Economic Update for the week of November 5th, 2012

WEEKLY ECONOMIC UPDATE
WEEKLY QUOTE             “To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom.”       - Bertrand Russell        WEEKLY TIP             Your will, trust and powers of attorney should be reviewed regularly, once a year if possible. Time can alter priorities and intentions.       WEEKLY RIDDLE                Einstein’s Riddle: A man meets a bear in a wasteland. Both are startled. The man runs north and the bear runs west. Suddenly, the man aimed his gun south and shot the bear. What color was the bear?        Last week’s riddle: A man tells you there are 12 seconds in a year. This sounds absurd, but in what sense is he correct?    Last week’s answer: Each month of the year contains a “second” – January 2nd, February 2nd, and so forth.	November 6, 2012      HIRING PICKS UP, JOBLESS RATE TICKS UP Employers added 171,000 jobs in October, according to the Labor Department. Revised August and September estimates showed non-farm payrolls growing by an average of 173,000 jobs in each of the past three months. The unemployment rate rose to 7.9%, as economists polled by Bloomberg had forecast, a consequence of more people seeking work.1,2    MORE SPENDING, MORE CONFIDENCE Personal spending accelerated by 0.8% in October, and Commerce Department data also showed incomes up 0.4% for the month (the biggest gain since March) and the savings rate down to 3.3% (the lowest level since last November). In another positive sign, the Conference Board’s October consumer confidence poll came in at 72.2, the highest mark since February 2008.2,3     HOME PRICES RISE 2.0% in a YEAR That was the annual gain shown in the latest S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index (the September edition). Compare that to the August report, which noted that prices across 20 cities had increased 1.2% in 12 months. The index rose 0.5% for October.4    MANUFACTURING SECTOR EXPANDS SLIGHTLY The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing PMI advanced 0.2% for October to 51.7. Encouragingly, the new orders index rose 1.9% to 54.2. The Commerce Department also noted a 4.8% leap in factory orders for September.5,6    A MIXED WEEK ON WALL STREET   The S&P 500 managed a 0.16% weekly gain to settle at 1,414.20 Friday, but the Dow (-0.11% to 13,093.16) and NASDAQ (-0.19% to 2,982.13) posted five-day losses. The Russell 2000 advanced 0.14% on the week to 814.37; the CBOE VIX fell 1.68% for the week, closing Friday at 17.51.6,7    THIS WEEK: Monday, ISM publishes its October service sector index and Time Warner Cable, Toyota, Humana and Zillow issue earnings reports. Tuesday is Election Day, and Nissan, Office Depot, NYSE Euronext, CVS Caremark, and News Corp also announce Q3 results. Wednesday, earnings reports arrive from Macy's, Monster Beverage, CBS, Sodastream, Qualcomm, Activision Blizzard and Whole Foods. An OPEC press conference occurs Thursday, and earnings from Groupon, Dean Foods, Kayak, Wendy's, Disney, Nordstrom, Nvidia and Zipcar will be out along with the latest initial claims figures. Friday brings earnings from JCPenney and November’s initial consumer sentiment survey from the University of Michigan.    % CHANGE Y-T-D 1-YR CHG 5-YR AVG 10-YR AVG DJIA +7.17 +10.62 -0.74 +5.37 NASDAQ +14.47 +12.96 +1.22 +11.92 S&P 500 +12.45 +14.24 -1.26 +5.70 REAL YIELD 11/2 RATE 1 YR AGO 5 YRS AGO 10 YRS AGO 10 YR TIPS -0.73% -0.07% 1.92% 3.10%   Sources: cnbc.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov, treasurydirect.gov - 11/2/127,8,9,10 Indices are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into directly. These returns do not include dividends.
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«RepresentativeDisclosure» This material was prepared by MarketingLibrary.Net Inc., and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their affiliates. Marketing Library.Net Inc. is not affiliated with any broker or brokerage firm that may be providing this information to you. This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a price-weighted index of 30 actively traded blue-chip stocks. The NASDAQ Composite Index is an unmanaged, market-weighted index of all over-the-counter common stocks traded on the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System. The Standard & Poor's 500 (S&P 500) is an unmanaged group of securities considered to be representative of the stock market in general. It is not possible to invest directly in an index. NYSE Group, Inc. (NYSE:NYX) operates two securities exchanges: the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”) and NYSE Arca (formerly known as the Archipelago Exchange, or ArcaEx®, and the Pacific Exchange). NYSE Group is a leading provider of securities listing, trading and market data products and services. The New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc. (NYMEX) is the world's largest physical commodity futures exchange and the preeminent trading forum for energy and precious metals, with trading conducted through two divisions – the NYMEX Division, home to the energy, platinum, and palladium markets, and the COMEX Division, on which all other metals trade. Additional risks are associated with international investing, such as currency fluctuations, political and economic instability and differences in accounting standards. All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however we make no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. All economic and performance data is historical and not indicative of future results. Market indices discussed are unmanaged. Investors cannot invest in unmanaged indices. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services. If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional. Citations. 1 - www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-jobs-unemployment-20121102,0,642852.story 6 [11/2/12] 2 - www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-29/consumer-spending-in-u-s-increases-0-8-as-incomes-climb-0-4-.html [10/29/12] 3 - articles.marketwatch.com/2012-11-01/economy/34847281_1_lynn-franco-director-of-economic-indicators-confidence-readings [10/25/12] 4 - www.forexpros.com/news/economic-indicators/s-p-case-shiller-home-price-index-up-2-in-august-240069 [10/30/12] 5 - www.ism.ws/ISMReport/MfgROB.cfm [11/1/12] 6 - www.cnbc.com/id/49658715 [11/2/12] 7 - montoyaregistry.com/Financial-Market.aspx?financial-market=retirement-investment-funds&category=3 [11/2/12] 8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=11%2F2%2F11&x=0&y=0 [11/2/12] 8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=11%2F2%2F11&x=0&y=0 [11/2/12] 8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=11%2F2%2F11&x=0&y=0 [11/2/12] 8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=11%2F2%2F07&x=0&y=0 [11/2/12] 8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=11%2F2%2F07&x=0&y=0 [11/2/12] 8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=11%2F2%2F07&x=0&y=0 [11/2/12] 8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=11%2F1%2F02&x=0&y=0 [11/2/12] 8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=11%2F1%2F02&x=0&y=0 [11/2/12] 8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=11%2F1%2F02&x=0&y=0 [11/2/12] 9 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield [11/2/12] 9 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll [11/2/12] 10 - treasurydirect.gov/instit/annceresult/press/preanre/2002/ofm71002.pdf [7/10/02]