Weekly Economic Perspectives

It was an atypically quiet week in US data given the Labor Day holiday. The non manufacturing ISM index rebounded strongly in August, with the headline jumping 1.8 points to 54.5, bucking consensus expectations of an incremental decline. The details were strong at first glance but a bit more mixed at a closer look. For instance, new orders improved 2.5 points to 57.5, but backlogs plunged 10.3 to 41.8. Inventories jumped, but only to be perceived as even more intensely “too high”.