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US Data: Highlights of MNI Survey of Economic Forecasts

     WASHINGTON (MNI) - The following are highlights of forecasts for   
upcoming U.S. economic indicators provided by participants in the MNI   
weekly survey. The comment section presents the key elements behind the 
median forecasts.         
Weekly Jobless Claims for March 9 week                                
 Thursday, March 14 at 8:30 a.m. ET                       Actual:       
               Median         Range                  Mar09  Mar02  Feb23
 Weekly Claims   225k      220k to 228k                 --   233k   226k
     Comments: The level of initial jobless claims is expected to rise 
by 2,000 to 225,000 in the March 9 week after a decrease of 3,000 in the 
previous week. The four-week moving average would fall by an additional 
3,500 this week as the 239,000 level in the February 9 week rolls out of 
the calculation, assuming the MNI forecast is correct and there are no 
revisions. 
New Home Sales for January (annual rate)
 Thursday, March 14 at 10:00 a.m. ET                       Actual:        
               Median         Range                  Jan19  Dec18  Nov18
 New Homes       624k      575k to 641k                 --   621k   599k 
     Comments: The pace of new home sales is expected to rise further to 
a 630,000 annual rate in January after solid December rebound. Sales in 
October and November were revised lower, while sales in December were 
still down from a year earlier. 
Empire State Index for March (diffusion index)
 Friday, March 15 at 8:30 a.m. ET                        Actual:        
                 Median        Range                 Mar19  Feb19  Jan19
 Empire Index      10.0      6.0 to 15.0                --    8.8    3.9
     Comments: The Empire State index is expected to move higher to 10.0 
in March after rebounding to 8.8 in February. The manufacturing measures 
have moderated in recent months, but continue to exhibit positive 
growth. 
Industrial Production for February (percent change)
 Friday, March 15 at 9:15 a.m. ET                        Actual:        
              Median          Range                  Feb19  Jan19  Dec18
 Ind Prod      +0.4%       Flat to +1.1%                --  -0.6%  +0.1% 
 Cap Util      78.5%      78.0% to 79.0%                --  78.2%  78.8%  
     Comments: Industrial production is expected to rebound by 0.4% in 
February after a 0.6% decline in January, with a number of negative 
signs for manufacturing production after January's decline. Factory 
payrolls rose by only 4,000 in February, with auto production jobs up 
1,000, while the factory workweek contracted further to 40.7 hours from 
40.8 hours in January. The ISM production index fell to 54.8 in the 
current month from 60.5 in the previous month. Utilities production is 
expected to surge on harsh weather in the month after a modest 0.4% rise 
in January, while mining production is expected to continue its upward 
path. Capacity utilization is forecast to rise to 78.5% after falling to 
78.2% in January. 
University of Michigan Survey for March (preliminary)          
 Friday, March 15 at 10:00 a.m. ET                       Actual:
                Median        Range                 Mar19p  Feb19  Jan19
 Consumer Sent    95.5     94.0 to 97.0                 --   93.8   91.2
     Comments: The Michigan Sentiment index is expected to rise to 95.5 
in early-March from 93.8 in February, reflecting rising stock prices and 
still-low gasoline prices.
--MNI Washington Bureau; +1 (973) 494-2611; email: harrison.clarke@marketnews.com
[TOPICS: MTABLE,M$U$$$]

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