KEY DATA: Retail Sales: +0.8%; Ex-Vehicles: +0.9%/ Import Prices: +0.6%; Nonfuel: +0.2%; Export Prices: +0.6%; Farm: +1.6%; Claims: -4,000

IN A NUTSHELL: “Strong consumer demand and higher prices, perfect (or not) together.”

WHAT IT MEANS: How good is the economy? Very. Retail sales rose strongly in May. Even if you remove vehicles or gasoline or any of the other categories that can be volatile or are heavily impacted by price changes, this was still a really good report. Indeed, the numbers were so good that even department store sales surged! Only two categories, furniture and sporting goods, were down. Furniture demand was strong in April, weak in May but decent over the year. As for sporting goods, sales have been soft all year. I guess kids just don’t play outside anymore. And most impressively, the increase in retail sales was robust despite soft online demand. That is not likely to continue.

On the inflation front, conditions are heating up as well. Import prices surged in May, led by a jump in energy costs. Excluding energy, the cost of imported products rose more moderately. Consumer goods prices are not rising sharply, but the increases over the year have been consistently accelerating and have turned positive after being negative for several years. Imported food prices also increased. This is important because food has been a stabilizing factor in the consumer inflation measures. On the export side, the agricultural sector has been able to push through a lot of price hikes this year. This is again a concern if countervailing tariffs hit this sector, as has been threatened.

That the labor market is tight is hardly in doubt and the decline in jobless claims reinforces the view that the unemployment rate is heading downward.

MARKETS AND FED POLICY IMPLICATIONS: The Fed raised the funds rate yesterday and made it clear they are going up more this year and next. But there is every reason to think the projections in yesterday’s report will be the lower, not the upper bound of the rate hikes. As I have noted many times, we are in the midst of a Great Experiment: Can the economy survive massive tax cuts and huge government spending increases when it is already growing solidly and the labor market is at or near full-employment? The concern is that inflation will accelerate sharply because growth could become too strong. Yes, as I like to say, there is no such thing as a free robust economy. Right now, few economists really have a good handle on how to forecast inflation. Wages are simply not behaving as most models expected. The extensive nature of global trade has helped keep down both wages and prices. But tariffs add to the possibility that inflation will be higher than expected. The economic data are great, but can the growth be sustained if price gains move well above the Fed’s 2% target, forcing the FOMC to hike the funds rate more than currently projected? I think that outcome has a higher probability than the one where inflation is restrained and the Fed raises rates moderately.

In a Nutshell: “…the labor market has continued to strengthen and economic activity has been rising at a solid rate.” 

Decision: Fed funds rate target range raised to 1.75% to 2.00%.

The Fed did what the Fed was expected to do, raise the federal funds rate by one-quarter percentage point. But that is not the whole story. The members indicated the FOMC would continue raising rates and we should expect to see two more increases this year, bringing the total number of moves to four and the increase to a total of one percentage point. And there will be a lot more over the next two years.

As for the economy, the Committee is really optimistic. Growth is solid, not moderate. Household spending is picking up as against moderating. And the unemployment rate is declining, rather than just low. Put that all together and you see that the Fed believes the economy is doing very well, which Chair Powell said in his press conference.

Given the positive view about the economy and the belief that inflation will run at, if not above, the Fed’s target of 2% for at least the next two years, the rate hike was logical. Looking at 2019 and 2020, the Committee expects the funds rate to top out somewhere in the 3.5% range. So there are a lot more moves to come.

Finally, the so-called “dot-plot”, which shows the individual forecasts, pointed to the unemployment rate starting to rise in 2020, even as inflation continues to accelerate. By 2020, the funds rate is projected to rise above what the Fed members consider to be the long-term or neutral rate. This time frame coincides with what many economists think could be the first likely start date for the next recession. Just something to keep in mind.

So, what are the takeaways from today’s Fed action, statement and the Chair’s press conference? This was a fairly hawkish report. Look for rates to rise consistently over the next two years, with the funds rate topping out at around 3.5%. Last, the Fed Chair will be holding press conferences after every meeting rather than every other meeting, so rate hikes at any meeting becomes more likely.

(The next FOMC meeting is July 31-August 1, 2018.)

KEY DATA: PPI: +0.5%; Over-Year: 3.1%; Ex-Food and Energy: +0.3%; Goods: 1%; Services: +0.3%

IN A NUTSHELL: “Energy matters and right now the surge in prices is driving up businesses costs and making the Fed’s decision to raise rates, if that happens, easy.”

