greenbooks · April 29, 2008
Greenbook/Tealbook
Prefatory Note
The attached document represents the most complete and accurate version available
based on original files from the FOMC Secretariat at the Board of Governors of the
Federal Reserve System.
Please note that some material may have been redacted from this document if that
material was received on a confidential basis. Redacted material is indicated by
occasional gaps in the text or by gray boxes around non-text content. All redacted
passages are exempt from disclosure under applicable provisions of the Freedom of
Information Act.
Content last modified 03/07/2014.
Confidential (FR) Class III FOMC
April 25, 2008
CURRENT ECONOMIC
AND FINANCIAL CONDITIONS
Supplemental Notes
Prepared for the Federal Open Market Committee
by the staff of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
Contents
The Domestic Nonfinancial Economy ......................................................1
Consumer Sentiment....................................................................................1
Sales of New Homes....................................................................................1
Shipments and Orders for Nondefense Capital Goods ................................2
Tables and Charts
Reuters/University of Michigan Survey of Consumers ...............................4
Private Housing Activity..............................................................................5
Indicators of Single-Family Housing...........................................................6
Orders and Shipments of Nondefense Capital Goods..................................7
The Domestic Financial Economy ...........................................................3
Errata for Part 2 of the Greenbook.....................................................3
Tables
Commercial Bank Credit .............................................................................8
Selected Financial Market Quotations .........................................................9
ii
Supplemental Notes
The Domestic Nonfinancial Economy
Consumer Sentiment
After having declined just a touch to 69.5 in March, the Reuters/University of Michigan
index of consumer sentiment plunged to 62.6 in April. The decrease was slightly larger
than had been reported in the preliminary estimate released in the middle of the month,
implying that sentiment fell a bit further in the second half of the month. Both the
“current conditions” and the “expected conditions” components of the overall index
decreased significantly between March and April. Among those items not included in the
overall sentiment index, consumers’ expectations about the change in unemployment
over the next twelve months worsened considerably in April, and consumers’ appraisals
of buying conditions for cars also softened. However, consumers’ appraisals of buying
conditions for houses strengthened in April, largely because of increases in the number of
households noting that prices and interest rates were low.
Since July, the level of sentiment has fallen precipitously; these declines reflect
heightened concerns about the economy that can only partially be explained by the usual
influences on sentiment, including inflation, the stock market, and employment
conditions. The index from the Reuters/Michigan survey now stands a touch below the
nadir reached during the 1990-1991 recession.
Among households, the median of expected inflation over the next twelve months rose
1/2 percentage point to 4.8 percent in April, and the median of expected inflation over the
next five to ten years rose to 3.2 percent, the highest level since the summer of 2006.
Sales of New Homes
New home sales continued to decline in March. The number of new-home sales
agreements sank 8½ percent in March to an annual rate of 526,000 units; sales in
February were revised down a touch. For the first quarter as a whole, sales came in at an
average annual rate of 570,000 units, down 13 percent from the preceding quarter and
33 percent below their year-earlier level. Inventories of new homes for sale moved down
another 1 percent in March and are now 20 percent below their peak in the summer of
2006. Even so, these inventories represented about 10¾ months’ supply at March’s
slower sales pace—the highest reading since 1981.
The constant-quality price index for new homes—which controls for changes in readily
measurable attributes such as home size and the geographic composition of sales—fell at
-1-
-2-
an annual rate of 9¾ percent in the first quarter, a somewhat larger drop than the
5 percent rate of decline recorded in the fourth quarter.
Shipments and Orders for Nondefense Capital Goods
Shipments of nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft increased 1.2 percent in March
after having declined in the preceding two months; new orders, which also fell in January
and February, were flat and point to weaker shipments in the near term. Within the hightech category, both orders and shipments of computers and peripherals posted solid gains
in March and were revised up in February. However, although shipments of
communications equipment stepped up in March, the rise reversed only a part of the
declines posted in January and February, while orders dropped more than 3 percent.
Outside of the high-tech sector, shipments increased somewhat last month but orders only
edged up after having plunged in February.
The three-month moving average of the staff’s constructed series on real adjusted durable
goods orders was down 1 percent in March. This series—which strips out nondefense
aircraft, defense capital goods, and industries for which reported orders actually equal
shipments—is one of the staff’s indicators of near-term industrial production.
