ACC Releases Weekly Chemistry And Economic Trends

The running tab of positive indicators from the American Chemistry Council (ACC) for the macroeconomic status was 17 out of 20 this week. Thus, the ACC  continues to post a green banner. For the business of chemistry, the indicators bring to mind a green banner for basic and specialty chemicals.

Consumer Prices ▲0.1%; ▲1.7% Y/Y
Existing Home Sales ▲2.4%; ▼1.7% Y/Y
New Home Sales ▲0.2%; ▲17.0% Y/Y
Leading Economic Indicators ▲0.8%; ▲6.3% Y/Y
Oil ▲$86.83 (Thursday)
Natural Gas ▼$3.60 (Thursday)
Railcar Loadings ▼743 from a week ago; ▲0.3% Y/Y (13-week moving average)
US CPRI ▲0.6%; ▲2.4% Y/Y
Global CPRI ▲0.1%; ▲3.2% Y/Y
 
The economic reports this week were few but mostly positive. While existing home sales rebounded, sales of new homes only budged from a downwardly revised pace the month before. The consumer price report still shows no evidence of broad-based inflation. Energy prices were down for the third month in a row but, prices for food and other goods were higher.
 
The Conference Board reported that its index of Leading Economic Indicators (the LEI) rose in September, following flat growth in August. Among the ten components of the LEI, the financial components, along with initial claims for unemployment insurance and new manufacturing orders, made the largest positive contributions this month. Overall, the report suggests continued moderate growth through the end of the year.

Turning to chemistry, U.S. production increased during last month. Chemical output grew in all regions. The railcar loadings, however, suggest some softness in recent activity. At the global level, production rose in September but only just barely. Comparisons to the year prior, however, have been solid. On that basis, production gains occurred in all regions except Central & Eastern Europe.

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