• Financing rates at or near record lows. • The housing market is weak but may be seeing first signs of springtime revival. The Mortgage Bankers Association reported that its Mortgage Loan Application Index fell 3.3% w/w (+72.2% y/y) [...]
Introducing
Sandy Batten
in:Our Authors
Sandy Batten has more than 30 years of experience analyzing industrial economies and financial markets and a wide range of experience across the financial services sector, government, and academia. Before joining Haver Analytics, Sandy was a Vice President and Senior Economist at Citibank; Senior Credit Market Analyst at CDC Investment Management, Managing Director at Bear Stearns, and Executive Director at JPMorgan. In 2008, Sandy was named the most accurate US forecaster by the National Association for Business Economics. He is a member of the New York Forecasters Club, NABE, and the American Economic Association. Prior to his time in the financial services sector, Sandy was a Research Officer at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Senior Staff Economist on the President’s Council of Economic Advisors, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic Policy at the US Treasury, and Economist at the International Monetary Fund. Sandy has taught economics at St. Louis University, Denison University, and Muskingun College. He has published numerous peer-reviewed articles in a wide range of academic publications. He has a B.A. in economics from the University of Richmond and a M.A. and Ph.D. in economics from The Ohio State University.
Publications by Sandy Batten
Global| Apr 29 2020U.S. Mortgage Applications and Interest Rates Fall
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
- Global| Apr 28 2020
U.S. Petroleum Prices Collapse While Nat Gas Rises
• Crude oil prices collapsed last week but have rebounded recently. • Gasoline prices fall as drivers shelter at home. • Natural gas prices have been volatile. The spot price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil collapsed to $3.83 [...]
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
- Global| Apr 28 2020
U.S. Petroleum Prices Collapse While Nat Gas Rises
• Crude oil prices collapsed last week but have rebounded recently. • Gasoline prices fall as drivers shelter at home. • Natural gas prices have been volatile. The spot price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil collapsed to $3.83 [...]
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
- Global| Apr 15 2020
U.S. Business Inventories and Sales Decline in February
Total business inventories slipped an expected 0.1% (+1.1% y/y) during January following an unrevised 0.1% December gain. The anticipated figure is from the Informa Global Markets survey. Business sales increased 0.6% (+2.1% [...]
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
- Global| Apr 15 2020
Coronavirus Closings Plunge Empire State Manufacturing Index to Record Low
The Empire State Manufacturing Index of General Business Conditions collapsed to -78.2 in April from -21.5 in March. The April reading was the lowest on record, by far surpassing the previous low of -34.3 reached during the Great [...]
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
- Global| Apr 15 2020
U.S. Business Inventories and Sales Decline in February
Total business inventories fell 0.4% m/m (-0.1% y/y) in February, in line with expectations, following a downwardly revised 0.3% m/m decline in January. The anticipated figure is from the Informa Global Markets survey. Business sales [...]
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
- Global| Apr 15 2020
Coronavirus Closings Plunge Empire State Manufacturing Index to Record Low
The Empire State Manufacturing Index of General Business Conditions collapsed to -78.2 in April from -21.5 in March. The April reading was the lowest on record, by far surpassing the previous low of -34.3 reached during the Great [...]
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
- Global| Apr 01 2020
U.S. Mortgage Applications Rebound, Led by Refinancing
Led by a sharp increase in refinancing applications, the Mortgage Bankers Association's Mortgage Loan Application Index rebounded in the week ended March 27, rising 15.3% w/w (73.7% y/y) after having fallen 29.4% w/w in the previous [...]
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
- Global| Mar 31 2020
U.S. Chicago Business Barometer Fell in March
• • • The Chicago Purchasing Managers Business Barometer rebounded to 49.0 in February.................. The MNI Chicago Report is produced by MNI in partnership with ISM-Chicago. The survey covers a sample of over 200 purchasing [...]
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
- Global| Mar 31 2020
U.S. Chicago Business Barometer Fell in March
• Chicago PMI fell to 47.8 in March, the ninth consecutive month below 50 growth mark. • ISM-Adjusted measure calculated by Haver Analytics fell even more to 46.9. • Survey extended only to March 16; so it doesn't capture most of the [...]
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
- Global| Mar 25 2020
U.S. FHFA House Price Index Posts Modest Increase
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Price Index increased 0.6% during December......... The FHFA house price index is a weighted purchase-only index that measures average price changes in repeat sales of the same property. An [...]
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
- Global| Mar 25 2020
U.S. FHFA House Price Index Posts Modest Increase
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Price Index increased 0.3% m/m in January after an upwardly revised 0.7% m/m gain in December (initially 0.6%). Prices rose 5.2% in January from a year earlier, down from an upwardly revised [...]
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
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