-3-
The Domestic Financial Economy
Errata for Part 2 of the Greenbook:
Page III-17
The sentence that reads:
Indeed, the net fractions of banks tightening lending standards reached or
surpassed historical highs for all loan categories in the survey.
should read:
Indeed, the net fractions of domestic banks tightening lending standards were
close to, or surpassed, historical highs for nearly all loan categories in the survey.
Page III-A-1
The sentence that reads:
In the April survey, domestic and foreign institutions reported having further
tightened their lending standards and terms on all loan categories over the past
three months, with the net fractions of banks reporting tighter lending standards
now being at, or above, historical highs for all loan categories in the survey.
should read:
In the April survey, domestic and foreign institutions reported having further
tightened their lending standards and terms on all loan categories over the past
three months, with the net fractions of domestic banks reporting tighter lending
standards now close to, or above, historical highs for nearly all loan categories in
the survey.
-4-
April 25, 2008
Reuters/University of Michigan Survey of Consumers
Indexes of consumer sentiment
(Not seasonally adjusted)
2007
2008
Oct.
Nov.
Dec.
Jan.
Feb.
Mar. Apr.P
Composite of current and expected conditions1
Current conditions1
Expected conditions1
83.4 80.9
97.9 97.6
74.1 70.1
76.1
91.5
66.2
75.5
91.0
65.6
78.4
94.4
68.1
70.8
83.8
62.4
69.5
84.2
60.1
63.2
78.4
53.4
62.6
77.0
53.3
Personal financial situation
Now compared with 12 months ago2
Expected in 12 months2
109
119
111
119
101
115
98
112
98
116
94
112
93
112
87
97
86
100
82
96
78
84
73
76
68
81
68
88
54
83
46
81
42
72
40
71
Appraisal of buying conditions
Cars
Large household appliances2
Houses
139
144
123
128
142
131
117
136
122
117
137
128
119
146
124
119
123
140
114
124
129
112
115
135
110
112
136
Expected unemployment change - next 12 months
127
130
128
139
141
141
148
155
154
Prob. household will lose a job - next 5 years
21
21
19
23
21
24
22
24
23
Expected inflation - next 12 months
Mean
Median
4.0
3.1
3.7
3.1
4.3
3.4
4.4
3.4
4.0
3.4
3.9
3.6
4.6
4.3
5.6
4.8
5.7
4.8
Expected inflation - next 5 to 10 years
Mean
Median
3.4
2.9
3.1
2.8
3.4
2.9
3.5
3.1
3.4
3.0
3.4
3.0
3.2
2.9
3.4
3.1
3.5
3.2
Category
Sept.
Expected business conditions
Next 12 months2
Next 5 years2
Apr.F
Note. Figures on financial, business, and buying conditions are the percent reporting ’good times’ (or
’better’) minus the percent reporting ’bad times’ (or ’worse’), plus 100. Expected change in unemployment
is the fraction expecting unemployment to rise minus the fraction expecting unemployment to fall, plus 100.
P Preliminary.
F Final.
1. Feb. 1966 = 100.
2. Indicates the question is one of the five equally-weighted components of the index of sentiment.
Consumer sentiment
Expected inflation
1966 = 100
130
1985 = 100
180
160
Percent
5
5
120
4
Reuters/Michigan (right scale)
140
4
Median, 5 to 10 years ahead
110
Apr.
120
100
100
90
80
80
Mar.
Apr.
60
Conference Board (left scale)
40
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
3
3
2
2
Median, 12 months ahead
1
1
70
60
0
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
0
-5-
Private Housing Activity
(Millions of units, seasonally adjusted; annual rate except as noted)
2007
2008
Sector
All units
Starts
Permits
Single-family units
Starts
Permits
Adjusted permits1
Permit backlog2
New homes
Sales
Months’ supply3
Existing homes
Sales
Months’ supply3
Multifamily units
Starts
Permits
Permit backlog2
Mobile homes
Shipments
Condos and co-ops
Existing home sales
2007
Q3
Q4
Q1
Jan.
Feb.
Mar.
