U.S. Economic News
January 3, 2020
U.S. Economic Indicators
The ISM Manufacturing Index decreased 0.9 percentage point to 47.2 in December, its lowest reading since June 2009. The Employment Index fell 1.5 percentage points to 45.1, while the New Orders Index eased 0.4 percentage point to 46.8. ISM Report
Construction spending increased 0.6% in November to an annualized rate of $1.32 trillion. Private construction improved 0.4% and public construction rose 0.9%. Census Bureau Report
U.S. News
The Wall Street Journal reports that the number of job cuts due to companies filing for bankruptcy reached 62,100 in 2019, the highest since 2005. While the majority of job cuts were in the retail sector, systemic headwinds led to major cuts in the transportation and mining sectors as well. WSJ
Earnie Tedeschi reports for the New York Times that wage growth among low-wage workers has outpaced growth among high-wage workers by the widest margin in over 20 years. While employers have had to compete for workers through raising wages due to low unemployment, increases in state and local minimum wages have also played a role in boosting wages among the lowest earners. NYT