U.S. Economic News
May 3, 2019
U.S. Economic Indicators
The U.S. economy added 263,000 jobs in April, well above consensus. The unemployment rate declined to 3.6%, the labor force participation rate edged down to 62.8%, and average hourly earnings annual growth remained at 3.2%. BLS Report
The ISM Non-Manufacturing Index declined 0.6 percentage point to 55.5 in April. The New Orders Index fell 0.9 percentage point to 58.1, while the Employment Index declined 2.2 percentage points to 53.7. ISM Report
The U.S. Census Bureau Advance Economic Indicators Report shows that the goods deficit widened to $71.4 billion in March from $70.9 billion in February. Meanwhile, wholesale inventories were unchanged and retail inventories edged down 0.3%. Census Bureau Report
U.S. News
According to the Wall Street Journal, Ginnie Mae — the government-backed firm that promotes home ownership — is cracking down on “churning,” a practice in which lenders push borrowers to repeatedly refinance to boost the fees paid to lenders. Refinancing shortens the life of mortgage bonds, reducing the attractiveness of the entire pool of loans to investors. WSJ
According to the Financial Times, Mexico has signaled that it will not ratify the USMCA trade deal until the U.S. removes the steel and aluminum tariffs imposed last year. Mexican and U.S. trade officials are meeting this week to negotiate a resolution, with both countries anxious for Congress to ratify the agreement before going into recess in August. FT