Long-Term Charts Of The ECRI WLI & ECRI WLI, Gr. – August 17, 2018 Update

As I stated in my July 12, 2010 post (“ECRI WLI Growth History“):

For a variety of reasons, I am not as enamored with ECRI’s WLI and WLI Growth measures as many are.

However, I do think the measures are important and deserve close monitoring and scrutiny.

Below are three long-term charts, from the Doug Short site’s ECRI update post of August 17, 2018 titled “ECRI Weekly Leading Index Update.”  These charts are on a weekly basis through the August 17, 2018 release, indicating data through August 10, 2018.

Here is the ECRI WLI (defined at ECRI’s glossary):

ECRI WLI 147.4

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This next chart depicts, on a long-term basis, the Year-over-Year change in the 4-week moving average of the WLI:

ECRI Weekly Leading Index YoY of the Four-Week Moving Average

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This last chart depicts, on a long-term basis, the WLI, Gr.:

ECRI WLI Gr. .3 Percent

_________

I post various economic indicators and indices because I believe they should be carefully monitored.  However, as those familiar with this site are aware, I do not necessarily agree with what they depict or imply.

_____

The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 2850.14 as this post is written

Walmart’s Q2 2019 Results – Comments

I found various notable items in Walmart’s Q2 2019 management call transcript (pdf) dated August 16, 2018.  (as well, there is Walmart’s press release of the Q2 results (pdf) and related presentation materials)

I view Walmart’s results and comments as particularly noteworthy given their retail prominence and focus on low prices.  I have previously commented on their quarterly management call comments; these previous posts are found under the “paycheck to paycheck” tag.

Here are various excerpts that I find most notable:

comments from Brett Biggs, EVP & CFO, page 11:

U.S. eCommerce sales grew 40 percent in the quarter. We are
improving the value proposition through enhancements to the site, app,
assortment and experience, including the list of new initiatives that Doug
mentioned. We remain focused on nailing the fundamentals. The team is
making good progress on our Customer Value Index, or CVI, and we’re
particularly pleased with the trends related to price competitiveness and
delivery promise. Given the advantage of having stores in our omnichannel
offering, we are taking a more holistic view of the customer and
accelerating investments in grocery pickup and delivery. We feel good
about the direction of the business and remain confident in our ability to
grow sales by about 40 percent for the full year.

Walmart U.S.

Walmart U.S. delivered strong comp sales growth, excluding fuel, of
4.5 percent, marking the best performance in more than 10 years. Store
traffic growth of 2.2 percent and ticket growth of 2.3 percent were strong
across categories, and eCommerce contributed approximately 100 basis
points to the comp. Momentum in the business was solid throughout the
quarter, with warmer weather contributing to strong general merchandise
sales primarily in seasonal lawn & garden and apparel, which positively
impacted the Q2 comp. As you will recall, Q1 was hampered by very
unseasonably cool weather in April and Q2 was benefitted by
unseasonably warm weather in May. Year to date through Q2, Walmart
U.S comp sales, excluding fuel, were 3.3 percent.

comments from Brett Biggs, EVP & CFO, page 12, wrt Walmart U.S.:

Gross margin rate declined 34 basis points primarily related to price
investments, higher transportation expenses due to higher fuel costs and
third-party transportation rate pressure, and the increasing mix of our
growing eCommerce business.

_____

The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 2846.18 as this post is written

Chicago Fed National Financial Conditions Index (NFCI)

The St. Louis Fed’s Financial Stress Index (STLFSI) is one index that is supposed to measure stress in the financial system.  Its reading as of the August 9, 2018 update (reflecting data through August 3, 2018) is -1.214.

Of course, there are a variety of other measures and indices that are supposed to measure financial stress and other related issues, both from the Federal Reserve as well as from private sources.

Two other indices that I regularly monitor include the Chicago Fed National Financial Conditions Index (NFCI) as well as the Chicago Fed Adjusted National Financial Conditions Index (ANFCI).

