by Calculated Risk on 12/31/2014 08:34:00 AM

The DOL reported:

In the week ending December 27, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 298,000, an increase of 17,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 280,000 to 281,000. The 4-week moving average was 290,750, an increase of 250 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 290,250 to 290,500.

There were no special factors impacting this week's initial claims

The previous week was revised up slightly.

The following graph shows the 4-week moving average of weekly claims since January 2000.

Click on graph for larger image.


The dashed line on the graph is the current 4-week average. The four-week average of weekly unemployment claims increased slightly to 290,750.

This was higher than the consensus forecast of 286,000, and the level suggests few layoffs.

by Calculated Risk on 12/30/2014 09:02:00 PM

Wednesday:
• At 8:30 AM ET, the initial weekly unemployment claims report will be released. The consensus is for claims to increase to 286 thousand from 280 thousand.

• At 9:45 AM ET, Chicago Purchasing Managers Index for December. The consensus is for a reading of 59.0, down from 60.8 in November.

• At 10:00 AM ET, Pending Home Sales Index for November. The consensus is for a 0.5% increase in the index.

The Case-Shiller house price indexes for October were released earlier today. Zillow has started forecasting Case-Shiller a month early - now including the National Index - and I like to check the Zillow forecasts since they have been pretty close.

From Zillow: Nov. 2014 Case-Shiller Forecast: Home Price Changes Slowing, But Still Growing

The October S&P/Case-Shiller (SPCS) data released this morning showed more slowing in the housing market, with annual growth in national home prices falling to 4.6 percent. Annual appreciation in home values has been below 5 percent for the past two months, and we anticipate this trend to continue into the future. The 10- and 20-City Indices also saw annual growth rates decline in October; the 10-City index rose 4.4 percent, while the 20-City Index rose 4.5 percent – down from rates of 4.5 percent and 4.7 percent, respectively, in September.

Our forecast for November SPCS indicates that the slowing in home price gains will continue into November. Zillow predicts the national SPCS to rise 4.5 percent on an annual basis.

The non-seasonally adjusted (NSA) 20-City index fell 0.1 percent from September to October, and we expect it to decrease 0.2 percent in November. We also expect a monthly decline in the 10-City Composite Index next month, falling 0.2 percent from October to November (NSA).

All forecasts are shown in the table below. These forecasts are based on the October SPCS data release and the November 2014 Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), released Dec. 19. Officially, the SPCS Composite Home Price Indices for November will not be released until Tuesday, Jan. 27.

So the Case-Shiller index will probably show a lower year-over-year gain in November than in October.

Zillow November 2014 Case-Shiller Forecast
	Case-Shiller Composite 10		Case-Shiller Composite 20		Case-Shiller National
	NSA	SA	NSA	SA	NSA	SA
YoY	4.2%	4.2%	4.4%	4.4%	4.5%	4.5%
MoM	-0.2%	0.5%	-0.2%	0.5%	-0.2%	0.6%

by Calculated Risk on 12/30/2014 04:51:00 PM

Earlier I posted some questions for next year: Ten Economic Questions for 2015. I'll try to add some thoughts, and maybe some predictions for each question.

Here is a review of the Ten Economic Questions for 2014.

3) Unemployment Rate: The unemployment rate was at 5.8% in November, down 0.9 percentage points year-over-year.  Currently the FOMC is forecasting the unemployment rate will be in the 5.2% to 5.3% range next December.  What will the unemployment rate be in December 2015?

Forecasting the unemployment rate includes forecasts for economic and payroll growth, and also for changes in the participation rate. Note: The participation rate is the percent of the working age population (16 and over) that is in the labor force.

On participation: We can be pretty certain that the participation rate will decline over the next couple of decades based on demographic trends.  In 2014, I expected the participation rate to stabilize or decline slightly as the labor market improved - the long term down trend was offset by some people returning to the labor force.  It is possible that the participation rate could even increase a little in 2015 before resuming the downtrend.  If the participation rate increases a little (say to 63%) then the unemployment rate will be a little higher next December.

