In the first of four major employment reports this week, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported job openings rose to 11.2 million as of the end of July, more than double the pool of available workers.
Tag: Wells Fargo Economics

Gas Prices Drop; Consumer Confidence Rises to 4-Month High
Gas prices fell to a four-month low this month; conversely, consumer confidence rose to a four-month high, The Conference Board reported Tuesday.

Home Price Reports: ‘Deceleration’ is Key Word
The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices reported an 18 percent annual gain in June, still hot but well off the 19.9 percent pace in May. And the Federal Housing Finance Agency also reported deceleration in June, to 17 percent.

GDP: 2Q Pace of Slowing Decreases
The U.S. economy continued to slow in the second quarter, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported Thursday, although not at a pace as dramatically earlier this summer.

July New Home Sales at 6-1/2 Year Low; Price Growth Decelerates
New home sales fell to their slowest pace in six and a half years, while inventories stockpiled, HUD and the Census Bureau reported Tuesday. In a separate report, RE/MAX, Denver, said median home sales prices fell for the first time since January

Existing Home Sales Fall to 2-Year Low
Existing home sales fell under five million annually for the first time in more than two years, marking the sixth consecutive monthly decrease, the National Association of Realtors reported Thursday.

July Housing Starts Take Sharp Hit
It already hasn’t been a good week for housing. On Monday, the National Association of Home Builders reported its Housing Market Index fell for the eighth straight month to two-year low. And on Tuesday, HUD and the Census Bureau reported housing starts fell in July by nearly double digits to its slowest pace since 2020.

Builder Confidence Turns Negative After 8th Straight Monthly Drop
Home builder confidence has turned into downright pessimism. The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index fell in August for the eighth straight month to its lowest level in more than two years.

July Consumer Prices Stabilize; Rise 8.5% Annually
The Consumer Price Index, a closely watched measure of inflation, was unchanged in July on a seasonally adjusted basis after rising 1.3 percent in June, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday. Over the past 12 months, the all-items index increased by 8.5 percent before seasonal adjustment.

Solid Jobs Report Move Employment, Unemployment Rate to Pre-Pandemic Levels
Total nonfarm employment jumped by 528,000 jobs in July, more than double consensus expectations and pushing the unemployment rate to 3.5 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.