Here are summary descriptions of each, as seen in FRED:

The National Financial Conditions Index (NFCI) measures risk, liquidity and leverage in money markets and debt and equity markets as well as in the traditional and “shadow” banking systems. Positive values of the NFCI indicate financial conditions that are tighter than average, while negative values indicate financial conditions that are looser than average.

The adjusted NFCI (ANFCI). This index isolates a component of financial conditions uncorrelated with economic conditions to provide an update on how financial conditions compare with current economic conditions.

For further information, please visit the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago’s web site:

http://www.chicagofed.org/webpages/publications/nfci/index.cfm

Below are the most recently updated charts of the NFCI and ANFCI, respectively.

The NFCI chart below was last updated on August 15, 2018 incorporating data from January 8, 1971 through August 10, 2018, on a weekly basis.  The August 10, 2018 value is -.86:

NFCI_8-15-18 -.86

Data Source: FRED, Federal Reserve Economic Data, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis; accessed August 15, 2018:

http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/NFCI

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The ANFCI chart below was last updated on August 15, 2018 incorporating data from January 8,1971 through August 10, 2018, on a weekly basis.  The August 10 value is -.65:

ANFCI_8-15-18 -.65

Data Source: FRED, Federal Reserve Economic Data, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis; accessed August 15, 2018:

http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/ANFCI

_________

I post various indicators and indices because I believe they should be carefully monitored.  However, as those familiar with this site are aware, I do not necessarily agree with what they depict or imply.

_____

The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 2818.37 as this post is written

Charts Indicating Economic Weakness – August 2018

U.S. Economic Indicators

Throughout this site there are many discussions of economic indicators.  At this time, the readings of various indicators are especially notable.  This post is the latest in a series of posts indicating U.S. economic weakness or a notably low growth rate.

While many U.S. economic indicators – including GDP – are indicating economic growth, others depict (or imply) various degrees of weak growth or economic contraction.  As seen in the August 2018 Wall Street Journal Economic Forecast Survey the consensus (average estimate) among various economists is for 3.0% GDP growth in 2018 and 2.4% GDP growth in 2019.  However,  there are other broad-based economic indicators that seem to imply a weaker growth rate.

As well, it should be remembered that GDP figures can be (substantially) revised.

Charts Indicating U.S. Economic Weakness

Below are a small sampling of charts that depict weak growth or contraction, and a brief comment for each:

Total Federal Receipts

“Total Federal Receipts” growth continues to be intermittent in nature since 2015.  As well, the level of growth does not seem congruent to the (recent) levels of economic growth as seen in aggregate measures such as Real GDP.

“Total Federal Receipts” through July had a last value of $225,266 Million.  Shown below is  the measure displayed on a “Percent Change From Year Ago” basis with value -2.9%, last updated August 10, 2018:

MTSR133FMS_8-10-18 225266 -2.9 Percent Change From Year Ago

source:  U.S. Department of the Treasury. Fiscal Service, Total Federal Receipts [MTSR133FMS], retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, accessed August 11, 2018:

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/MTSR133FMS

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Taxes On Corporate Income

Another measure that depicts weakness is that of “Federal government current tax receipts: Taxes on corporate income.”  Through the first quarter the value is $149.029 Billion.  Shown below is the chart, last updated July 27, 2018:

B075RC1Q027SBEA_7-27-18 149.029

source:  U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Federal government current tax receipts: Taxes on corporate income [B075RC1Q027SBEA], retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis;  accessed August 9, 2018:

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/B075RC1Q027SBEA

Here is a chart of the measure, on a “Percent Change From Year Ago” basis with value of -48.6%, through the first quarter, last updated July 27, 2018:

B075RC1Q027SBEA Percent Change From Year Ago

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The Aruoba-Diebold-Scotti Business Conditions Index (ADS Index)

While the 2nd quarter GDP (Advance Estimate)(pdf) was 4.1%, there are other broad-based economic indicators that seem to imply a weaker growth rate.

