After climbing the previous two months, sales of existing homes declined in March. March existing home sales came in at a 4.190 million unit rate, down 4.3% from February and down 3.7% compared to the 4.350 million unit rate in March 2023.
Shipments of heating and cooling equipment continued to rebound in February, now up for the third consecutive month. HVAC equipment shipments totaled 1.727 million units, up 2.9% from January and up 3.7% from 1.665 million units in February 2023.
After contracting for sixteen consecutive months, economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in March. The March ISM Manufacturing Index came in at 50.3, up from 47.8 in February and up from 46.3 last March. This is the highest monthly reading since September 2022.
New orders for manufactured durable goods increased in February after sliding the previous two months. New orders increased to a $277.9 billion rate, up 1.4% from January and followed a 6.9% decline in January.
Shipments of HVAC equipment started off 2024 on a high note by seeing the first year-over-year increase since March 2022. Shipments totaled 1.678 million units, up 15.1% from December and up 2.7% from 1.634 million units in January 2023.
U.S. light vehicle sales totaled 1.248 million units, up 16.6% from January and up 9.6% from 1.139 million unit rate in February 2023. Sales have now increased, on a year-over-year basis, for nineteen consecutive months. This was the highest February sales total since 2020.
The Dodge Momentum Index, a leading indicator for construction spending, increased once again in January. The January Dodge Momentum Index came in at 184.1, up slightly from 183.9 in December. This is the highest DMI reading since July but is still below the 199.3 reading from last January. Compared to December, the improvement in institutional planning helped to overcome a slight decline in commercial planning. Slower growth in warehouse planning negatively impacted the commercial portion; while education and healthcare planning helped growth in the institutional side. With lending standards beginning to loosen and the Fed expected to begin cutting rates in the back half of the year, momentum should rebound for commercial activity.
After dropping slightly last week, spot iron ore resumed its sharp upward momentum, now up six out of the last seven weeks. Spot iron ore pricing ended the week at $135.45/mt, up from $130.05/mt a week ago.This is up 3.8% week-over-week and is now the highest price since June 2022. Iron ore is the best performing metal this year, up over 17% since the beginning of the year. Iron ore continues to rally over the last several months after China’s government unveiled a series of stimulus measures to boost its economy.
After sliding in the previous three months, U.S. consumer confidence rebounded slightly in November. The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index increased to 102.0, up from the downwardly revised 99.1 reading in October. The biggest issues that continue to weigh on consumers are inflation, geopolitical issues at home and abroad, and higher interest rates.
N.A. (Canada and US) tractor and combine shipments increased for the second consecutive month in October. Shipments totaled 30,162 units, up 24.1% from September but down 7.0% from 32,420 in October 2022. Shipments, on a year-over-year basis, have now declined for five consecutive months and in twenty of the last twenty-one months. Looking on a year-over-year basis, to smooth seasonality, shipments of both tractors and combines declined, sliding 4.3% and 43.9%, respectively.
