Real consumer spending increased in June at a pace similar to that in May, as real spending rose robustly in Q2. The rise in spending for June was led by services and durable goods expenditures. #EconomySnapshot 
Business equipment spending rose moderately in the first half of 2018, a slower pace than in 2017. #EconomySnapshot
New orders of capital goods (excluding aircraft) remained slightly above shipments, suggesting some momentum over the near term. #EconomySnapshot
Total housing starts fell a sharp 12.3% in June. For the entire second quarter, starts were down 4.2% following two quarters of solid increases. #EconomySnapshot
Single-family housing starts appear to be continuing on a gradual uptrend. In contrast, multi-family starts -- though volatile for the past few years -- have remained flat in the 375,000 to 400,000 unit range. #EconomySnapshot
While mortgage interest rates have risen by around 75 basis points over the past year, the fundamentals underlying the housing market appear strong. #EconomySnapshot
Inventories of homes for sale and rent are relatively low, home prices are rising briskly, and employment continues to increase at a solid pace. #EconomySnapshot
Single-family existing home sales decreased 0.6% in June to 4.76 million units (seasonally adjusted annual rate). Single-family existing home sales are 2.3% below a year ago and are comparable to mid-2002 levels. #EconomySnapshot
Single-family new home sales decreased 5.3% (SAAR) in June to 631,000 units. Single-family new home sales were 2.3% below a year ago. They were below the immediate pre-recession level (641,000 units in 11/07) after having surpassed it for the first time in 11/17. #EconomySnapshot
Favorable labor market conditions increased demand, but low inventory conditions along with rising house prices and mortgage rates adversely affected affordability, leading to a decline in home sales. #EconomySnapshot
Payroll growth moderated in July, but was revised significantly upward for both May and June. #EconomySnapshot
Labor force participation was unchanged, the unemployment rate ticked down, and the employment-to-population ratio rose slightly. The latest readings of various measures of labor compensation continued to point to modest firming of wage growth. #EconomySnapshot
Core PCE inflation continued to run at a level roughly consistent with the FOMC’s longer-run objective. #EconomySnapshot
U.S. equity indices rose moderately over the past month, and volatility fell further. #EconomySnapshot
The nominal 10-year Treasury yield fluctuated within a narrow range. #EconomySnapshot
The broad trade-weighted dollar index increased slightly. #EconomySnapshot
Non-energy commodity prices remained below their levels of the first half of the year. #EconomySnapshot
The expected path of the federal funds rate implied by Federal Funds futures moved up by about 9 basis points between July 9 and August 6. #EconomySnapshot
The market-implied path remains somewhat below the median path of the FOMC's June 2018 Summary of Economic Projections and the June 2018 NY Fed Survey of Primary Dealers at longer horizons. #EconomySnapshot
Download the full August 2018 U.S. #EconomySnapshot here → nyfed.org/AugustSnapshot
