News

In the second quarter, the U.S.’s hottest growth areas traveled toward the coasts where service-oriented sectors like finance and professional services dominate, away from the mining-focused heartland.

Today, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) released–for the first time–gross domestic product (GDP) by state for 21 industry sectors on a quarterly basis.1 These new statistics supplement BEA’s national quarterly GDP by industry statistics first released in April 2014. These new data provide timely information on how specific industries contribute to accelerations, decelerations, and turning points in economic growth at the state level, including key information about the impact of differences in industry composition across states.

The U.S. trade deficit widened in October as exports resumed a steady decline, the latest sign a slumping global economy is draining foreigners’ appetite for American-made goods.

Economic activity in the [12th] District grew at a moderate pace during the reporting period of early October to mid-November. Overall price inflation ticked up, and upward wage pressures increased further. Retail sales grew moderately, while demand for business and consumer services expanded. Manufacturing output was largely unchanged. Agricultural activity edged up modestly. Conditions in residential and commercial real estate markets continued to strengthen. Activity in the financial services sector expanded at a modest pace.

Across all states, the growth in total PCE by state accelerated to 4.2 percent in 2014 from 3.1 percent in 2013 (Table 1). This growth reflects the year-over-year change in current-dollar PCE by state. In 2014, growth in total PCE ranged from 2.1 percent in West Virginia to 7.4 percent in North Dakota, with more than 40 states growing faster than in 2013.

Personal income increased $68.1 billion, or 0.4 percent, and disposable personal income (DPI) increased $56.8 billion, or 0.4 percent, in October, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.  Personal consumption expenditures (PCE) increased $15.2 billion, or 0.1 percent.  In September, personal income increased $27.4 billion, or 0.2 percent, DPI increased $27.0 billion, or 0.2 percent, and PCE increased $9.5 billion, or 0.1 percent, based on revised estimates.

The Commerce Department on Tuesday said the nation’s gross domestic product grew at a 2.1 percent annual pace, not the 1.5 percent rate it reported last month. It said efforts by businesses to reduce an inventory bloat had not been as aggressive as previously believed.

The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index fell to 90.4 in November, missing estimates for 99.5. It was also lower than October’s reading of 99.1.

Real gross domestic product — the value of the goods and services produced by the nation’s economy less the value of the goods and services used up in production, adjusted for price changes — increased at an annual rate of 2.1 percent in the third quarter of 2015, according to the “second” estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the second quarter, real GDP increased 3.9 percent.

Personal income grew in 2014 in 2,662 counties, fell in 438, and was unchanged in 13, according to estimates released today by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. On average, personal income rose 4.6 percent in 2014 in the metropolitan portion of the United States and rose 3.2 percent in the nonmetropolitan portion. The metropolitan and nonmetropolitan portions grew 1.1 percent and 1.9 percent, respectively, in 2013. The percent change from 2013 to 2014 in personal income ranged from -35.1 percent in Wallace County, Kansas to 83.7 percent in McPherson County, Nebraska.

The consumer price index increased 0.2% in October after a 0.2% decline the previous month, the Labor Department said Tuesday. The rise, driven by higher food and energy prices, was in line with economists’ expectations.

For the first time in at least a decade, imports fell in both September and October at each of the three busiest U.S. seaports, according to data from trade researcher Zepol Corp. analyzed by The Wall Street Journal. Combined, imports at the container terminals at the ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach, Calif. and around New York harbor, which handle just over half of the goods entering the country by sea, fell by just over 10% between August and October.

Personal income increased $18.6 billion, or 0.1 percent, and disposable personal income (DPI) increased $19.2 billion, or 0.1 percent, in September, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.  Personal consumption expenditures (PCE) increased $15.6 billion, or 0.1 percent.  In August, personal income increased $54.9 billion, or 0.4 percent, DPI increased $49.5 billion, or 0.4 percent, and PCE increased $44.2 billion, or 0.4 percent, based on revised estimates.

“Our California Economic Activity Index ticked down again in August, after a small decline in July,” said Robert Dye, chief economist at Comerica Bank. “Six out of eight components were negative for the month, including the tech sector stock market index, state exports and housing starts. Much of the drag on the headline index came from factors originating outside of the state. U.S. stock market volatility increased in August with the sell-off in China. Also, the strong dollar is putting pressure on exports to international markets. House prices were neutral in August. Nonfarm payroll employment was the lone, but very important, positive contributor to our August index. Year-over-year job growth in California, at 3 percent in August, remains about a percentage point stronger than the U.S. average,” Dye said.

U. S. economic growth cooled in the third quarter as firms let inventories dwindle and the pace of spending on the part of consumers, businesses and governments all decelerated.