Consumer goods: short-term outlook

Retail sales lift back-to-school outlook for consumer goods

The outlook for consumer goods spending remains positive heading into the back-to-school season given signs from key economic and consumer indicators—including mostly healthy retail sales by channel. The signs for the short term are distilled from the data storyboard below, which…


GDP surge in Q2 gives momentum to spending outlook

A surge in Q2 GDP led by consumers provides momentum to consumer goods spending heading into the second half of 2018, although signs from other indicators—price inflation especially—provide some reason for caution. The signs for the short term are distilled from…



Consumers lead slowdown in Q1 economic growth

The U.S. economy slowed in the first quarter of 2018, driven to a large extent by a big slowdown in consumer spending. The results confirm a post-holiday return to less robust consumer spending (more here) and raise some concern about the…


U.S. economy on track to sustain growth in 2018

The U.S. economy appears to be on track to sustain economic growth into 2018 based on insights from the latest GDP data through the fourth quarter of 2017. The outlook is particularly encouraging given the latest uptick in the data excluding…