Business Trends

by Raymond J. Keating- Industrial production (i.e., the real output of the manufacturing, mining, and electric and gas utilities) saw no growth in June, according to the latest report from the Federal Reserve. However, manufacturing output, which makes up the biggest chunk of industrial production, grew for the second consecutive month. The main negative was […]

by Raymond J. Keating- After a weak stretch from August 2018 to February 2019, retail sales in June 2019 continued a recent streak of growth. As reported by the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. retail and food services sales grew by 0.4 in June. That followed growth of 0.4 percent in both April and May, and […]

by Raymond J. Keating- Small Business Policy Index 2019: Massachusetts ranked 38th among the 50 states. SBE Council’s “Small Business Policy Index 2019” ranks the 50 states according to 62 different policy measures, including a wide array of tax, regulatory and government spending and performance measurements. Small Business Tax Index 2019: Massachusetts ranked 32nd among […]

by Raymond J. Keating- Personal income growth, according to the latest report from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, has stepped up over the past two months. Personal income grew by 0.5 percent in both April and May. That’s welcome after a stretch of underwhelming growth during the first three months of 2019. But as […]

by Raymond J. Keating- According to the latest report from the U.S. Census Bureau, durable goods orders declined once again in May. Durable goods orders declined by 1.3 percent in May, which came after a decline of 2.8 percent (revised down from a drop of 2.1 percent) in April. Orders have now declined in three […]

by Raymond J. Keating- According to the latest report from U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, state personal income growth slowed in the first quarter of this year – from 4.4 percent (annualized) in the third quarter 2018, to 4.1 percent in the fourth quarter, and to 3.4 percent in first quarter 2019. The slowdown is […]

  by Raymond J. Keating- More data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reinforced the story that job growth was poor in May. Released early this month, the May BLS employment report pointed to a slowdown in job growth. (See SBE Council analysis of that May jobs report here.) The BLS’s release of its […]

by Raymond J. Keating- Small Business Policy Index 2019: Arizona ranked 9th best among the 50 states.  SBE Council’s “Small Business Policy Index 2019” ranks the 50 states according to 62 different policy measures, including a wide array of tax, regulatory and government spending and performance measurements.  Small Business Tax Index 2019: Arizona ranked 11th […]

by Raymond J. Keating- Politics – especially as it is played in Washington, D.C. – is filled with people who overestimate their importance. That’s true of officials at the Federal Reserve, as illustrated in the following from the Federal Open Market Committee statement released on June 19: “… the Committee will closely monitor the implications […]

by Raymond J. Keating- Small Business Policy Index 2019: Illinois 35th among the 50 states. SBE Council’s “Small Business Policy Index 2019” ranks the 50 states according to 62 different policy measures, including a wide array of tax, regulatory and government spending and performance measurements. Small Business Tax Index 2019: Illinois ranked 37th among the 50 […]