Among the broad-based economic indicators that imply weaker growth is that of the Aruoba-Diebold-Scotti Business Conditions Index (ADS Index.)  Below is a two-year chart of the index through August 4, 2018, with a value of .047, as of the August 8 update:

ADS Index

source:  Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, Aruoba-Diebold-Scotti Business Conditions Index (ADS Index)

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Total Construction Spending:  Commercial

“Total Private Construction Spending: Commercial” is a measure of construction exhibiting weak YoY growth.   This measure through June had a last value of $90,991 Million.  Shown below is the measure displayed on a “Percent Change From Year Ago” basis with a value of 1.1%, last updated August 1, 2018:

TLCOMCONS_8-1-18 90991 1.1 Percent Change From Year Ago

source:  U.S. Bureau of the Census, Total Construction Spending: Commercial [TLCOMCONS], retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, accessed August 9, 2018:

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/TLCOMCONS

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Real Hourly Earnings

The level and growth rates of wages and household earnings continues to be (highly) problematical.  I have extensively discussed these worrisome trends in income and earnings.

As seen in many measures the problem is chronic (i.e long-term) in nature.

Shown below is a chart depicting the 12-month percent change in real average hourly and weekly earnings for private sector employees from June 2008 – June 2018.  (July 2018 was unchanged from June 2018, and it decreased .2% YoY (i.e. compared to July 2017.))  As seen in the chart below, growth in this measure over the time period depicted has been intermittent, volatile, and, especially since 2017, weak:

Real Average Hourly Earnings

source:  Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, Real average hourly earnings unchanged from June 2017 to June 2018 on the Internet at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2018/real-average-hourly-earnings-unchanged-from-june-2017-to-june-2018.htm(visited August 10, 2018).

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Other Indicators

As mentioned previously, many other indicators discussed on this site indicate economic weakness or economic contraction, if not outright (gravely) problematical economic conditions.

_____

The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 2833.28 as this post is written

The August 2018 Wall Street Journal Economic Forecast Survey

The August 2018 Wall Street Journal Economic Forecast Survey was published on August 9, 2018.  The headline is “Growth Seen Hitting 3% in 2018, but Risks to Outlook Mount After This Year.”

I found numerous items to be notable – although I don’t necessarily agree with them – both within the article and in the “Economist Q&A” section.

An excerpt:

The average forecast for growth in 2019 was 2.4%, little changed in recent months. By 2020, the average forecaster projects economic growth will slow to 1.8%. That is down from estimates earlier this year of 2%.

Trump administration officials disagree with these projections. The White House has said 3% growth or better can be sustained. Other government forecasters, including the Federal Reserve, Congressional Budget Office and International Monetary Fund all project a slowdown from the growth rate of 2018. The Fed, for example, sees 2% growth in 2020 and 1.8% growth in the long run.

As seen in the “Recession Probability” section, the average response as to the odds of another recession starting within the next 12 months was 18.3%. The individual estimates, of those who responded, ranged from 1% to 50%.  For reference, the average response in July’s survey was 17.71%.

As stated in the article, the survey’s respondents were 57 academic, financial and business economists.  Not every economist answered every question.  The survey was conducted August 3 – August 7, 2018.

–

The current average forecasts among economists polled include the following:

GDP:

full-year 2018:  3.0%

full-year 2019:  2.4%

full-year 2020:  1.8%

Unemployment Rate:

December 2018: 3.7%

December 2019: 3.6%

December 2020: 3.9%

10-Year Treasury Yield:

December 2018: 3.17%

December 2019: 3.46%

December 2020: 3.50%

CPI:

December 2018:  2.5%

December 2019:  2.4%

December 2020:  2.3%

Crude Oil  ($ per bbl):

for 12/31/2018: $69.91

for 12/31/2019: $67.52

for 12/31/2020: $65.66

(note: I highlight this WSJ Economic Forecast survey each month; commentary on past surveys can be found under the “Economic Forecasts” category)

_____

I post various economic forecasts because I believe they should be carefully monitored.  However, as those familiar with this site are aware, I do not necessarily agree with many of the consensus estimates and much of the commentary in these forecast surveys.

_____

The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 2833.28 as this post is written

Philadelphia Fed – 3rd Quarter 2018 Survey Of Professional Forecasters

The Philadelphia Fed 3rd Quarter 2018 Survey of Professional Forecasters was released on August 10, 2018.  This survey is somewhat unique in various regards, such as it incorporates a longer time frame for various measures.

