Traffic flows in New Zealand in April, the headline is the 'heavy' traffic index
Down 1.8% for April
- prior +1.7% m/m
ANZ's summary (bolding is mine):
- Both ANZ Truckometer indexes eased in April, reversing lifts in March. Such noise is typical of monthly indicators
- The Heavy Traffic Index fell 1.8% m/m, while the Light Traffic Index fell 1.5% m/m (the charts below are a 3-month average)
- Despite the dip, the Heavy Traffic Index continues to trend solidly upward
- The upward trend in the Light Traffic Index has been less definitive of late, suggesting patchier growth in store
- We expect growth to ease as 2017 rolls on. Capacity constraints are biting; getting skilled or unskilled employees is difficult. Credit is a bit harder to get. It's not a bad thing - overheating can lead to engine problems.
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The 'Truckometer' measures traffic flows in New Zealand and is a proxy for GDP
- ANZ point out that traffic flows are a real-time and real-world proxy for economic activity - particularly for the New Zealand economy, where a large proportion of freight is moved by road.
- There are 2 parts to the indicator, that for heavy traffic and that for lighter traffic
- ANZ use the Light Traffic Index as a lead indicator for GDP by six months
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The big news is that US politics: Trump has fired FBI director James Comey
And I here I am posting on the Truckometer ... sad.
;-)
