DATA RELEASED THIS WEEK

1. Bureau of Labor Statistics on April 3 released an Employment Situation Summary. You can read it here. Here is an excerpt:

“Total nonfarm payroll employment fell by 701,000 in March, and the unemployment rate rose to 4.4 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The changes in these measures reflect the effects of the coronavirus (COVID-19) and efforts to contain it. Employment in leisure and hospitality fell by 459,000, mainly in food services and drinking places. Notable declines also occurred in health care and social assistance, professional and business services, retail trade, and construction.”

Unemployment in March 2019 was 3.9% and March this year it is 4.4%

2. Unemployment claims reached 6.6 million, as reported on April 2. You can see a visual representation of the data here. These numbers are alarming, and it is now essential that we keep a close eye on these numbers in hopes that a slowdown is on the horizon. The next release will be on April 9.
3. ISM has released their monthly Manufacturing Purchasing Manager Index for March, which is 49.1. This report is the result of surveys filled out by individuals all along the supply chain of manufacturing. Their assessment of their business is aggregated into an index number. A PMI above 50 means an expansion while below 50 means a contraction. You can read the full report here.
4. The Dow Jones Utility Average is a index on the performance of the top 15 utility companies. I follow this because utilities are an essential part of all business—they cover a foundational need of all industries. It is down 21.09% since last month. There’s some interesting news in the utility market you can read here.
5. The S&P 1000 measures the averaged performance of the 1000 largest companies on the NASDAQ. Keep in mind this does nothing to represent local or small businesses. But it’s a broad-scope overview of performance. It’s down 16.3% over the last month, and 14.03% over the last year. See more here.

INTERESTING HEADLINES

If you can’t access these articles and want to read them, contact me and I’ll send you a PDF. Though, the absolute BEST economics source (in my opinion) is econofact, and it’s free. 

The Economist; Ecnomic Forecasts for GDP Growth in 2020 Vary Widely

EconoFact; Snapshot of the COVID Crisis Impact on Working Families

EconoFact; Tracking the Pandemic’s Trajectory: COVID-19 cases vs. deaths in the US

EconoFact; How Do Economic Crises End?

New York Times; Profiteers and Pool Noodles, The Mask Market is a Total Mess

For more information, comments or questions, contact atticus@gainesvillechamber.com.