The Consumer Price Index (CPI) report for February and the Producer Price Index (PPI) reports will be released to the public the following week, respectively. The most recent retail sales numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau will be made public on Wednesday as well, providing insight into how well consumer spending fared in November. Building permits and house starts for February, as well as the NAHB’s Housing Market Index, will provide updates on the housing market. We’ll receive the most recent industrial production numbers for the prior month and the preliminary March Consumer Sentiment Index reading on Friday (MCSI).
Reports on Inflation in the News
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for February is due on Tuesday, so we’ll have the most recent information on inflation in the US the following week. Following a 0.5% increase in January, the CPI’s measure of consumer prices probably increased 0.4% last month. Prices are expected to have increased 6.2% on an annual basis, slowing down somewhat from a rate of 6.4% in January.
On Wednesday, the Producer Price Index (PPI), which tracks inflation from the perspective of producers and wholesalers of goods, will be released. Following a stronger-than-expected 0.7% increase in January, producer prices are predicted to have increased by 0.3% in February. They were probably up 5.7% on an annual basis, slowing from a 6% gain in January and compared to a 40-year peak of 11.7% reached in March of last year.
Release of Retail Sales
The U.S. Census Bureau will also disclose retail sales data for February on Wednesday, providing insight into how well consumer spending performed in February. After rising 3% in January, retail sales, which are not adjusted for inflation, probably nudged up 0.2% last month. Consumer spending has held up despite a weakening economy because consumers’ purchasing power has been buffered by high nominal wage growth, a tight labor market, and extra savings from before the epidemic.
Reading of Consumer Sentiment
The Consumer Sentiment Index (MCSI) at the University of Michigan will announce its preliminary March reading on Friday, offering an update on consumer confidence in the United States. The index is expected to increase from 67 in February to 67.5 in the next months, which would be the highest score since December 2021. After reaching an all-time low of 50 in June of last year, which exceeded prior record lows set during the Great Recession and the stagflationary era of the 1970s and early 1980s, consumer sentiment has increased in recent months.
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