1.36
1.38
1.30
1.32
1.15
1.14
1.04
.99
1.08
1.06
1.08
.98
.95
.93
1.05
.97
.99
.109
.99
.94
.97
.114
.83
.76
.78
.109
.72
.65
.67
.098
.77
.68
.70
.110
.72
.65
.67
.109
.68
.62
.65
.098
.78
8.33
.73
8.79
.66
9.25
.57
10.03
.61
9.53
.58
9.87
.53
10.68
4.94
8.67
4.76
9.15
4.39
9.96
4.39
10.18
4.35
10.74
4.47
9.77
4.35
10.02
.309
.407
.075
.310
.384
.075
.325
.377
.075
.313
.342
.070
.317
.380
.077
.354
.338
.073
.267
.307
.070
.096
.096
.093
.092
.094
.713
.701
.608
.540
.560
n.a.
.560
n.a.
.580
1. Adjusted permits equal permit issuance plus total starts outside of permit-issuing areas.
2. Number outstanding at end of period. Excludes permits that have expired or have been canceled,
abandoned, or revoked. Not at an annual rate.
3. At current sales rate; expressed as the ratio of seasonally adjusted inventories to seasonally adjusted
sales. Quarterly and annual figures are averages of monthly figures.
n.a. Not available.
Private Housing Starts and Permits
(Seasonally adjusted annual rate)
Millions of units
Millions of units
1.0
2.0
1.8
.9
Single-family starts (right scale)
1.6
.8
1.4
.7
1.2
.6
Single-family adjusted permits (right scale)
1.0
.5
.8
Mar.
.4
.6
.3
.4
Mar.
Multifamily starts (left scale)
.2
.1
.2
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
Note. Adjusted permits equal permit issuance plus total starts outside of permit-issuing areas.
2007
2008
.0
-6-
Indicators of Single-Family Housing
Existing Single-Family Home Sales
New Single-Family Home Sales
lndex(2001=100)
140
_
15
130
1.3
6.0
120
5.5
Millions of units
(annual rate)
Content partially redacted.
Millions of units
_ (annual rate)
65
1.1
110
0.9
100
5.0
90
4.5
80
0.7
0.5
Note:
Source. National Association of Realtors.
Source.
for sales agreements, Census Bureau
Content partially redacted.
New Home Sales
Months' Supply
Mortgage Rates
Months
Percent
11
30-year jumbo FRM
30-year conforming FRM
1-year conforming ARM
10
9
Months' supply (right scale)
8
8
7
7
6
6
5
5
4
3
4
2
Note.
. Months'
supply is calculated using the 3-month moving average of sales.
Source.
for months' supply, Census Bureau.
Note. The Apr. readings are for data through Apr. 23, 2008.
Source. Conforming rates are from Freddie Mac. The
jumbo rate is the sum of the 30-year conforming FRM rate
and the jumbo conforming spread from bankrate.com.
Prices of Existing Homes
40
9
Price of New Homes
Percent change, annual rate
Quarterly OFHEO purchase-only index
Monthly OFHEO purchase-only index
Case-Shiller 10-city price index
40
20
Percent change from preceding period, annual rate
20
Constant quality index
30
15
15
20
20
10
10
10
10
5
30
5
0
0
-10
-10
-5
-20
-20
-10
Note. The Case-Shiller and monthly OFHEO indexes are
3-month percent changes.
Source. For purchase-only indexes, OFHEO; for Case-Shiller,
Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
-5
-10
Source. Census Bureau.
-7-
Orders and Shipments of Nondefense Capital Goods
(Percent change; seasonally adjusted current dollars)
2007
Category
2008
Q4
Q1
Jan.
Annual rate
Feb.
Mar.
Monthly rate
Shipments
Excluding aircraft
Computers and peripherals
Communications equipment
All other categories
2.8
4.9
36.6
-16.9
4.4
-.3
.2
1.2
-5.6
.7
1.6
-.4
-1.3
-4.9
.2
-3.9
-1.6
-2.2
-.5
-1.6
.8
1.2
3.1
.7
1.0
Orders
Excluding aircraft
Computers and peripherals
Communications equipment
All other categories
6.6
-1.7
8.2
-42.1
2.5
-9.7
4.1
1.6
-.3
4.8
-7.7
-1.0
-13.2
-13.7
1.7
-.3
-2.0
11.3
7.9
-4.1
1.5
.0
1.6
-3.3
.2
Memo:
Shipments of complete aircraft1
46.7
n.a.
53.9
48.7
n.a.
1. From Census Bureau, Current Industrial Reports; billions of dollars, annual rate.
n.a. Not available.
