No. 945: March Consumer and Producer Price Indices, Real Earnings
For All Employees, First-Quarter 2018 Real Average Weekly Earnings
Contracted 0.4% (-0.4%), along with Slowing Real Growth in Consumer Credit
Quarterly Real Average Weekly Earnings Contracted 1.5% (-1.5%) for
Production and Nonsupervisory Employees, the
Third Consecutive Quarterly Decline, the Fifth in the Last Six Quarters
Unadjusted Annual CPI-U Inflation Rose to a 12-Month High 2.36% in March 2018,
Up from 2.21% in February 2018, Still Holding Well Shy of Common Experience
Fed’s Targeted "Core" Inflation Broke Above 2.0%, to 2.1% in March 2018,
Highest Level in 13 Months
Annual PPI Inflation Rose to a 74-Month High of 3.03% in March 2018,
Reflecting Jumps in Food Prices and Outpatient Costs
A Leading Indicator to Broad Economic Activity, March 2018
Real Annual Growth in Money Supply M3 Slowed to a Six-Month Low
Next Week’s Headline Economic Reporting Could Lock in a
First-Quarter 2018 Real GDP Contraction
Nonetheless, While Not Close to an Economic Expansion,
Some Positive Anecdotal Evidence on the Economy Is Surfacing