Highlights of key economic statistics from last week compiled by Putnam Investments.
- The IHS Markit U.S. Composite PMI Output Index rose to 57.6 in October from 55.0 in September.
- The trade deficit widened in September, the Census Bureau reported.
- Initial jobless claims fell by 14,000 to 269,000 in the week ended October 30, 2021, the Department of Labor found.
- The United States added 531,000 jobs and the unemployment rate fell to 4.6% in September from 4.8% in August, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported.
- As of October 29, 2021, of 276 S&P 500 Index companies reporting third-quarter earnings, 223 beat analysts’ estimates, according to S&P Dow Jones Indices.
- The IBC/TIPP Economic Optimism Index fell in November for the fifth consecutive month.
- The IHS Markit Eurozone Composite PMI Output Index declined to 54.2 in October from 56.2 in September.
- Euro area industrial producer prices rose 2.7% in September compared with August, according to Eurostat.
- Germany’s Federal Statistical Office reported retail sales fell 2.5% in September compared with August.
- The yield on the 10-year Treasury note declined.
- The Bank of England held rates steady.
- The Federal Reserve Open Market Committee decided to begin reducing the pace of its net asset purchases later in November.
- Divergent vaccination rollout timelines and virus mutations risk could cause a shift from a synchronized global recovery to a more fractured regional, multispeed recovery.
- Global leverage, created by pandemic response packages, is at worrisome levels and will eventually need to be paid for.
- Upward pressure on inflation from multiple fronts (energy prices, housing costs, and the labor market) could pressure central banks to pull forward their timelines for monetary policy normalization.
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