"Over the year retail turnover is up 3.4 per cent. Looking forward we would expect a fall in retail sales in June on account of a particularly bad storm over much of the east coast, including Sydney, that would have disrupted retail activity in the first weekend of the month".
-Phil Odonaghoe, Deutsche Bank
The new orders for US manufactured goods declined 1.0% in May following a revised 1.8% advance during the previous month, being a slightly steeper decrease than the 0.8% consensus forecast. Moreover, there was a 1.9% drop on a yearly basis in total orders, while excluding transport there was a 3.4% annual loose. Meanwhile, there are some hints of a gradual expansion in conditions, but not enough to trigger a significant shift in sentiment towards the economy. Meanwhile, there was a recovery in energy-sector orders after the very steep drop occurred during the previous month, although total durable goods orders still went down 2.3% following a 3.2% gain the previous month. Although, there was a 1.6% annual rise in durable goods orders. Demand for mining and energy-related equipment slipped 5.8% after a 20.8% plunge in the prior month.
Overall, the data suggests stabilisation in the industrial sector with an advance in unfilled orders and lower inventories likely to support production during the next few months. Nevertheless, the rate of improvement still is relatively limited.
© Dukascopy Bank SA