WHAT IT MEANS: As the Fed finishes its meeting and decides what to do with interest rates, the data on inflation makes it clear that its target rate has largely been reached. Yesterday’s Consumer Price Index showed that inflation is rising and today’s Producer Price Index reinforced that view. Wholesale costs jumped in May led by a surge in energy prices. That should ease in the June report, but businesses are still paying a lot more this year for energy than they did last year. Even excluding energy, producer prices were up solidly. Indeed, if you look at the detailed chart of price changes by industry, there were few areas where prices actually fell. And the major reason that wholesale costs didn’t jump even more was that food prices were up minimally. Fish and shellfish prices were down sharply, though I haven’t seen that in the markets I frequent, and I eat fish all the time. As for my beloved bakery products, their prices rose moderately, though they were up more at the consumer level. Oh, well. There isn’t a great schism between goods and services inflation, at least when you remove energy. That indicates the inflationary pressures have become widespread. Looking into the future, there are similar warning signs as intermediate costs were up solidly, especially for processed products.

MARKETS AND FED POLICY IMPLICATIONS: The Federal Reserve likes to look at prices that exclude volatile components such as energy and food. The resulting index is called the “core” and that is the case whether they look at wholesale or consumer prices. It does that, in part, because large movements in food or energy can overstate the trend in inflation. That was the case in May. At the consumer level, the core is a better indicator of future inflation than the overall index. But the reality is that businesses and consumers pay food and energy costs and if you look at price changes over the year, you get a good picture of what is happening. In the business sector, costs are rising sharply, which I would expect the FOMC will take seriously as they make not only their decision on whether to raise rates now but over the next year or two. Expect the Fed to announce a rate hike later today. Whether the members will signal they are concerned about inflation is the real issue and that might be made clearer in either the statement, Chair Powell’s press conference or the charts on inflation, growth and interest rates. We will know soon enough.

KEY DATA: CPI: +0.2%; Over-Year: +2.8%, Ex-Food and Energy: +0.2%; Over-Year: +2.2%/ Real Hourly Wages: +0.1%; Over-Year: 0%/ NFIB: +3 points

IN A NUTSHELL: “Inflation is accelerating and eating into household spending power.”

WHAT IT MEANS: The Fed is meeting today, with inflation will be a major topic of discussion. The members have very good reason to raise rates. The Consumer Price Index rose moderately in April, though much of that came from a surge in energy costs. Removing the more volatile food and energy components, inflation was also up moderately. Food costs were flat, though they rose solidly in March. Indeed, that seems to have been the pattern over the past few months. One month, prices rise; the next month they go nowhere. That was true for medical commodities, apparel and transportation services. Shelter costs, though, just keep going up. Since April 2017, the cost of all goods and services was up sharply and that is what we need to watch, since that is what consumers actually buy.

If this economy is to grow solidly for an extended period, consumers will have to lead the way, but that looks doubtful. Hourly wages are rising, but when you factor in the cost of goods and services, they are going nowhere. Yes, nowhere. Real (inflation-adjusted) hourly wages, which is another way of saying spending power, were flat over the past year. Unless workers increased their hours worked, they had no increase in their ability to buy more. But even then, the rise in total spending power was modest. With savings levels near record lows, that does not bode well for future consumer spending.

Meanwhile, the small business sector has reached a state of euphoria. The National Federation of Independent Business’ rose to its second highest level in its 45-year history. Views on expansion, earnings and sales hit record highs. But there is a warning in the report for the Fed: Actual and planned price increases are soaring. It looks like small businesses feel that demand is strong enough that they finally have some real pricing power. That may bode well for earnings, but not for inflation.

MARKETS AND FED POLICY IMPLICATIONS: There were limited categories where pries increased in April, so, why should the monetary authorities worry? Simple. The month to month changes in consumer prices have been up and down lately, but the year-over-year changes have moved in a pretty clear pattern: Up. And when you add to that the actual and expected price increases of small businesses, it is hard to argue that inflation expectations are still “well anchored”, a favorite Fed phrase. The FOMC is likely to announce another rate hike tomorrow. But it is the press conference and the chart of projected economic growth, inflation and funds rates that should dominate the discussion about future Fed moves. I would be surprised if all of those variables don’t show higher levels than in the last report that came out in March. But the Fed could allow inflation run above trend for a while. Some members would not be uncomfortable with that given how long inflation has been below target. That is where the press conference comes in. There has been a lot of discussion about whether the Fed should change its approach to inflation, including whether the target it has set makes any sense. Hopefully, Chair Powell will shed some light on that, though Fed Chairs rarely are forthcoming. As for investors, the summit seems to have been largely a non-event for the markets as prices are not doing much. Hopefully, investors will now start focusing on economic fundamentals, at least until the next “crisis” hits.

KEY DATA: Jobs: +223,000, Private: 218,000; Revisions: +15,000; Unemployment Rate: 3.8% (down 0.1 percentage point); Wages (Over-Year): +2.7%/ ISM (Manufacturing): +1.4 points; Orders: +2.5 points/ Construction: +1.8%

IN A NUTSHELL: “Manufacturing is strong, construction is soaring and firms are hiring: What more is there to say?”