Here is a table of the participation rate and unemployment rate since 2008.

Unemployment and Participation Rate for December each Year
December of	Participation Rate	Change in Participation Rate (percentage points)	Unemployment Rate
2008	65.8%		7.3%
2009	64.6%	-1.2	9.9%
2010	64.3%	-0.3	9.4%
2011	64.0%	-0.3	8.5%
2012	63.6%	-0.4	7.9%
2013	62.8%	-0.8	6.7%
20141	62.8%	0.0	5.8%
1This is the November 2014 participation and unemployment rate.

Depending on the estimate for the participation rate and job growth (next question), it appears the unemployment rate will decline to close to 5% by December 2015.   My guess is based on the participation rate staying relatively steady in 2015 - before declining again over the next decade. If the participation rate increases a little, then I'd expect unemployment in the low-to-mid 5% range.

Here are the ten questions for 2015 and a few predictions:
• Question #2 for 2015: How many payroll jobs will be added in 2015?
• Question #3 for 2015: What will the unemployment rate be in December 2015?
• Question #4 for 2015: Will too much inflation be a concern in 2015?
• Question #5 for 2015: Will the Fed raise rates in 2015? If so, when?
• Question #6 for 2015: Will real wages increase in 2015?
• Question #7 for 2015: What about oil prices in 2015?
• Question #8 for 2015: How much will Residential Investment increase?
• Question #9 for 2015: What will happen with house prices in 2015?
• Question #10 for 2015: How much will housing inventory increase in 2015?

by Calculated Risk on 12/30/2014 04:09:00 PM

Earlier I posted some questions for next year: Ten Economic Questions for 2015. I'll try to add some thoughts, and maybe some predictions for each question.

Here is a review of the Ten Economic Questions for 2014.

4) Inflation: The inflation rate is still running well below the Fed's 2% target. Will the core inflation rate rise in 2015? Will too much inflation be a concern in 2015?

Every year some analysts (and clueless politicians) forecast runaway inflation.  And every year they have been wrong.  Someday inflation will be a concern - but not yet!

Although there are different measure for inflation (including some private measures) they all show that inflation is at or below the Fed's 2% inflation target.  I follow several measures of inflation, median CPI and trimmed-mean CPI from the Cleveland Fed.  Core PCE prices (monthly from the BEA) and core CPI (from the BLS).

Click on graph for larger image.

On a year-over-year basis, the median CPI rose 2.3%, the trimmed-mean CPI rose 1.8%, and the CPI less food and energy rose 1.7%. Core PCE is for October and increased 1.6% year-over-year

On a monthly basis, median CPI was at 1.8% annualized, trimmed-mean CPI was at 1.0% annualized, and core CPI increased 0.9% annualized.

Due to the slack in the labor market (elevated unemployment rate, part time workers for economic reasons),  and even with some real wage growth in 2015, I expect these measures of inflation will stay mostly at or below the Fed's target in 2015.  If the unemployment rate continues to decline - and wage growth picks up - maybe inflation will be an issue in 2016.

So currently I think core inflation (year-over-year) will increase in 2015, but too much inflation will not be a serious concern this year.

Here are the ten questions for 2015 and a few predictions:
• Question #2 for 2015: How many payroll jobs will be added in 2015?
• Question #3 for 2015: What will the unemployment rate be in December 2015?
• Question #4 for 2015: Will too much inflation be a concern in 2015?
• Question #5 for 2015: Will the Fed raise rates in 2015? If so, when?
• Question #6 for 2015: Will real wages increase in 2015?
• Question #7 for 2015: What about oil prices in 2015?
• Question #8 for 2015: How much will Residential Investment increase?
• Question #9 for 2015: What will happen with house prices in 2015?
• Question #10 for 2015: How much will housing inventory increase in 2015?

by Calculated Risk on 12/30/2014 02:47:00 PM

Earlier I posted some questions for next year: Ten Economic Questions for 2015. I'll try to add some thoughts, and maybe some predictions for each question.

