Home Sales Tick Up In United States, But Manufacturing Industry Still Cool

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

• The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City announced last week that manufacturing activity in the Midwest region of the United States remained essentially flat for the third month in a row. The month-over-month composite index was 0 in March, unchanged from 0 in February, but up slightly from -1 in January. Readings for new orders, supplier delivery time, and materials inventories declined, while production, volume of shipments, and finished goods inventories increased slightly. Read the full report here.
• According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 191,000 individuals filed for federal unemployment benefits during the week that ended March 18, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week. The four-week moving average was 196,250, a drop of 250 from the week before. During the week that ended March 11, 1.694 million people continued to receive federal jobless benefits, an increase of 14,000 from one week earlier. The four-week moving average of continuing claims was 1.684 million, up 8,500 from the week before.
• In other economic news: The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that nonfarm payroll employment increased in six states and was essentially unchanged in 44 states and the District of Columbia in February 2023; sales of new homes in the United States increased 1.1 percent between January 2023 and February 2023, but were down 19 percent from February 2022 to February 2023; and existing home sales in the United States rose 14.5 percent from January 2023 to February 2023, but were down 22.6 percent between February 2022 and February 2023.