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Last Week in Economic News: December 7 – December 11, 2020

December 11, 2020

NFIB Small Business Optimism Index

Small Business Operations Persist in November

  • A majority of small businesses continued to invest particularly in new equipment.
  • More small businesses increased their compensation or plan to do so in the coming months.
  • Over half of small businesses hired or tried to hire workers.

(About the NFIB Small Business Optimism Index: The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index provides an insight into small businesses’ sentiment and economic outlook on labor markets, capital spending, sales, etc.) 

JOLTS

Jobs Remain Open Throughout October

  • Nearly 7 million jobs were open in October with the private sector alone adding 155,000 positions.
  • Job openings increased across all geographic regions while hires increased across all regions other than the West.

(About the JOLTS Report: The JOLTS Report provides a snapshot of labor demand. It reports the amount of job openings, hires, and voluntary/involuntary separations.)

Coming Up:

Retail Sales

When: Wednesday, December 16, 2020

About Retail Sales: Retail sales are a measure of purchases consumers made in the retail and food services industries. This report provides a perspective on the health of the economy as more than two-thirds of the economy is fueled by consumer spending.

FOMC Meeting

When: Wednesday, December 16, 2020

About the FOMC: The FOMC sets appropriate monetary policy by influencing interest rates to achieve their Congressional dual mandate of stable prices and maximum employment.