Daily Rundown

April 16, 2026

Chart of the Day

Number of the Day

8 - The number of Federal Reserve districts, out of 12, reported to be in expansion in March and early April, equaling the most since early 2025

Quote of the Day

"While most districts indicated that AI had not yet significantly impacted overall staffing levels, some noted that AI-driven productivity improvements had enabled many firms to delay or reduce hiring." - From the Federal Reserve's Beige Book

Wednesday's Highlights

The Beige Book (March-April) showed the economy growing at a "slight to modest" pace across much of the country.

Import prices (March) rose by 0.8 percent on the month and 2.1 percent year-over-year.

Core import prices (March) rose by 0.1 percent on the month and 2.6 percent year-over-year.

The home builder sentiment index (April) fell by 4.0 points to 34.0, the lowest level in seven months.

Mortgage purchase applications (week of 4/4) moved lower by 1.0 percent. The average 30-year fixed rate eased to 6.4 percent.

Quick Commentary

A healthy tax refund season is boosting economic growth in general, but it is clearly doing little to lift the stagnant housing market out of its doldrums. Absent a renewed upturn in home sales -and the associated feedback loops that work through the housing market- it is unlikely that the overall economy will be able to sustain much more than a modest pace of expansion.

Today's Highlights

Unemployment claims

Industrial production

Philadelphia Fed manufacturing survey

Daily Trivia

What legendary phenomenon can be traced to the botanist Carolus Clusius planting a garden at Leiden University in 1594?

(Wednesday's Question: Due to a 1949 law citing fire hazards, what is still illegal in New Jersey even as it is allowed in all of the other 49 states? Answer: Pumping your own gas)