1\/2 as positive\/negative as at its 12-month extreme.<\/p>\n

With long leading indicators, which by definition turn at least 12 months before a turning point in the economy as a whole, there is an additional rule: data is automatically negative if, during an expansion, it has not made a new peak in the past year, with the sole exception that it is scored neutral if it is moving in the right direction and is close to making a new high.<\/p>\n

For all series where a graph is available, I have provided a link to where the relevant graph can be found.<\/p>\n

Recap of monthly reports<\/h2>\n

August data started out with a lackluster employment report, with 187,000 in gains and -110,000 in downward revisions. The unemployment rate increased to an 18 month high, and wage gains continued to decelerate. The ISM manufacturing report once again showed contraction, although at a slower rate than in the previous month.<\/p>\n

July data included a positive report on construction spending, and sharply higher personal spending both in nominal and real terms. By most measures inflation was relatively tame, but real income was flat, and the saving rate declined sharply. House prices declined YoY as measured by Case Shiller, but increased at measured by the FHFA. Consumer confidence as measured by the Conference Board declined as to both the present and the future.<\/p>\n

Long leading indicators<\/h2>\n

Interest rates and credit spreads <\/strong><\/p>\n

Rates<\/p>\n