Financial and economic news this past week was very good on four fronts: productivity, employment, inflation and trade.

The unemployment rate sank to 3.6%, the Labor Department announced on Friday morning, the lowest level since December 1969. The economy created 263,000 new jobs last month, far more than the 190,000 expected.

Inflation data released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis on Monday was much lower than expected, even though the job market is tight, and wages are rising. In addition, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a TV interview that he expected a finalized U.S. trade agreement with China next week, averting a trade war with the world's No. 2 economy.