Congress should act to eliminate the “outdated and abusive tax loophole” for large credit unions, wrote Florida Bankers Association President and CEO Alex Sanchez in a Wall Street Journal op-ed yesterday.

Industrial production increased 0.1 percent in July after an upwardly revised 1.0 percent increase in June, according to the Federal Reserve. Capacity utilization remained at 78.1 percent in July, a rate that is 1.7 points below its long-run average. Manufacturing output increased 0.3 percent after rising 0.8 percent last month. Production of durable goods increased 0.4 percent, while nondurable goods ...

There were $507.5 billion in retail and food service sales in July, up 0.5 percent from the previous month and 6.4 percent from July 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. June’s number was downwardly revised to reflect a 0.2 percent increase. Core retail sales – excluding automobiles and parts – rose 0.6 percent. Year-over-year core sales increased 7.2 percent. ...

As federal regulators continue their ongoing effort to update the Community Reinvestment Act regulations, an op-ed penned by ABA President and CEO Rob Nichols in The Hill today advocates for commonsense reforms that would better align the decades-old statute with the modern banking landscape.

The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index rose slightly to 107.9, 0.7 point above June’s reading. This is just 0.1 point below the record level (108.0) reached in 1983. Thirty-two percent of business owners surveyed said the next three months was a good time to expand, three points higher than last month’s reading. Reported job creation fell four points, as 59 ...

Outstanding household debt increased by 0.6 percent in the second quarter of 2018, rising by $82 billion to land at $13.29 trillion, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said today.

The Consumer Price Index rose 0.2 percent in July on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. This followed a 0.1 percent June increase. Over the last 12 months, the all-items index rose 2.9 percent. Prices for all items less food and energy, the “core CPI,” grew 0.2 percent in July, following a 0.2 percent June ...

When asked to rank eight key provisions of S. 2155 -- the new regulatory reform law -- based on their likelihood to positively affect their institution, community and midsize bank executives said that the law’s provision amending the Federal Deposit Insurance Act to make most reciprocal deposits non-brokered ranked highest.

Producer prices were unchanged in July, seasonally adjusted, after rising 0.3 percent in June, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Producer prices rose 3.3 percent for the twelve months ended July 2018. The index for final demand goods ticked up 0.1 percent in July, the same as last month. The index for final demand energy fell 0.5 percent, ...