INDICATOR GUIDES

US Economic Indicators, Explained

Trader-focused guides to every official release FirstPrint tracks — what it measures, when it prints, and how markets actually read it.

Inflation

• Consumer Price Index (CPI) Monthly, around mid-month
• Producer Price Index (PPI) Monthly, around mid-month (adjacent to CPI)
• PCE Price Index Monthly, near month-end

Labor Market

• Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) Monthly, usually the first Friday
• Initial Jobless Claims Weekly, every Thursday
• JOLTS Job Openings Monthly (lags the jobs report by about a month)

Growth & Demand

• GDP (Gross Domestic Product) Quarterly — advance, second and third estimates
• Retail Sales Monthly, around mid-month
• Durable Goods Orders Monthly, around the fourth week
• Industrial Production Monthly, around mid-month

Housing

• Housing Starts & Building Permits Monthly, around mid-month
• New Home Sales Monthly, around the fourth week

Federal Reserve

• FOMC Rate Decision 8 scheduled meetings per year
• FOMC Minutes Three weeks after each meeting
• Fed Speeches Ongoing (blackout ~10 days before each FOMC meeting)

Rates & Treasury

• Treasury Auctions Regular schedule across bills, notes and bonds

Energy

• EIA Crude Oil Inventories Weekly, Wednesday
• EIA Natural Gas Storage Weekly, Thursday

Regional Manufacturing

• Empire State Manufacturing Survey Monthly, around the 15th
• Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Survey Monthly, third Thursday
• Dallas Fed Manufacturing Survey Monthly, last Monday

Agriculture

• USDA WASDE Report Monthly, around the 9th–12th
• USDA Grain Stocks Quarterly (Jan, Mar, Jun, Sep)
• USDA Prospective Plantings & Acreage Prospective Plantings late March · Acreage late June
• USDA Weekly Export Sales Weekly, Thursday