US | Recovery Tracker gave back some gains in early May

The US Recovery Tracker fell 0.5ppts to 91.1 in the week ending May 7, the second decline in three weeks. With four of the six subcomponents dropping, we believe this illustrates the bumpy road to a full recovery. Encouraging health conditions, warmer weather, and healthy household finances should power a historic summer boom.

What you will learn:

• Production weakened on reduced refinery output and business activity, and demand softened as consumers cut back modestly on credit card spending. Employment fell on modestly weaker hiring at small businesses. Financial conditions tightened slightly on lower equity prices.

• Health conditions continued to improve, with nearly 40% of the adult population vaccinated and the lowest number of new infections since last summer. Mobility also rose as Americans made greater use of public transit.

• Our State Recovery Trackers corroborate the early-May weakness, with 35 states recording lower readings. All regions lost ground, led by the South and Midwest. Of the large states, only Florida, New York, and Texas held steady.