Communications Equipment
Non-High-Tech,
Nontransportation Equipment
Billions of chained (2000) dollars, ratio scale
20
17
14
Shipments
Orders
20
17
14
11
11
8
8
58
Billions of chained (2000) dollars, ratio scale
58
Shipments
Orders
52
52
47
47
Mar.
Mar.
5
2
42
42
37
37
5
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Note. Shipments and orders are deflated by a price index
that is derived from the BEA’s quality-adjusted price indexes
and uses the PPI for communications equipment for
monthly interpolation.
2
32
Computers and Peripherals
220
190
2000 = 100
Mar.
22
19
170
17
150
15
130
13
110
11
90
9
70
32
Medium and Heavy Trucks
Billions of chained (2000) dollars
Industrial production (left scale)
Real M3 shipments (right scale)
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Note. Shipments and orders are deflated by the staff
price indexes for the individual equipment types included
in this category. Indexes are derived from the BEA’s
quality-adjusted price indexes.
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Note. Ratio scales. Shipments are deflated by the staff
price index for computers and peripheral equipment, which
is derived from the BEA’s quality-adjusted price indexes.
7
1240
1040
900
Thousands of units, ratio scale
Sales of class 4-8 trucks
Net new orders of class 5-8 trucks
1240
1040
900
760
760
620
620
480
480
340
Mar. 340
200
200
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Note. Annual rate, FRB seasonals.
Source. For sales, Ward’s Communications; for orders, ACT Research.
-8-
Commercial Bank Credit
(Percent change, annual rate, except as noted; seasonally adjusted)
Type of credit
Total
Level1
Apr. 2008e
H1
2007
Q3
2007
Q4
2007
Q1
2008
Mar.
2008
Apr.
2008e
11.1
12.4
9.5
6.7
13.4
-6.4
8,978
Loans2
Total
To businesses
Commercial and industrial
Commercial real estate
11.2
11.7
10.5
9.8
8.4
.2
6,798
25.1
9.8
21.4
10.4
27.3
9.1
15.9
9.4
19.9
13.1
11.5
7.4
1,481
1,631
To households
Residential real estate
Revolving home equity
Other
Consumer
Originated3
Other4
-1.4
6.4
-4.0
10.8
9.4
20.8
2.6
5.4
1.7
10.7
10.1
19.7
-5.4
7.3
-9.6
10.6
8.4
21.0
5.4
10.8
3.5
7.4
7.8
12.1
14.0
18.5
12.5
4.6
4.0
-21.8
4.5
16.0
.4
7.7
8.6
-41.5
1,889
500
1,389
817
1,228
981
10.7
-5.0
29.9
14.8
7.7
23.4
6.3
-17.5
34.4
-2.5
-6.8
2.0
29.0
43.2
14.9
-26.6
-14.6
-38.9
2,180
1,115
1,066
Securities
Total
Treasury and agency
Other5
Note. Yearly annual rates are Q4 to Q4; quarterly and monthly annual rates use corresponding average levels. Data
have been adjusted to remove the effects of mark-to-market accounting rules (FIN 39 and FAS 115), the initial consolidation of certain variable interest entities (FIN 46), the initial adoption of fair value accounting (FAS 159), and the effects
of sizable thrift-to-bank and bank-to-thrift structure activity in October 2006, March 2007, and October 2007. Data also
account for breaks caused by reclassifications.
1. Billions of dollars. Pro rata averages of weekly (Wednesday) levels.
2. Excludes interbank loans.
3. Includes an estimate of outstanding loans securitized by commercial banks.
4. Includes security loans and loans to farmers, state and local governments, and all others not elsewhere classified.
Also includes lease financing receivables.
5. Includes private mortgage-backed securities, securities of corporations, state and local governments, foreign
governments, and any trading account assets that are not Treasury or agency securities, including revaluation gains
on derivative contracts.
e Estimated.
