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Fed Warns Inflation Has Arrived: Philadelphia, New York Fed Prices Paid Soar

February 15, 2018

Fed Warns Inflation Has Arrived: Philadelphia, New York Fed Prices Paid Soar

Just in case the economic data appeared to be coming in as too hot in recent days, today’s two key regional Fed manufacturing indicators sent conflicting signals, with the New York Fed survey sliding from 17.70 to 13.1, and missing expectations of 17.50, while the Philadelphia Fed rose from 22.2 to 25.8, beating exp. of a dip to 21.6

The commentary from both regional Feds was optimistic, although NY conceded a slowdown in January:

Business activity continued to expand in New York State, according to firms responding to the February 2018 Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index fell five points to 13.1, suggesting a somewhat slower pace of growth than in January.

The New York internals, however, were good, especially when it comes to labor: number of employees rose to 10.9 vs 3.8, while work hours rose to 4.6 vs 0.8. Meanwhile, inventory fell to 4.9 vs 13.8. Unlike current conditions, optimism rose with six-month general business conditions up to 50.5 vs 48.6. A potential bottleneck was noted in future delivery times at a record high in Feb, up from 10.9 to 15.3

The Philly Fed meanwhile was stronger across the board:

Results from the Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey suggest that the region’s manufacturing sector continues to expand in February. The indexes for general activity, new orders, and employment were all positive this month and increased from their readings last month. Price increases for inputs were more widespread this month, according to the respondents. The survey’s future indexes, reflecting expectations for the next six months, suggest continued optimism.

Here, too, the internals were strong:

  • New orders rose to 24.5 vs 10.1
  • Employment rose to 25.2 vs 16.8
  • Unfilled orders rose to 14.5 vs -1.8
  • Shipments fell to 15.5 vs 30.3
  • Delivery time fell to 4.5 vs 6.1

There were some declines:

  • Inventories fell to -0.9 vs 9.4
  • Prices received fell to 23.9 vs 25.1
  • Average workweek fell to 13.7 vs 16.7

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

My letter to the WSJ re: Inflation is not indicative of an expanding economy

February 22, 2016

My letter to the WSJ re: Inflation is not indicative of an expanding economy

Re: US Consumer Prices Flat in January, but Offer Glimmer of Inflation

Dear Sirs:
This quote from Ms. Davidson’s article perfectly illustrates the fallacy that higher prices are desirable:

”Broad-based price growth is signalling that the wage and price pressures are building, an indication that the economy is expanding at a solid pace and that recessionary concerns are overdone,” PNC economist Gus Faucher said.

Higher prices are the result of a combination of two factors, both of which are undesirable–lower output or an increase in the money supply which causes an increase in spending. The following simple formula of Professor George Reisman can be found on page 505 of his magnum opus Capitalism: A Treatise on Economics.

P = Dc/Sc

P is the general level of consumers’ goods prices, in the sense of the weighted average of the prices at which consumers’ goods are actually sold. Dc is the aggregate demand for consumers’ goods. as manifested in a definite total expenditure of money to buy consumers’ goods, and Sc is the aggregate supply of consumers’ goods, as manifested in a definite quantity of consumers’ goods produced and sold.

As further explained by Professor Reisman, “An expanding quantity of money operates to raise the general price level by virtue of raising aggregate demand relative to aggregate supply.”

In other words, the Federal Reserve Bank’s policy of printing more money causes aggregate demand to rise, but the rise in prices does not mean that more goods and services are being produced. It most probably means that more money is chasing the same or even smaller quantity of goods. In fact an increase in the quantity of money causes dislocations and disequilibrium in the structure of production, which causes the supply of consumers’ goods to fall.

Therefore, an increase in prices, which is commonly called “inflation”, is nothing to be desired by the general public.

Patrick Barron

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