WHAT IT MEANS: Another Employment Friday, another good jobs report. Payroll gains in May were greater than expected and the revisions added even more jobs to the previous two months total. So this was a really good report. The job increases were across the board with nearly 68% of the private sector industries hiring more workers. That is just about as good as it gets. A decline in temporary help may be a signal that firms are moving part-timers to full-time status in order to fill open positions and retain workers. On the unemployment front, the rate declined to a level seen only once since December 1969. While the labor force barely increased, it is up sharply over the year, indicating that people are flocking back into the market. Strong wage gains are helping. Wages rose solidly over the month and over the year, the increase is starting to approach 3%, which would signal wage inflation is becoming an issue.

The ISM manufacturing report also was up more than expected and the details were all really good. Orders are soaring, backlogs are building and production and hiring are expanding to meet the growing demand. The only concern in the report was that a large percentage of the firms are paying more for their goods.

Construction activity jumped in April, powered by robust a residential construction segment. Nonresidential was up more moderately. The increase would have been greater if commercial activity hadn’t slowed. I suspect that will pick up as firms start using at least some of their tax breaks to fund expansion.

MARKETS AND FED POLICY IMPLICATIONS: The volatility in the employment report sometimes creates outsized numbers that are not supported by other data. Today, we got a strong employment report that was supported by the other data. The economy is in great shape and it is hard to find any weakness. But there is no such thing as a free strong economy: Inflation looks like it is finally starting to show up. Wage gains are rising, despite the fact that the hourly wage number in the report is a terrible measure of inflation. It’s a weighted average and it is actually possible that the average wage could fall even if every individual industry’s wage rose. That is the wonders of the math. So, looking at the weighted average tells us very little, though everyone seems to want to use it. That said, wage pressures are building. In addition, consumer price increases are accelerating and measures, such as the ISM price index, show that firms are paying more for their inputs. I point this out because while investors may be jubilant, the Fed is meeting in less than two weeks and the members may not be as exuberant. The monetary policymakers are facing an economy that is strong and supportive of the rising wage and price pressures we are seeing. Thus, expect another rate hike to be announced on June 13^th. I would be surprised and disappointed if, given the solid economic and inflation data, hints are not given that four rate increases this year are likely.

KEY DATA: Starts: -3.7%; 1-Family: +0.1%; Permits: -1.8%; 1-Family: +0.9%/ IP: +0.7%; Manufacturing: +0.5%

IN A NUTSHELL: “Manufacturing continues to expand solidly, but the housing sector seems to be flattening.”

WHAT IT MEANS: With both short and long-term interest rates on the rise, it is time to look at the interest sensitive sectors to see if they will be sensitive to a rise in rates. Housing is the sector always highlighted when the argument is made that rising rates would slow growth. So, what is happening? It is not clear. Housing starts did fall in April, but the decline came from a drop in the always-volatile multi-family segment. Construction of single-family units was essentially flat. Between April 2017 and April 2018, starts were up over 10% and for the first five months of this year compared to last year, they are up over 9%, so it is hard to say that the sector is not doing well. Looking across the nation, there were sharp declines in housing starts in all regions except the South. As for the future, permit requests were also down, again due to a drop in multi-family segment. But the level of permits continues to run above starts, so builders will likely be using those permits in the near future.

The manufacturing sector is in great shape. Industrial production jumped in April as the three major components, Manufacturing, utilities and mining posted solid gains. On a monthly basis, manufacturing output has been up, down and all around over the past six months and over the year, it is up only moderately. While vehicle assembly rates moderated and that led to a slowing in related sectors such as metals. But there was a solid increase in the production of all types of business equipment, led by a surge computer output. It looks like the hoped-for increase in investment spending is happening.   Rising prices are generating a large jump in energy production.

MARKETS AND FED POLICY IMPLICATIONS: How high can mortgage rates go without affecting home purchases and construction? Probably a lot higher than they are currently. In the 1980s, 30-year mortgage rates were around 10%, in the 1990s they were in the 8% range and in the 2000s the rate hovered around 6%, yet housing starts were about 25% higher in each of those periods than their current level. In other words, mortgage rates could move from the near 4.5% rate to 5.5% or 6% before we discern any measureable impact. A better indicator of housing starts is housing price appreciation. When prices rise, builders build, but when they fall, watch out. Of course, home prices are reflective of demand, which is driven by the condition of the economy and income, but we are talking about indicators, not explainers. Nevertheless, prices are up sharply so we should expect home construction to continue to increase, especially since economic growth should be solid over the next year. That is the point that investors should consider when they start to panic about rising interest rates. The Fed is tightening because the economy is solid and inflation is back to where it should be. Thus, short-term interest rates, which are still historically low, should be moving back to more normal levels. Longer-term rates are increasing because stronger growth is triggering the rise in inflation back to more normal levels, so long rates should be higher as well. The point is, “it’s the economy, stupid!” A strong economy means the economy, including the housing sector, can support inflation in 2s and mortgage rates around 6%. Historically low interest rates and inflation are not birthrights and until we stop believing that, we will continue to fear the normal. We shouldn’t.