Weekly Economic Report
September 29, 2014
Canadian Retail Sales Shockingly Fell 0.1% in July Canadian Retail Sales - July Auto & parts rose 1.6%, piggybacking the new car sales. However, the gains in auto were not enough as the Canadian retail sales unexpectedly fell 0.1%. Sales excluding autos slumped 0.6% in June, along with general merchandise and clothing sliding -2.7% and -2.3% respectively. Food and gasoline also experienced declines, -0.8% and -0.3% respectively. Fortunately, there were a few areas of strength; furniture and home furnishings jumped 4% to a record high, building materials climbed for a fourth straight month with +0.6% in July, and sporting goods continued its good run with a rise of 5%. There is no denying retail sales were weaker than expected in July. But, June was exceptionally strong and some retracement was expected. Despite this week report, the trend in retail sales remains positive.
New Durable Goods Orders Plunged a Record 18.2% in U.S. U.S. Durable Goods Orders - August Following a huge 22.5% record spike in the previous month, August experienced a record 18.2% plunged in durable goods orders. As expected, the transportation equipment took a 42% drop after a 73.3% jump in July, and nondefense aircraft and parts were down a whopping 74.3%. Despite the ups and downs of durable goods orders over the past few months, the report was rather assuring: excluding transportation, orders edged up 0.7%; machinery, electrical equipment and general machinery all enjoyed an upward ride; and core orders, a good indicator of future business spending, edged higher 0.6%. The report was rather assuring, except for the rollercoaster ride of durable goods.
Important Economic Statistics
The Week Ahead U.S. Personal Income and Consumption - Monday, September 29, 2014 at 8:30 am
Canadian Real GDP at Basic Prices - Tuesday, September 30, 2014 at 8:30 am
Canadian Merchandise Trade Surplus - Friday, October 3, 2014 at 8:30 am
U.S. Unemployment Rate - Friday, October 3, 2014 at 8:30 am
Ronald Chow, Chief Economist • ronaldchow@crescentschool.org