Here is a review of the Ten Economic Questions for 2014.

5) Monetary Policy: The Fed completed QE3 in 2014, and now the question is will the Fed raise rates in 2015? If so, when? And by how much? The Fed Funds rate has been at 0 to 0.25% since December 2008.

For years I've made fun of those predicting an imminent Fed Funds rate increase.  Based on high unemployment and low inflation, I argued it would be a "long time" before the first rate hike.   Well, time flies!

As far as the first rate increase and timing, Tim Duy wrote a week ago Looking Backward to See the Future

My baseline scenario is that the Fed drops "considerable" entirely in January, retains "patient" in March, drops "patient" in April, and raise rates in June.

Of course the Fed will be data dependent. If the unemployment rate declines to 5.5% or so in the May report, and core inflation continues to move upwards towards 2%, then a June rate hike seems likely.
 
Note: It seems very likely the FOMC will drop "patient" from the FOMC statement the meeting before hiking rates (if "patient" is in the April statement, a rate hike in June is much less likely).

If the data is less convincing, then the FOMC will probably wait until the July or September meetings (I've seen a few analysts arguing the FOMC will wait until 2016, but my feeling is the Fed will hike rates in 2015).

The FOMC will not want to immediately reverse course, so the might wait a little longer than expected.  Right now my guess is the first rate hike will happen at either the June, July or September meetings.  I expect subsequent rate hikes to be gradual, and depending on the timing of the first rate hike, I expect rates to be close to 1% at the end of 2015.

The old saying on Wall Street with regards to rate hikes is "3 steps and a stumble".  I don't think there is an validity to the saying, but I expect to hear it on CNBC in 2015!

Here are the ten questions for 2015 and a few predictions:
• Question #2 for 2015: How many payroll jobs will be added in 2015?
• Question #3 for 2015: What will the unemployment rate be in December 2015?
• Question #4 for 2015: Will too much inflation be a concern in 2015?
• Question #5 for 2015: Will the Fed raise rates in 2015? If so, when?
• Question #6 for 2015: Will real wages increase in 2015?
• Question #7 for 2015: What about oil prices in 2015?
• Question #8 for 2015: How much will Residential Investment increase?
• Question #9 for 2015: What will happen with house prices in 2015?
• Question #10 for 2015: How much will housing inventory increase in 2015?

by Calculated Risk on 12/30/2014 11:23:00 AM

This morning, S&P reported that the National index increased 0.7% in October seasonally adjusted. However, it appears the seasonal adjustment has been distorted by the high level of distressed sales in recent years. Trulia's Jed Kolko wrote in August: "Let’s Improve, Not Ignore, Seasonal Adjustment of Housing Data"

The housing crisis substantially changed the seasonal pattern of housing activity: relative to conventional home sales, which peak in summer, distressed home sales are more evenly spread throughout the year and sell at a discount. As a result, in years when distressed sales constitute a larger share of overall sales, the seasonal swings in home prices get bigger while the seasonal swings in sales volumes get smaller.

Sharply changing seasonal patterns create problems for seasonal adjustment methods, which typically estimate seasonal adjustment factors by averaging several years’ worth of observed seasonal patterns. A sharp but ultimately temporary change in the seasonal pattern for housing activity affects seasonal adjustment factors more gradually and for more years than it should. Despite the recent normalizing of the housing market, seasonal adjustment factors are still based, in part, on patterns observed at the height of the foreclosure crisis, causing home price indices to be over-adjusted in some months and under-adjusted in others.

Kolko proposed a better seasonal adjustment:

This graph from Kolko shows the weighted seasonal adjustment (see Kolko's article for a description of his method). Kolko calculates that prices increased 0.2% on a weighted seasonal adjustment basis in October - as opposed to the 0.7% SA increase and 0.2% NSA decrease reported by Case-Shiller.

The "better" SA (green) shows prices are still increasing, but more slowly.

