Global Steel Production Fell In April

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Meanwhile, here are the major economic headlines from the last week:

• Global steel production five percent between April 2023 and April 2024 due mostly to a decline in output in China. Specifically, Chinese production dropped 7.2 percent year-over-year. Additionally, China has produced three percent less steel than it did in the first four months of 2023. In North America, steel output was down 5.2 percent between April 2023 and April 2024. Production in India increased, meanwhile, rising 12.5 percent year-over-year. For the first four months of 2024, that country produced 8.5 percent more steel than it did in the first four months of 2023.
• The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago’s National Activity Index, a key indicator of future economic growth, fell to -0.23 in April from -0.04 in March. While sales, orders, and inventories improved, the other three broad categories of indicators used to construct the index — production, employment, and personal consumption — decreased from March. The index’s three-month moving average rose to +0.01 in April from -0.17 in March.
• The manufacturing sector in the Midwest region of the United States improved slightly in May. The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s composite index was -2, up from -8 in April. The pace of decline slowed in paper, chemical, and fabricated metal manufacturing while activity expanded in printing, nonmetallic mineral, and furniture manufacturing. Production was flat and employment grew, while the employee workweek, materials inventories, and supplier delivery times declined slightly. The volume of new orders fell at moderate pace. Read the full report here.
• Home sales were down across the board in the United States last month. Existing home sales fell by 1.9 percent between March 2024 and April 2024 and by the same amount between April 2023 and April 2024 while new home sales fell 4.7 percent between March and April and 7.7 percent year-over-year.
• The number of people who applied for U.S. unemployment benefits for the first time stood at 215,000 during the week that ended May 18, a number that was down 8,000 from the week before. Averaged over the past four weeks, first-time claims rose to 219,250. In all, roughly 1.794 million people claimed jobless benefits during the week that ended May 11.
• In other economic news: retail sales in Canada fell 0.2 percent due mostly to decreases in sales at furniture, home furnishings, electronics and appliances retailers; the University of Michigan index of consumer sentiment plunged from 77.2 in April 2024 to 69.1 in May 2024; and Canada’s consumer price index rose 0.5 percent from March 2024 to April 2024 and 2.7 percent year-over-year.