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The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) declined 0.2 percent in May on a seasonally adjusted basis, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Over the last 12 months, the index increased 2.0 percent before seasonal adjustment.

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for the U.S. increased 0.4 percent, The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index® (CEI) increased 0.4 percent and The Conference Board Lagging Economic Index® (LAG) decreased 0.1 percent in May.

A new Financial Times/Harris Poll finds that adults in the U.S. and the five largest European countries do not have much trust in their political leaders to deal effectively with the current fiscal crisis. Just under half of Germans (45%), two in five French adults (40%), just under two in five Americans (39%), Spaniards (38%) and Italians (37%) and one-third of Britons (34%) say they do not trust politicians in their country at all to effectively deal with the fiscal crisis. Between 23% and 37% say they trust the politicians in their country just a little.

In the construction sector, seasonally adjusted production1 fell by 0.3% in the euro area (EA16) and remained stable in the EU27 in April 2010, compared with the previous month. In March, production rose by 6.5% and 6.0% respectively.

Real average hourly earnings for all employees rose 0.5 percent from April to May, seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. This increase stems from a 0.3 percent increase in average hourly earnings and a 0.2 percent decrease in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U).

Farm commodity prices have fallen from their record peaks of two years ago but are unlikely to drop back to their average levels of the past decade, according to the annual joint report from the OECD and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

U.S. import prices declined 0.6 percent in May, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported, after rising 1.1 percent in April and 0.4 percent in March. The decrease was led by falling fuel prices, which more than offset a rise in nonfuel prices. In contrast, the price index for U.S. exports increased 0.7 percent in May following increases of 1.2 percent and 0.7 percent in April and March, respectively.

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for Spain increased 0.2 percent and The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index® (CEI) decreased 0.1 percent in April.

Mortgage rates held at record low levels this week, with the average conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate at 4.88 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.48 discount and origination points.

The Producer Price Index for Finished Goods moved down 0.3 percent in May, seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. This decline followed a 0.1-percent decrease in April and a 0.7-percent increase in March. At the earlier stages of processing, prices received by producers of intermediate goods advanced 0.4 percent and the crude goods index fell 2.8 percent. On an unadjusted basis, prices for finished goods rose 5.3 percent for the 12 months ended May 2010. This was the second consecutive month of slowing year-over-year advances after a 6.0-percent increase for the 12 months ended March 2010.