The expected slowdown in year-over-year price increases is ongoing. In November 2013, the Comp 20 index was up 13.8% year-over-year (YoY). Now the index is only up 4.5% YoY. This is the smallest YoY increase since October 2012 (the National index was up 10.9% YoY in October 2013, is now up 4.6% - also the slowest YoY increase since October 2012.

Looking forward, I expect the indexes to slow a little further on a YoY basis, however: 1) I don't expect the indexes to turn negative YoY (in 2015) , and 2) I think most of the slowdown on a YoY basis is now behind us. This slowdown in price increases was expected by several key analysts, and I think it is good news for housing and the economy.

In the earlier post, I graphed nominal house prices, but it is also important to look at prices in real terms (inflation adjusted).  Case-Shiller, CoreLogic and others report nominal house prices.  As an example, if a house price was $200,000 in January 2000, the price would be close to $278,000 today adjusted for inflation (39%).  That is why the second graph below is important - this shows "real" prices (adjusted for inflation).

Another point on real prices: In the Case-Shiller release this morning, the National Index was reported as being 9.8% below the bubble peak.   However, in real terms, the National index is still about 24% below the bubble peak.

Nominal House Prices

The first graph shows the monthly Case-Shiller National Index SA, the monthly Case-Shiller Composite 20 SA, and the CoreLogic House Price Indexes (through October) in nominal terms as reported.

In nominal terms, the Case-Shiller National index (SA) is back to March 2005 levels, and the Case-Shiller Composite 20 Index (SA) is back to October 2004 levels, and the CoreLogic index (NSA) is back to February 2005.

Real House Prices

The second graph shows the same three indexes in real terms (adjusted for inflation using CPI less Shelter). Note: some people use other inflation measures to adjust for real prices.

In real terms, the National index is back to November 2002 levels, the Composite 20 index is back to July 2002, and the CoreLogic index back to March 2003.

In real terms, house prices are back to early '00s levels.

Price-to-Rent

In October 2004, Fed economist John Krainer and researcher Chishen Wei wrote a Fed letter on price to rent ratios: House Prices and Fundamental Value. Kainer and Wei presented a price-to-rent ratio using the OFHEO house price index and the Owners' Equivalent Rent (OER) from the BLS.

Here is a similar graph using the Case-Shiller National, Composite 20 and CoreLogic House Price Indexes.

This graph shows the price to rent ratio (January 1998 = 1.0).

On a price-to-rent basis, the Case-Shiller National index is back to March 2003 levels, the Composite 20 index is back to October 2002 levels, and the CoreLogic index is back to May 2003.

In real terms, and as a price-to-rent ratio, prices are mostly back to early 2000 levels - and maybe moving a little sideways now.

by Calculated Risk on 12/30/2014 08:36:00 AM

S&P/Case-Shiller released the monthly Home Price Indices for October ("October" is a 3 month average of August, September and October prices).

This release includes prices for 20 individual cities, two composite indices (for 10 cities and 20 cities) and the monthly National index.

Note: Case-Shiller reports Not Seasonally Adjusted (NSA), I use the SA data for the graphs.

From S&P: S&P/Case-Shiller National Home Price Index Pace Eases While Eight Cities Show Faster Gains

Data released today for October 2014, shows that the pace of home prices across the country continues to decelerate although eight cities did see prices rise faster... Both the 10-City and 20-City Composites saw year-over-year declines in October compared to September. The 10-City Composite gained 4.4% year-over-year, down from 4.7% in September. The 20-City Composite gained 4.5% year-over-year, compared to 4.8% in September. The S&P/CaseShiller U.S. National Home Price Index, which covers all nine U.S. census divisions, recorded a 4.6% annual gain in October 2014 versus 4.8% in September.
...
The National and Composite Indices were both slightly negative in October. Both the 10 and 20-City Composites reported a slight downturn, -0.1%, while the National Index posted a -0.2% change for the month. San Francisco and Tampa led all cities in October with increases of 0.8%. Chicago and Cleveland offset those gains by reporting decreases of -1.0% and -0.7% respectively.

