U.S. Economic News
September 27, 2019
U.S. Economic Indicators
New orders of manufactured durable goods increased 0.2% in August after rising 2.0% (revised) in July but are down 0.4% compared to a year ago. Excluding transportation, new orders rose 0.5% (up 0.7% from last year). Census Bureau Report
Real disposable personal income rose 0.4% in August after no change (revised) in July while real personal consumption expenditure (PCE) rose 0.1%. The PCE price index was unchanged (up 1.4% Y/Y) and the core price index rose 0.1% (up 1.8% Y/Y). BEA Report
The University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index rose 3.4 points to 93.2 in the final September reading but is down 6.9 points from September of last year. The Index of Consumer Expectations rose 3.5 points to 83.4 while the Current Economic Conditions Index rose 3.2 points to 108.5. University of Michigan
U.S. News
According to the Washington Post, U.S. income inequality as measured by the Gini index reached its highest level on record in 2018, despite historically low poverty and unemployment rates. The gap between the rich and poor was widest in wealthy areas along the coasts, while western and midwestern states had more even distributions of wealth. WSJ