US retail up, Aussie retail down

<p>Kia ora,</p><p>Welcome to Wednesday’s Economy Watch where we follow the economic events and trends that affect Aotearoa/New Zealand.</p><p>I'm David Chaston and this is the international edition from Interest.co.nz.</p><p>And today we lead with news markets are reacting to US Fed views that 'everything is on track' and no more rate rises are likely.</p><p>Firstly though, the first indications of bricks & mortar store retail sales for last week are coming through with the <a href="https://www.redbookresearch.com/" target="_blank"><strong>US Redbook index</strong></a> up an impressive +6.3% from the same week a year ago. Although that isn't as big a jump as the online indexes have had, it is still a healthy real increase, well above inflation. And it is the strongest weekly gain of the year.</p><p>Also better than expected is the latest US <a href="https://www.conference-board.org/topics/consumer-confidence" target="_blank"><strong>consumer sentiment</strong></a> reading, this one from the Conference Board. The rise was mostly on the forward looking aspects.</p><p>There were two regional Fed survey out. The Richmond Fed's <a href="https://www.richmondfed.org/-/media/RichmondFedOrg/region_communities/regional_data_analysis/regional_economy/surveys_of_business_conditions/service_sector/2023/pdf/svc_11_28_23.pdf" target="_blank"><strong>services survey</strong></a> also found more optimistic conditions, but that was not matched in their <a href="https://www.richmondfed.org/-/media/RichmondFedOrg/region_communities/regional_data_analysis/regional_economy/surveys_of_business_conditions/manufacturing/2023/pdf/mfg_11_28_23.pdf" target="_blank"><strong>factory sector</strong></a>. And in the oil patch, <a href="https://www.dallasfed.org/research/surveys/tmos/2023/2311" target="_blank"><strong>both</strong></a> <a href="https://www.dallasfed.org/research/surveys/tssos/2023/2311" target="_blank"><strong>sectors</strong></a> turned more glum in Texas. But to be fair, none of them actually shifted much.</p><p>Fed speakers h