The latest report released by The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics states that inflation in the month of April 2022 is up to 8.3%. Meaning that goods and services were 8.3% more expensive in April 2022 than in April 2021. This year’s rate almost doubled the rate of April 2021 when it was 4.2%. Also,...Read More
Cement sales reached 1,297.4 thousand 94-pound sacks in April 2022, while production reached 705.5 94-pound sacks. When compared to March 2022 sales decreased by 59.2 thousand units or 7.7%. When compared to April 2021, sales increased by 70.6 thousand units or 11.1%. Meanwhile, when compared to March 2022 production decreased by 174.6 thousand units or...Read More
The Economic Activity Index (EAI) is a measure of the island economic activity calculated by the Economic Development Bank of Puerto Rico. It is based of four macroeconomic indicators, Total Non-Farm Payroll, Electric Power Generation, Gas Consumption and Cement Sales. Altogether these indicators closely model trends in the islands production, because of this, changes in...Read More
New car unit sales for the month of April 2022 totaled 10,833, only 19 units more (0.2%) compared to April 2021. This slight increase comes after falling 4.4% in March due to inventory challenges. Compared to April 2019, sales are up 47.4%. In the first four months of the year, sales are 0.9% above the...Read More
Inflation in the United States exceeds expectations and increases the pressure on the Fed for new increases in the interest rate. Consumer prices rose 0.3% in April compared to March and an accumulating rise of 8.3% compared to April 2021. However, the data for April was above the 0.2% expected by the market for the...Read More
The Bureau of Labor Statistics published last week new reports for wages nationwide and in Puerto Rico. Average hourly wages for 2021 were $10.93hr, an increase of 2.9% compared to the previous year. Total Nonfarm Payroll also increased to 843,810 wage workers according to the BLS. When analyzed by occupation, those in Life, Physical, and...Read More
In Puerto Rico, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) stood at 124.581 in March 2022, an increase of 5.1% compared to March 2021. This is the largest year over year increase seen in the CPI since May 2008, when it increased by 4.8%. This is the 21st consecutive month with an increase relative to the previous...Read More
The US economy shrank at a 1.4% annual rate last quarter despite solid spending by consumers and businesses. This is the first contraction since the early days of the pandemic. This is also the first advance estimate so we will likely have a revised number in the following weeks. Source: BEA The expectation for...Read More
With the objective to contain inflation, the United States Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 0.5 points, leaving them between 0.75% and 1%. It is the second increase this year, they had already raised rates 25 basis points in March, and this is the largest increase in 22 years. The challenge for the Federal Reserve...Read More
Nothing has emphasized more the fragility of the global economy more than the pandemic. And while inflation has been the top subject in many of the reporting, we need to pay attention to the fact that the US relies heavily on the manufacturing in China for their goods in the US and many portions of...Read More