The survey shows, among many measures, the following median expectations:

Real GDP: (annual average level)

full-year 2018:  2.8%

full-year 2019:  2.8%

full-year 2020:  1.8%

full-year 2021:  1.5%

Unemployment Rate: (annual average level)

for 2018: 3.9%

for 2019: 3.6%

for 2020: 3.7%

for 2021: 4.0%

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Regarding the risk of a negative quarter in real GDP in any of the next few quarters, mean estimates are 6.6%, 10.5%, 13.2%, 16.4% and 19.6% for each of the quarters from Q3 2018 through Q3 2019, respectively.

As well, there are also a variety of time frames shown (present quarter through the year 2027) with the median expected inflation (annualized) of each.  Inflation is measured in Headline and Core CPI and Headline and Core PCE.  Over all time frames expectations are shown to be in the 2.0% to 2.5% range.

_____

I post various economic forecasts because I believe they should be carefully monitored.  However, as those familiar with this site are aware, I do not agree with many of the consensus estimates and much of the commentary in these forecast surveys.

_____

The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 2826.21 as this post is written

Deflation Probabilities – August 9, 2018 Update

While I do not agree with the current readings of the measure – I think the measure dramatically understates the probability of deflation, as measured by the CPI – the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta maintains an interesting data series titled “Deflation Probabilities.”

As stated on the site:

Using estimates derived from Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) markets, described in a technical appendix, this weekly report provides two measures of the probability of consumer price index (CPI) deflation through 2022.

A chart shows the trends of the probabilities.  As one can see in the chart, the readings are volatile.

As for the current weekly reading, the August 9, 2018 update states the following:

The 2018–23 deflation probability was 5 percent on August 8, unchanged from August 1. The 2017–22 deflation probability was 3 percent on August 8, down from 4 percent on August 1. These deflation probabilities, measuring the likelihoods of net declines in the consumer price index over the five-year periods starting in early 2017 and early 2018, are estimated from prices of the five-year Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) issued in April 2017 and April 2018 and the 10-year TIPS issued in July 2012 and July 2013.

_________

I post various economic indicators and indices because I believe they should be carefully monitored.  However, as those familiar with this site are aware, I do not necessarily agree with what they depict or imply.

_____

The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 2858.16 as this post is written

Building Financial Danger – August 9, 2018 Update

My overall analysis indicates a continuing elevated and growing level of financial danger which contains many worldwide and U.S.-specific “stresses” of a very complex nature. I have written numerous posts in this site concerning both ongoing and recent “negative developments.”  These developments, as well as other exceedingly problematic conditions, have presented a highly perilous economic environment that endangers the overall financial system.

Also of ongoing immense importance is the existence of various immensely large asset bubbles, a subject of which I have extensively written.  While all of these asset bubbles are wildly pernicious and will have profound adverse future implications, hazards presented by the bond market bubble are especially notable.

Predicting the specific timing and extent of a stock market crash is always difficult, and the immense complexity of today’s economic situation makes such a prediction even more challenging. With that being said, my analyses continue to indicate that a near-term exceedingly large (from an ultra-long term perspective) stock market crash – that would also involve (as seen in 2008) various other markets as well – will occur.

(note: the “next crash” and its aftermath has great significance and implications, as discussed in the post of January 6, 2012 titled “The Next Crash And Its Significance“ and various subsequent posts in the “Economic Depression” category)

As reference, below is a daily chart since 2008 of the S&P500 (through August 8, 2018 with a last price of 2857.70), depicted on a LOG scale, indicating both the 50dma and 200dma as well as price labels:

(click on chart to enlarge image)(chart courtesy of StockCharts.com; chart creation and annotation by the author)

S&P500 since 2008

_____

The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 2857.70 as this post is written

Chicago Fed National Financial Conditions Index (NFCI)

The St. Louis Fed’s Financial Stress Index (STLFSI) is one index that is supposed to measure stress in the financial system.  Its reading as of the August 2, 2018 update (reflecting data through July 27, 2018) is -1.208.

