Job Openings

December 5, 2023 The  Labor Department reported that job openings fell 617 thousand in October to 8,733 thousand after having fallen 147 thousand in September.  The pace of economic activity has been slowing a bit, but the labor market keeps hanging in there fairly...

Car and Truck Sales

December 4, 2023 Unit car and truck sales fell 0.7% in November to 15.323 million after having declined 1.6% in October.   Vehicle sales rose quickly after touching bottom in May of last year,   The supply challenges that had curtailed car sales for more than two...

Construction Spending

December 1, 2023 Construction spending (the green bars above) rose 0.6% in October after climbing 0.2% in September and 2.1% in August  This is the tenth consecutive increase in construction spending.   In the past 12 months it has risen 10.7%.  As indicated  below,...