FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

Daily Roundup of Key US Economic Data for Aug. 12

By

The consumer price index rose by 0.1% in July and was up 0.2% excluding food and energy prices, both as expected.

The year-over-year increase slowed to 3.4% from 3.5% in June, while the core measure was 2.5% year-over-year after a 2.6% rate in the previous month.

Food prices rose by 0.1%, while energy prices declined by 1.5%. Gasoline prices alone were down 2.9%.

Owners' equivalent rents and regular rents were both up 0.3%, accounting for about one-third of the overall gain.

Prices of new vehicles rose by 0.1% after a flat reading in the previous month and used vehicle prices rose by 0.4% after a 0.2% decline.

The US Treasury reported a $432.31 billion budget gap in July, larger than the $291.14 billion deficit reported in July 2025 due to smaller receipts and larger outlays.

The Mortgage Bankers Association reported a 3.6% gain in mortgage applications in the week ended Aug. 7 after a 2.9% drop in the previous week. Refinancing activity and new home applications were both lifted by lower mortgage rates, the first decline in the rates after five consecutive increases.

Total crude oil inventories rose by 11.3 million barrels in the week ended Aug. 7, with commercial oil inventories up 17.4 million barrels and stocks in the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve down 6.1 million barrels. Gasoline inventories declined while distillate inventories were unchanged.

Related Articles

International

Chinese Passenger Car Sales Skid 21% in July

Retail sales of passenger cars in China fell 21% year over year to about 1.5 million units in July, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association released Tuesday.Retail sales of gasoline-powered vehicles slid 41% year over year, with that of pure gasoline cars falling 44% and conventional hybrids slipping 4% year over year. Domestic branded vehicles declined 46%, all due to high oil prices, the CPCA said.New energy passenger vehicle sales fell 3.9% year over year to 951,000 units, with domestic brands declining 4%, mainstream joint ventures rising 36%, and luxury brands decreasing 23%.Retail penetration of new energy vehicles in China reached 65.1% in July, up from 53.5% a year earlier and from 63% in June.Overall retail passenger car sales in China fell 20% in the first seven months of 2026 to nearly 10.2 million units.

Shanghai Composite^SZSE
International

Singapore's Current Account Surplus Widens in Q2

Singapore's current account surplus increased to SG$37.08 billion in the second quarter from SG$30.52 billion a year earlier, according to data from the Department of Statistics Singapore on Wednesday.The increase was a result of higher goods exports during the quarter, which led to the goods account surplus rising to SG$70.4 billion in Q2 from SG$60.1 billion in the same period a year earlier. Services account surplus also increased to SG$14.3 billion from SG$12.3 billion.The primary income deficit widened to SG$44.77 billion from SG$37.87 billion, while the secondary income deficit narrowed to SG$2.88 billion from SG$4 billion.

^STI
International

Japan's Reuters Tankan Business Sentiment Rises in August

Sentiment among major Japanese companies improved in August, with both the Reuters Tankan manufacturing and non-manufacturing indices registering gains, according to survey data published Wednesday.The Reuters Tankan manufacturing index rose to +18 points from +13 points in July, owing to strong semiconductor demand.The reading topped the Trading Economics forecast of a slight change to +14 points, and marked the 17th consecutive month that sentiment was positive among manufacturers in Japan.Meanwhile, the non-manufacturers' sentiment index likewise climbed to +28 from +25 the previous month following improvements in wholesale trade, information services and other services.The poll, carried out from July 29 to Aug. 6, obtained responses from 219 out of the 510 companies surveyed, Reuters said.

Nikkei 225