Gary Siegel

The overall economy grew for the seventy-sixth straight time, while the manufacturing sector expanded for the thirty-third consecutive month, the Institute for Supply Management reported Thursday.

Construction spending increased 0.7% in August, the Commerce Department said Thursday, and is 13.7% above the August 2014 level.

About 5,280,200 online job postings appeared on leading Internet job boards in September, a decrease of 138,500 from August, the Conference Board reported Wednesday.

The Chicago Purchasing Managers’ Business Barometer dropped to 48.7 in September from 54.4 in August, the National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago said Wednesday.

The seasonally adjusted Milwaukee Report on Business slumped to 39.4 in September from 47.7 in August, the Institute for Supply Management-Milwaukee reported Wednesday.

The Midwest Economy Index slipped to negative 0.12 in July from an upwardly revised negative 0.11 in July, first reported as negative 0.12, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago said Monday.

Private-sector employment increased by 200,000 in September, on a seasonally adjusted basis, ADP reported Wednesday.

The University of Michigan's final September consumer sentiment index reading was 87.2, compared to the preliminary September 85.7, and the final August 91.9, according to market sources.

Manufacturing activity in the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City's region “declined at a similar pace as in previous months, while expectations for future activity dropped considerably,” according to the bank's monthly manufacturing survey, released Thursday.

Sales of new single-family homes climbed 5.7% to a 552,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate in August, according to data released by the Commerce Department Thursday.

U.S. durable goods orders slumped 2.0% in August, while excluding transportation orders were flat, the Commerce Department reported Thursday.

The Chicago Fed National Activity Index for August fell to negative 0.41 from a revised positive 0.51 reading in July, while the three-month moving average (CFNAI-MA3) dipped to 0.01 from a revised 0.02 in July, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago reported Thursday.

The region's non-manufacturing sector climbed in September, as the general business conditions index increased to 29.3 from 15.4 in August, this month's Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Report on Business indicates.

Service sector activity “moderated in September,” according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond service-sector activity survey, released Tuesday.

Manufacturing activity in the central Atlantic region “activity slowed in September,” according to the monthly business activity survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, as the manufacturing index slipped to negative 5 in September from zero in August.

The Federal Open Market Committee will raise the fed funds rate target this year when “things settle down,” Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Dennis Lockhart said Monday.

Existing home sales fell 4.8% to a seasonally adjusted 5.31 million-unit rate in August from a downwardly revised 5.58 million pace the previous month, the National Association of Realtors announced Monday.

The composite index of Leading Economic Indicators was up 0.1% in August following a flat reading in July, first reported as a 0.2% decline, the Conference Board reported Friday.

The region's manufacturing sector slowed in September, as the general business conditions index slumped to negative 6.0 from positive 8.3 in August, this month's Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Report on Business indicates.

Builders’ confidence in the market for new single-family homes was higher as the National Association of Home Builders' housing market index rose to 62 in September from 61 in August.