Click on graph for larger image.

The first graph shows the nominal seasonally adjusted Composite 10, Composite 20 and National indices (the Composite 20 was started in January 2000).

The Composite 10 index is off 18.0% from the peak, and up 0.7% in October (SA). The Composite 10 is up 24.1% from the post bubble low set in Jan 2012 (SA).

The Composite 20 index is off 17.0% from the peak, and up 0.8% (SA) in October. The Composite 20 is up 25.0% from the post-bubble low set in Jan 2012 (SA).

The National index is off 9.8% from the peak, and up 0.7% (SA) in October.  The National index is up 21.8% from the post-bubble low set in Dec 2012 (SA).

The second graph shows the Year over year change in all three indices.

The Composite 10 SA is up 4.4% compared to October 2013.

The Composite 20 SA is up 4.5% year-over-year..

The National index SA is up 4.6% year-over-year.

Prices increased (SA) in all 20 of the 20 Case-Shiller cities in October seasonally adjusted.  (Prices increased in 8 of the 20 cities NSA)  Prices in Las Vegas are off 42.3% from the peak, and prices in Denver and Dallas are at new highs (SA).

This was lower than the consensus forecast for a 4.8% YoY increase for the National index, and suggests a further slowdown in price increases. I'll have more on house prices later.

by Calculated Risk on 12/30/2014 07:01:00 AM

According to Black Knight's First Look report for November, the percent of loans delinquent increased 12% in November compared to October, and declined 6% year-over-year.

The percent of loans in the foreclosure process declined further in November and were down 35% over the last year.  Foreclosure inventory was at the lowest level since January 2008.

Black Knight reported the U.S. mortgage delinquency rate (loans 30 or more days past due, but not in foreclosure) was 6.08% in November, up from 5.44% in October. Some of the increase was seasonal (the delinquency rate usually increases in November).  The normal rate for delinquencies is around 4.5% to 5%.

The percent of loans in the foreclosure process declined to 1.63% in November from 1.69% in October.

The number of delinquent properties, but not in foreclosure, is down 329,000 properties year-over-year, and the number of properties in the foreclosure process is down 427,000 properties year-over-year.

Black Knight will release the complete mortgage monitor for November in early January.

Black Knight: Percent Loans Delinquent and in Foreclosure Process
	Nov 2014	Oct 2014	Nov 2013	Nov 2012
Delinquent	6.08%	5.44%	6.45%	7.03%
In Foreclosure	1.63%	1.69%	2.50%	3.61%
Number of properties:
Number of properties that are 30 or more, and less than 90 days past due, but not in foreclosure:	1,925,000	1,658,000	1,958,000	1,999,000
Number of properties that are 90 or more days delinquent, but not in foreclosure:	1,163,000	1,101,000	1,283,000	1,584,000
Number of properties in foreclosure pre-sale inventory:	829,000	858,000	1,256,000	1,767,000
Total Properties	3,917,000	3,617,000	4,497,000	5,350,000

by Calculated Risk on 12/29/2014 07:08:00 PM

Earlier I posted some questions for next year: Ten Economic Questions for 2015. I'll try to add some thoughts, and maybe some predictions for each question.

Here is a review of the Ten Economic Questions for 2014.

6) Real Wage Growth: Last month I listed a few economic "words of the year" for the last decade. I finished with: "2015: Wages (Just being hopeful - maybe 2015 will be the year that real wages start to increase)". Will real wages increase in 2015?

Jared Bernstein wrote an excellent article today on the labor market at the NY Times The Upshot: Signs of a Tightening Labor Market, but Still Room for Improvement. He mentioned wages:

For all the actual tightening in the 2014 job market, what is perhaps the most important indicator from the perspective of working families — wage growth — has hardly budged. Though commentators made a big deal out of the bump in pay from the last jobs report, the yearly trend in nominal hourly wage growth remains at about 2 percent, where it has been since 2010.

Bernstein is referring to “Average Hourly Earnings” from the Current Employment Statistics (CES) (aka "Establishment") monthly employment report, .

