Industrial output fell again last month, slumping 0.2%, the Federal Reserve reports. Output has retreated in seven of the past eight months, marking the longest run of red ink since 2008 for the monthly comparisons of the nation’s industrial activity. The numbers don’t look much better for the year-over-year trend. Production is still rising in annual terms, but at the weakest rate since Dec. 2009, when output declined relative to the year-earlier level.
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Is the Federal Reserve having second thoughts about tightening monetary policy? Weak economic data in recent weeks certainly provide excuses to delay any plans to start raising interest rates. Comments from Fed officials over the past week have dispensed mixed signals on the outlook, although some policymakers say the reported divisions on monetary policy opinion are exaggerated, according to Reuters. Maybe, but the latest numbers on the US monetary base (M0) and the effective Fed funds rate suggest that the central bank is pulling back a bit from what appeared to be a clear shift towards tighter policy posture in recent months.
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● Bloomberg’s US Consumer Comfort Index up For 4th week | Bloomberg
● Philly & NY Fed surveys show ongoing contraction in mfg in Oct | MarketWatch
● Fed policymakers downplay rate-hike divisions | Reuters
● US Federal debt at 7-year low | Time
● US debt ceiling deadline looms on Nov 3 | The Hill
● Eurozone inflation confirmed at negative rate in Sep | RTT
● Eurozone trade surplus falls more than expected in Aug | RTT