Of course, there are a variety of other measures and indices that are supposed to measure financial stress and other related issues, both from the Federal Reserve as well as from private sources.

Two other indices that I regularly monitor include the Chicago Fed National Financial Conditions Index (NFCI) as well as the Chicago Fed Adjusted National Financial Conditions Index (ANFCI).

Here are summary descriptions of each, as seen in FRED:

The National Financial Conditions Index (NFCI) measures risk, liquidity and leverage in money markets and debt and equity markets as well as in the traditional and “shadow” banking systems. Positive values of the NFCI indicate financial conditions that are tighter than average, while negative values indicate financial conditions that are looser than average.

The adjusted NFCI (ANFCI). This index isolates a component of financial conditions uncorrelated with economic conditions to provide an update on how financial conditions compare with current economic conditions.

For further information, please visit the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago’s web site:

http://www.chicagofed.org/webpages/publications/nfci/index.cfm

Below are the most recently updated charts of the NFCI and ANFCI, respectively.

The NFCI chart below was last updated on August 8, 2018 incorporating data from January 8, 1971 through August 3, 2018, on a weekly basis.  The August 3, 2018 value is -.84:

NFCI_8-8-18 -.84

Data Source: FRED, Federal Reserve Economic Data, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis; accessed August 8, 2018:

http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/NFCI

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The ANFCI chart below was last updated on August 8, 2018 incorporating data from January 8,1971 through August 3, 2018, on a weekly basis.  The August 3 value is -.60:

ANFCI_8-8-18 -.60

Data Source: FRED, Federal Reserve Economic Data, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis; accessed August 8, 2018:

http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/ANFCI

_________

I post various indicators and indices because I believe they should be carefully monitored.  However, as those familiar with this site are aware, I do not necessarily agree with what they depict or imply.

_____

The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 2857.70 as this post is written

Recession Probability Models – August 2018

There are a variety of economic models that are supposed to predict the probabilities of recession.

While I don’t agree with the methodologies employed or probabilities of impending economic weakness as depicted by the following two models, I think the results of these models should be monitored.

Please note that each of these models is updated regularly, and the results of these – as well as other recession models – can fluctuate significantly.

The first is the “Yield Curve as a Leading Indicator” from the New York Federal Reserve.  I wrote a post concerning this measure on March 1, 2010, titled “The Yield Curve as a Leading Indicator.”

Currently (last updated August 2, 2018 using data through July) this “Yield Curve” model shows a 13.5994% probability of a recession in the United States twelve months ahead.  For comparison purposes, it showed a 12.5063% probability through June, and a chart going back to 1960 is seen at the “Probability Of U.S. Recession Predicted by Treasury Spread.” (pdf)

The second model is from Marcelle Chauvet and Jeremy Piger.  This model is described on the St. Louis Federal Reserve site (FRED) as follows:

Smoothed recession probabilities for the United States are obtained from a dynamic-factor markov-switching model applied to four monthly coincident variables: non-farm payroll employment, the index of industrial production, real personal income excluding transfer payments, and real manufacturing and trade sales. This model was originally developed in Chauvet, M., “An Economic Characterization of Business Cycle Dynamics with Factor Structure and Regime Switching,” International Economic Review, 1998, 39, 969-996. (http://faculty.ucr.edu/~chauvet/ier.pdf)

Additional details and explanations can be seen on the “U.S. Recession Probabilities” page.

This model, last updated on August 1, 2018, currently shows a 1.70% probability using data through May.

Here is the FRED chart (last updated August 1, 2018):

RECPROUSM156N

Data Source:  Piger, Jeremy Max and Chauvet, Marcelle, Smoothed U.S. Recession Probabilities [RECPROUSM156N], retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, accessed August 4, 2018:

http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/RECPROUSM156N

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The two models featured above can be compared against measures seen in recent blog posts.  For instance, as seen in the July 12 post titled “The July 2018 Wall Street Journal Economic Forecast Survey“ economists surveyed averaged a 17.71% probability of a U.S. recession within the next 12 months.

_____

The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 2850.40 as this post is written