Click on graph for larger image.

The blue line shows the nominal year-over-year change in "Average Hourly Earnings" for all private employees.  As Bernstein noted, nominal wage growth has been running close to 2% since 2010.

The red line is real wage growth (adjusted using headline CPI).  Real wages increased during the crisis because CPI declined sharply.   CPI has been running under 2%, so there has been some real wage growth - and some of the recent increase in real wages is due to falling oil prices (CPI declined in November).

There are two quarterly sources for earnings data: 1) “Hourly Compensation,” from the BLS’s Productivity and Costs; and 2) the Employment Cost Index which includes wage/salary and benefit compensation. All three data series are different, and most of the focus recently has been the CES series (used in the graph above).


The second graph shows the year-over-year change using the quarterly wage data from the Employment Cost Index (data starts in 2001). Once again this shows nominal wages have increasing about 2% per year, and real wages have been mostly unchanged. In the future I'll post a graph including benefits (benefits generally have risen faster than wages).

For this post the key point is that nominal wages have been only increasing about 2% per year. As the labor market tightens, we should start seeing some wage pressure as companies have to compete more for employees. Whether real wages start to pickup in 2015 - or not until 2016 or later - is a key question. I expect to see some increase in both real and nominal wage increases this year. I doubt we will see a significant pickup, but maybe another 0.5 percentage points for both, year-over-year.

Here are the ten questions for 2015 and a few predictions:
• Question #2 for 2015: How many payroll jobs will be added in 2015?
• Question #3 for 2015: What will the unemployment rate be in December 2015?
• Question #4 for 2015: Will too much inflation be a concern in 2015?
• Question #5 for 2015: Will the Fed raise rates in 2015? If so, when?
• Question #6 for 2015: Will real wages increase in 2015?
• Question #7 for 2015: What about oil prices in 2015?
• Question #8 for 2015: How much will Residential Investment increase?
• Question #9 for 2015: What will happen with house prices in 2015?
• Question #10 for 2015: How much will housing inventory increase in 2015?

by Calculated Risk on 12/29/2014 01:49:00 PM

A few related articles on oil  ...

From Bloomberg: Oil Falls to 5-Year Low as Supply Glut Seen Lingering

Oil fell to the lowest level in more than five years amid speculation that a global supply glut that’s driven crude into a bear market will continue through the first half of 2015.
...
WTI for February delivery fell 96 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $53.77 a barrel at 12:25 p.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Currently WTI is at $53.21, and Brent futures are at $57.79.

From Bloomberg: Oil Rigs in U.S. Drop by 37 to Lowest Level Since April

Rigs targeting oil declined by 37 to 1,499 in the week ended Dec. 26, Baker Hughes Inc. (BHI) said on its website today. The number of oil rigs has slipped by 76 in three weeks. ... The number of rigs targeting U.S. oil is down from a record 1,609 following a $55-a-barrel drop in global prices since June, threatening to slow the shale-drilling boom that’s propelled domestic production to the highest in three decades.
...
While the U.S. rig count has dropped, domestic production continues to surge, with the yield from new wells in shale formations including North Dakota’s Bakken and Texas’s Eagle Ford projected to reach records next month, Energy Information Administration data show.

Although new exploration will slow sharply, I expect domestic producers to continue to produce at most existing wells at current prices.

And less exploration will lead to layoffs.  From the WSJ: Oil Jobs Squeezed as Prices Plummet

Tom Runiewicz, a U.S. industry economist at IHS Global Insight, forecasts companies providing support services to oil and gas companies could lose 40,000 jobs by the end of 2015, about 9% of the category’s total, if oil stays around $56 a barrel through the second quarter of next year. Equipment manufacturers could shed 5,000 to 6,000 jobs, or about 6% of total employment for such companies.

There will be winners and losers with the decline in oil prices, however, since the US is a large net importer of oil (despite the myth reported by some in the media), overall the decline in oil prices should be a positive for the economy.