Oil and central bank action dominated economic headlines in January, but lots of other chart-able stuff happened this month. (We’ve got your back, Greece.)
Let’s start with oil, though—because it’s hard to overstate the impact of what’s happening there.
The oil bust continues
Oil prices are still falling
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/e99096bf766df2766d71b7cbd13f06db.jpg)
US crude oil inventories hit a record high
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/1adf8f803e17be3ba1c6c44fdfba17f8.jpg)
The International Energy Agency cut its 2015 forecast for global oil production.
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/e8a6ea288e478e2e837c27ea025a6ab3.jpg)
Moving on to low-flation…
US inflation is falling
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/46d773c3db4d10c62601f611227ecd36.jpg)
UK inflation is falling
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/df8cb45249e39120ab770b604ce200d8.jpg)
The euro zone fell deeper into deflation
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/353718425090c7538d82a3e128a4f6b5.jpg)
In the zone
The European Central Bank finally unveiled its stimulus program, pushing the euro lower
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/e2b2cca424d0a9d5ee4a99d0826c42b3.jpg)
Bond yields fell after the news, though they’ve been doing that for a while
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/e6dd86b3078315ef5aacc6ab13f43b8f.jpg)
The continent could use it, considering how unemployment has remained pretty high
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/4eefe1a2e9d56765a41536278bac8dd4.jpg)
But it’s nothing compared with Greece
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/5f8f4bc75756236b0a047de5d8b135b4.jpg)
Where government bond yields rose this week after the anti-austerity Syriza party formed a new government
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/1f0c6287d53c188bd304aebbb121e984.jpg)
Meanwhile, central banking was looking pretty de-centralized…
Switzerland cuts its benchmark interest rate twice in a month’s time
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/4a6f2a0a6f0439c483200c4fbd0deb78.jpg)
It also de-pegged the franc from the euro
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/f50a992ce95e54a53e4a1a35708e3129.jpg)
The Central Bank of Brazil, meanwhile, hiked rates
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/95341533ad347f46905f9fe73f1754d9.jpg)
The Nigerian naira fell after the Central Bank of Nigeria left rates alone
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/8cc91ea38c4de88016406b701acf542d.jpg)
Made in China
China’s trade surplus grew
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/9ff57523b98fd6d0a61689d32ec6cd67.jpg)
China GDP growth slowed
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/612cc5338acab9fce5e430abea063ffe.jpg)
Chinese inflation is stable on the consumer side, but deflation deepened on the producer side
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/2546bdeabf11f85b79b92be55da95bd3.jpg)
As for the Anglosphere…
The US economy grew a bit more slowly than expected last quarter
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/738327e7ea36288162c7805c2e878034.jpg)
And US wages aren’t getting much of a boost
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/5005498bd4691c4673d2a675c9c85aec.jpg)
But US jobless claims are way down
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/e32b220c2940b9ef09735120a16fb069.jpg)
So is US unemployment
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/5e624ce26815e81debf8a3daeef64306.jpg)
So it makes sense that US consumers are feeling pretty good
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/5b5b62f7be4236c1acaeeccfe6e8b462.jpg)
As are US businesses
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/39cbe8106c717e7d52120d52c54f86f9.jpg)
The British unemployment situation is similarly improving
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/181ee5b80b21d01e5a17708587b8fac6.jpg)
As are British wages
![Image for article titled The 26 economic charts you shouldn’t have missed in January](https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/d7ec4d018f0ffa9442b86fbb6c35165a.jpg)