Economic News Pointing to Ongoing Broad Recovery

Most of the current economic news is pointing to an ongoing recovery, including for commercial real estate fundamentals, according to Nareit Senior Economist Calvin Schnure.Speaking Sept. 14th on the Nareit REIT Report, Schnure noted that August retail sales data, to be reported on Wednesday, are expected to show a 1% increase. “Most aspects of retail sales actually are above pre-pandemic levels,” he said.At the same time, the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) showed that job openings rose 10% in July and are getting close to the range they were in late last year, Schnure said. Layoffs, meanwhile, have been below pre-pandemic rates during May, June, and July.