In the week ending July 17, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 419,000, an increase of 51,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 8,000 from 360,000 to 368,000. The 4-week moving average was 385,250, an increase of 750 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up … [More]

Arizonans know there are amazing places to explore, communities to visit and memories to be made right in their own backyard. And last year proved it. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the Grand Canyon State still welcomed 32.1 million total overnight visitors who spent $15 billion here in 2020. Arizonans and people from other states made up the vast majority of those visitors … [More]

Midway through 2021, a new report and state-by-state job loss breakdown released by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) find that while leisure travel is starting to return, the hotel industry’s road to recovery from the pandemic is long and uneven, with urban markets disproportionately impacted. Industry projections have improved since January with the … [More]

As much of the country reopens nearly a year and a half since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S., midsize business leaders’ optimism about their industries and companies hit record highs, according to JPMorgan Chase’s 2021 Business Leaders Outlook Pulse survey released today. Nearly 9 in 10 business leaders (88%) are optimistic about their company’s … [More]

In the week ending July 10, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 360,000, a decrease of 26,000 from the previous week's revised level. This is the lowest level for initial claims since March 14, 2020 when it was 256,000. The previous week's level was revised up by 13,000 from 373,000 to 386,000. The 4-week moving average was 382,500, a decrease of … [More]

In June, 65% of home offers written by Redfin agents faced competition, down from a revised rate of 72.1% in May and a pandemic peak of 74.1% in April, according to a new report from Redfin, the technology-powered real estate brokerage. Still, that's higher than the 56.8% bidding-war rate Redfin saw in June 2020, when the housing market was starting to rebound from a … [More]

The NFIB Optimism Index increased 2.9 points in June to 102.5, the first time the Index exceeded 100 since November 2020. Seven of the 10 Index components improved and three declined. The NFIB Uncertainty Index increased four points to 83. “Small businesses optimism is rising as the economy opens up, yet a record number of employers continue to report that there … [More]

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.9 percent in June on a seasonally adjusted basis after rising 0.6 percent in May, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. This was the largest 1-month change since June 2008 when the index rose 1.0 percent. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 5.4 percent before seasonal … [More]

Starter home prices are growing almost seven times faster than renter incomes, making what was likely already the biggest challenge for first-time home buyers ― saving for a down payment ― even more difficult. But there is good news for today's first-time buyers: With mortgage rates near record lows, monthly payments can remain affordable even with a smaller down payment, and … [More]