According to the US Department of Labor, in the week ending February 11, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 194,000, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The previous week’s level was revised down by 1,000 from 196,000 to 195,000. The 4-week moving average was 189,500, an increase of 500 from the previous week’s revised average. The previous week’s average was revised down by 250 from 189,250 to 189,000.
The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.2 percent for the week ending February 4, unchanged from the previous week’s unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending February 4 was 1,696,000, an increase of 16,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The previous week’s level was revised down by 8,000 from 1,688,000 to 1,680,000. The 4-week moving average was 1,673,000, an increase of 10,250 from the previous week’s revised average. The previous week’s average was revised down by 2,000 from 1,664,750 to 1,662,750.
The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) rose 0.5 percent in January on a seasonally adjusted basis, after increasing 0.1 percent in December, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 6.4 percent before seasonal adjustment.
The index for shelter was by far the largest contributor to the monthly all items increase, accounting for nearly half of the monthly all items increase, with the indexes for food, gasoline, and natural gas also contributing. The food index increased 0.5 percent over the month with the food at home index rising 0.4 percent. The energy index increased 2.0 percent over the month as all major energy component indexes rose over the month.
The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.4 percent in January. Categories which increased in January include the shelter, motor vehicle insurance, recreation, apparel, and household furnishings and operations indexes. The indexes for used cars and trucks, medical care, and airline fares were among those that decreased over the month.
The all items index increased 6.4 percent for the 12 months ending January; this was the smallest 12-month increase since the period ending October 2021. The all items less food and energy index rose 5.6 percent over the last 12 months, its smallest 12-month increase since December 2021. The energy index increased 8.7 percent for the 12 months ending January, and the food index increased 10.1 percent over the last year.
Per the US Census Bureau advance estimates of U.S. retail and food services sales for January 2023, adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes, were $697.0 billion, up 3.0 percent (±0.5 percent) from the previous month, and up 6.4 percent (±0.7 percent) above January 2022. Total sales for the November 2022 through January 2023 period were up 6.1 percent (±0.5 percent) from the same period a year ago. The November 2022 to December 2022 percent change was unrevised at down 1.1 percent (±0.3 percent).
Retail trade sales were up 2.3 percent (±0.5 percent) from December 2022, and up 3.9 percent (±0.5 percent) above last year. Food services and drinking places were up 25.2 percent (±2.6 percent) from January 2022, while general merchandise stores were up 4.5 percent (±0.2 percent) from last year.
The Office for National Statistics in the UK provided inflation data for January of 2023.
The Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers’ housing costs (CPIH) rose by 8.8% in the 12 months to January 2023, down from 9.2% in December 2022.
On a monthly basis, CPIH fell by 0.4% in January 2023, but was little changed in January 2022.
The Consumer Prices Index (CPI) rose by 10.1% in the 12 months to January 2023, down from 10.5% in December 2022.
On a monthly basis, CPI fell by 0.6% in January 2023, compared with a fall of 0.1% in January 2022.
Core CPIH (excluding energy, food, alcohol and tobacco) fell to 5.3% in the 12 months to January 2023 from 5.8% in December 2022, the annual CPIH goods index eased slightly from 13.4% to 13.3% over the same period, while the annual CPIH services index fell from 5.8% to 5.2%.
