• February 1, 2018
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The Institute for Supply Management said its manufacturing index in January slipped to 59.1% from 59.3% in December. Economists polled by MarketWatch expected a reading of 58.6%. Separately, IHS Markit said its manufacturing PMI remained steady at a final reading of 55.5 in January from the flash estimate. This was up from 55.1 in December.

• February 1, 2018
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The productivity of American firms and workers fell at a 0.1% annual pace in the fourth quarter. Economists polled forecast a 0.2% gain. Output — goods and services produced — rose 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Yet hours worked grew slightly faster at 3.3%. The difference between the two led to the small decline in

• February 1, 2018
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The number of people who applied for unemployment benefits in late January fell by 1,000 to 230,000, keeping initial U.S. jobless claims near a 45-year low. Economists polled had forecast a 240,000 reading in the seven days ended January 27. The more stable monthly average of claims fell by 5,000 to 234,500, the government said

• February 1, 2018
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The Fed may be forced to raise rates more rapidly than the market is anticipating due to accelerating economic conditions. Economists, fund managers and strategists now see the funds rate ending 2018 at 2.24 percent, up about a quarter point from the prior survey. Respondents continue to be unenthused about the outlook for stocks, seeing

• February 1, 2018
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U.S. yields continued higher on Thursday, with the rate on the 10-year benchmark note rising 4 basis points to 2.75%. The gain comes after a choppy session on Wednesday when yields initially popped after the Federal Reserve struck a hawkish in its policy statement, but then ended little changed on the day. UBS on Thursday

• January 31, 2018
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The Federal Reserve on Wednesday left a key short-term U.S. interest rate unchanged, but the central bank also said it expects inflation “to move up this year” in a sign it’s likely to hike rates at its next meeting in March. The central bank said inflation is likely to stabilize around its 2% target, dropping

• January 31, 2018
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The supply crisis is hitting housing hard, as strong demand quickly eats up what few listings there are. Home shoppers signed 0.5 percent more contracts to buy existing homes in December compared to November, according to the National Association of Realtors. The supply of homes for sale at the end of December fell to the

• January 31, 2018
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The Chicago PMI slipped 2.1 points to 65.7, MNI Indicators said Wednesday. That’s on a scale where any reading over 50 indicates improving conditions.

• January 31, 2018
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The Treasury Department on Wednesday said it plans to raise the size of upcoming bond and note auctions this quarter by $42 billion to meet the increased funding needs from the Federal Reserve’s shrinking of its balance sheet and the recently passed tax bill. The department also announced it will auction $66 billion in notes

• January 31, 2018
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Janet Yellen could end her final meeting as Fed chair Wednesday with a more hawkish-sounding statement to reflect an improved economy and rising inflation expectations. Yellen, known as a dove during her tenure, started the Fed back on a rate-hiking path in 2015 after her predecessor took interest rates to zero during the financial crisis