Gary Siegel

New orders for manufactured goods decreased 1.0% in May, after gaining a revised 1.8% in April, first reported as a 1.9% increase, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.

New York City business activity "contracted in back-to-back months for the first time since the Great Recession," although the current business conditions index increased to 45.4 in June from 37.2 in May, the Institute for Supply Management-New York's Report on Business index, released Tuesday, indicated.

Noting that waiting too long for a rate hike is as dangerous as acting too soon, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President and Chief Executive Officer Loretta J. Mester said Friday her support of the Federal Open Market Committee's decision to hold rates at its last meeting was one of "timing" rather than a change in her outlook.

According to the ISM's monthly report on business, the ISM index increased to 53.2 in June from 51.3 in May.

The Chicago Purchasing Managers' Business Barometer soared to 56.8 in June from 49.3 in May, the National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago said Thursday.

Pending home sales decreased 3.7% to an index reading of 110.8 in May, after a revised 3.9% gain to 115.0 in April, according to a report released Wednesday by the National Association of Realtors.

Texas service sector activity "picked up in June," according to business executives responding to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas' Texas Service Sector Outlook Survey, as the revenue index rose to 15.6 from 5.8.

Service sector activity "softened in June compared to the previous month," according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond service-sector activity survey, released Tuesday.

Manufacturing activity in the central Atlantic region "weakened in June," according to the monthly business activity survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, although the manufacturing index slipped to negative 7 in June from negative 1 in May.

The consumer confidence index increased to 98.0 in June from a revised 92.4 last month, The Conference Board reported Tuesday.

Texas factory activity, as measured by the production index, "declined again in June," according to the monthly Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, released Monday.

The federal government ran a $52.5 billion deficit in May, the Treasury Department reported Friday.

The University of Michigan's preliminary June consumer sentiment index reading was 94.3, compared to the final May 94.7, according to market sources.

Labor market conditions were "little changed in May, while momentum increased," as the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City Labor Market Conditions Indicators (LMCI) decreased to 0.056 in April from a revised 0.060 in April, first reported as 0.050, according to the Bank.

Lower gross domestic product growth and higher unemployment are predicted by participants in the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's June Livingston Survey, released Wednesday.

Consumer credit increased by $13.4 billion in April to $3.602 trillion, the Federal Reserve reported Tuesday.

Newly issued Treasury securities held in stripped form decreased about $153 million in May to a total of $215.712 billion, the Bureau of the Public Debt reported Monday.

With a "largely favorable" view of the economy, despite "recent signs of a slowdown in job creation [that] bear close watching" and inherent uncertainty, Federal Reserve Board Chair Janet Yellen said Monday, monetary policy is currently "generally appropriate," but hikes will be needed "gradually over time."

The Federal Reserve's Labor Market Conditions Index, a compilation of 19 labor market measures, fell to negative 4.8 in May from a revised negative 3.4 in April, first reported as negative 0.9.

The Conference Board's Employment Trends Index (ETI) declined to 126.81 in May from an upwardly revised 128.53 in April, and is up 0.7% from a year ago, the group announced Monday.