Recruit Holdings Co. Ltd. (11/13/14)

Recruit Holdings Co. Ltd. reported net sales of ¥559.3 billion and net income of ¥29.6 billion for the second quarter of fiscal year 2014. The staffing segment saw net sales of ¥328.1 billion, up 11.3% from the same quarter a year ago, and segment income of ¥18.9 billion, up 13.0%. Domestic (Japanese) staffing operations saw net sales of ¥191.5 billion, up 10.1%, while the overseas staffing operations (North America and Europe) saw net sales of ¥136.5 billion, up 13.0%.

Reuters (11/14/14) Rodrigo Campos

The Thomson Reuters and University of Michigan’s preliminary reading for the overall index of consumer sentiment was 89.4 in November, the highest since July 2007. The reading beat the highest estimate of the 61 economists polled by Reuters, and the median forecast of 87.5. The barometer of current economic conditions increased to 103.0 from 98.3, and the gauge of consumer expectations rose to 80.6 from 79.6.

MarketWatch (11/17/14) Greg Robb

Industrial production declined a seasonally adjusted 0.1% in October, the second decline in the last three months, according to the U.S. Federal Reserve. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had forecast a 0.2% increase. Meanwhile, September’s numbers were revised downward, to a 0.8% gain from the prior estimate of a 1.0% gain.

Federal Reserve Bank of New York (11/17/14)

Business activity in November continued to expand for New York manufacturers, according to the Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index climbed four points to 10.2, indicating a pace of growth somewhat faster than October’s. The new orders index rose eleven points to 9.1, and the shipments index advanced eleven points to 11.8. The index for number of employees edged down to 8.5 but remained positive, indicating that employment levels grew; the average workweek index, by contrast, was negative, pointing to a decline in hours worked. Indexes for the six-month outlook were generally higher this month and conveyed a strong degree of optimism about future business conditions.

Wall Street Journal (11/14/14) Michael S. Derby; Rebecca Boyle

Low inflation is no longer a sufficient reason to maintain very low short-term interest rates, and they should be raised early in 2015, says James Bullard, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. “Low inflation can justify a policy rate somewhat lower than normal, but not zero,” he says. “Labor markets continue to improve and are approaching or even exceeding normal performance levels. Over the next year, it will become more and more difficult to point to labor market performance as a rationale for a near-zero policy rate.” His expectation of 3% growth and job gains through 2015 means “that the best time to raise the policy rate will be at the end of the first quarter of 2015.”