It's The Economy Stupid: Income, Spending, Prices, Home Sales, Manufacturing

Economic Event	Period	Economic Survey	Actual Reported	Original Prior	Revised Prior
Personal Income	MAR	0.4%	0.2%	1.1%
Personal Spending	MAR	0.0%	0.2%	0.7%
PCE Deflator MoM	MAR	-0.1%	-0.1%	0.4%
PCE Deflator YoY	MAR	1.0%	1.0%	1.3%
PCE Core MoM	MAR	0.1%	0.0%	0.1%
PCE Core YoY	MAR	1.2%	1.1%	1.3%
Pending Home Sales MoM	MAR	1.0%	1.5%	-0.4%	-1.0%
Pending Home Sales YoY	MAR	6.1%	5.8%	5.0%	4.3%
Dallas Fed Manufacturing Activity	APR	5.0%	-15.6%	7.4%

 

There’s a lot of stuff here to look at.

 

Personal Income & Personal Spending

The Commerce Department’s report showed Americans’ incomes increased 0.2 percent in March after climbing 1.1 percent the prior month. The Bloomberg survey median called for a 0.4 percent gain. Wages and salaries rose 0.2 percent after climbing 0.7 percent. Disposable income, or the money left over after taxes, rose 0.3 percent after adjusting for inflation. It advanced 0.7 percent in the prior month.

 

Personal Spending increased by 0.2 percent in March. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of 74 economists called for little change in March personal spending. Projections ranged from a -0.2 percent drop to gains of 0.4 percent.  The PCE Deflator YoY, an index of inflation tied to spending patterns, increased 1 percent from a year earlier, the smallest gain since October 2009.   Adjusting consumer spending for inflation, which renders the figures used to calculate gross domestic product, purchases rose 0.3 percent for a second month, today’s report showed.

 

Pending Home Sales

More Americans than forecast signed contracts in March to buy previously owned homes, another indication of progress in the housing market.  The index of pending home sales increased 1.5 percent after a revised 1 percent decline the prior month that was larger than initially reported, figures from the National Association of Realtors showed today in Washington. Economists forecast a 1 percent increase, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey.

    

Dallas Fed Manufacturing Activity

Business activity among Texas-area manufacturers fell sharply into contraction this month, according to a report released Monday by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.  The bank said its general business activity index plunged to -15.6 in April after it increased to a year-high of 7.4 in March from 2.2 in February.  The April reading is the lowest since July 2012, the report said. Readings below 0 indicate contraction, and positive numbers indicate expanding activity.

 

The Dallas Fed survey joins other regional Fed reports that show the factory sector is struggling this month as the economy overall faces another spring slowdown.