Market Insights

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The Producer Price Index (PPI) for Finished Goods climbed from 10.2% to 11.7% in September, the highest reading since November of 1980.

The ISM Services Index exceeded economists’ expectations by ticking higher to a reading of 61.9 in September.

Core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) –the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure– edged up slightly to 3.62% from 3.60% for the month prior.

The latest margin debt reading showed that speculation regained momentum last month as it surged to yet another record high.

The Conference Board’s Leading Economic Index (LEI) exceeded economists’ expectations by jumping +0.9% in August.

NAHB Builder Confidence registered a warning flag last month after it fell sharply to a 13-month low, yet it managed to rebound by one point in September.

The Consumer Price Index ticked down to 5.3% from 5.4% last month and remained at one of the highest readings of the past twenty years.

The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index increased by a meager 0.4 points in August (top graph) as small business owners continue to contend with both rising input costs and labor challenges.

The speculative frenzy that was ignited by the trillions of dollars in monetary and fiscal stimulus since the pandemic began may be starting to dissipate, according to our InvesTech Investor Psychology Barometer (IIPB). 

The Producer Price Index (PPI) surged to an all-time high of 8.3% in its most recent reading, showing that supply/demand imbalances are persisting.

The ISM Manufacturing Index moved higher to a reading of 59.9% in August to remain near one of the highest levels of the past two decades.

Consumers became significantly more pessimistic in August due to a combination of persistent inflation pressures and fears over the Delta variant.

Core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE), which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose for the fifth straight month to 3.62% versus the prior month’s unrevised reading of 3.5%.

The Leading Economic Index (LEI) from the Conference Board improved once again in July, taking the Index to another record high.

NAHB Builder Confidence (top graph below) sank to a 13-month low in August after suffering its fourth largest drop of the past decade.

NFIB Small Business Optimism Index unexpectedly declined by -2.8 points to a reading of 99.7 as economic expectations retreated in July.

The ISM Manufacturing Index declined by -1.1% to 59.5% in July, yet it remains at one of the highest levels of the past 30 years.

Core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) –the preferred inflation measure of the Federal Reserve– climbed further beyond the central bank’s 2% inflation target to 3.5% last month.

The Leading Economic Index (LEI) from the Conference Board gained 0.7% last month on positive contributions from eight of its ten leading components.

Margin debt climbed in June for the eighth straight month as investors continue to borrow on margin to buy stocks.

Homebuilders became slightly less optimistic this month according to the National Association of Home Builders, yet their confidence remains higher than at any point prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) has officially announced that the pandemic-induced recession has ended.

Small businesses became more optimistic last month as the economic recovery continued to gain momentum.

The core Consumer Price Index (CPI), which excludes volatile food and energy prices, continued to surge in June.

The ISM Services Index fell to a reading of 60.1% in June, still firmly in expansion territory and just 3.9% below its record high from the month before.

The manufacturing sector stayed soundly in expansion territory in June, as the ISM Manufacturing Index registered a strong reading of 60.6.

Consumer Confidence from the Conference Board increased for the fifth consecutive month as pandemic woes continued to fade.

Inflation has emerged with a vengeance in recent months, and the FIBER Leading Inflation Index (LII) suggests that that pricing pressures are continuing to mount.

Consumer optimism has been held down by the pandemic over the past year, but attitudes have started to improve as COVID-19 disruptions begin to fade.