-9-
III-T-1
Selected Financial Market Quotations
(One-day quotes in percent except as noted)
2006
2007
Change to Apr. 24 from
selected dates (percentage points)
2008
Instrument
June 29
Sept. 17
Mar. 17
Apr. 24
2006
June 29
2007
Sept. 17
2008
Mar. 17
5.25
5.25
3.00
2.25
-3.00
-3.00
-.75
4.88
5.06
4.05
4.15
1.09
1.28
1.24
1.62
-3.64
-3.44
-2.81
-2.53
.15
.34
Commercial paper (A1/P1 rates)2
1-month
3-month
5.27
5.37
5.23
5.25
2.41
2.50
2.77
2.88
-2.50
-2.49
-2.46
-2.37
.36
.38
Large negotiable CDs1
3-month
6-month
5.47
5.59
5.52
5.36
2.63
2.45
2.95
3.02
-2.52
-2.57
-2.57
-2.34
.32
.57
Eurodollar deposits3
1-month
3-month
5.33
5.49
5.55
5.60
2.60
2.55
2.95
3.05
-2.38
-2.44
-2.60
-2.55
.35
.50
Bank prime rate
8.25
8.25
6.00
5.25
-3.00
-3.00
-.75
Intermediate- and long-term
U.S. Treasury4
2-year
5-year
10-year
5.26
5.15
5.28
4.12
4.18
4.58
1.36
2.20
3.58
2.32
3.14
4.06
-2.94
-2.01
-1.22
-1.80
-1.04
-.52
.96
.94
.48
U.S. Treasury indexed notes5
5-year
10-year
2.51
2.61
2.04
2.15
.39
1.20
1.07
1.68
-1.44
-.93
-.97
-.47
.68
.48
Municipal general obligations (Bond Buyer)6
4.71
4.46
4.94
4.68
-.03
.22
-.26
Private instruments
10-year swap
10-year FNMA7
10-year AA8
10-year BBB8
10-year high yield8
5.81
5.59
6.20
6.74
8.74
5.17
5.01
6.05
6.46
8.95
4.02
4.43
6.04
6.61
10.54
4.46
4.54
6.06
6.89
9.86
-1.35
-1.05
-.14
.15
1.12
-.71
-.47
.01
.43
.91
.44
.11
.02
.28
-.68
Home mortgages (FHLMC survey rate)
30-year fixed
1-year adjustable
6.78
5.82
6.34
5.65
5.87
5.15
6.03
5.29
-.75
-.53
-.31
-.36
.16
.14
Short-term
FOMC intended federal funds rate
Treasury bills1
3-month
6-month
Record high
2007
Change to Apr. 24
from selected dates (percent)
2008
Stock exchange index
Dow Jones Industrial
S&P 500 Composite
Nasdaq
Russell 2000
Wilshire 5000
Level
Date
Sept. 17
Mar. 17
Apr. 24
Record
high
2007
Sept. 17
2008
Mar. 17
14,165
1,565
5,049
856
15,807
10-9-07
10-9-07
3-10-00
7-13-07
10-9-07
13,403
1,477
2,582
776
14,839
11,972
1,277
2,177
650
12,828
12,849
1,389
2,429
717
13,991
-9.29
-11.27
-51.89
-16.21
-11.49
-4.14
-5.95
-5.92
-7.57
-5.72
7.32
8.79
11.57
10.24
9.06
1. Secondary market.
2. Financial commercial paper.
3. Bid rates for Eurodollar deposits collected around 9:30 a.m. eastern time.
4. Derived from a smoothed Treasury yield curve estimated using off-the-run securities.
5. Derived from a smoothed Treasury yield curve estimated using all outstanding securities and adjusted for the carry effect.
6. Most recent Thursday quote.
7. Constant-maturity yields estimated from Fannie Mae domestic noncallable coupon securities.
8. Derived from smoothed corporate yield curves estimated using Merrill Lynch bond data.
_______________________________________________________________________
NOTES:
June 29, 2006, is the day the most recent policy tightening ended.
September 17, 2007, is the day before the most recent policy easing began.
March 17, 2008, is the day before the most recent FOMC monetary policy announcement.
_______________________________________________________________________
Cite this document
APA
Federal Reserve (2008, April 29). Greenbook/Tealbook. Greenbooks, Federal Reserve. https://whenthefedspeaks.com/doc/greenbook_20080430_part2
BibTeX
@misc{wtfs_greenbook_20080430_part2,
author = {Federal Reserve},
title = {Greenbook/Tealbook},
year = {2008},
month = {Apr},
howpublished = {Greenbooks, Federal Reserve},
url = {https://whenthefedspeaks.com/doc/greenbook_20080430_part2},
note = {Retrieved via When the Fed Speaks corpus}
}