U.S. Review
Third Quarter Growth Appears Solid
• Retail sales rose 0.6 percent in August as auto sales helped to boost the headline number. The stronger reading allayed some fears about consumer spending in the third quarter.
• Business inventories rose 0.4 percent in July signaling that the pace of inventory building may moderate in the third quarter. Inventory data for June were not revised higher and the rise in stocks remained at 0.4 percent.
• Import prices fell a sizable 0.9 percent in August with petroleum import prices accounting for most of the drop in the headline reading.
Global Review
Central Banks Moving in Different Directions
• July figures for U.K. industrial production bested consensus estimates, and Bank of England Governor Mark Carney indicated the Bank could hike rates as early as this spring. But political developments in the U.K. took center stage in global news this week. For perspective on the vote for Scottish Independence see our Topic of the Week on page 7.
• In the Global Review on page 4, we discuss economic developments in the United Kingdom, a record jobs report in Australia and how the Bank of Korea is reasserting its independence.
Read the full report: Economic Research