Economic Update for the week of March 12th, 2012

WEEKLY ECONOMIC UPDATE
WEEKLY QUOTE “Science is the great antidote to the poison of enthusiasm and superstition.” - Adam Smith WEEKLY TIP Financial strategies sometimes need to be revised due to career, family or lifestyle changes. So review your saving and investing approach annually. Few people do; more people should. WEEKLY RIDDLE What word doesn’t belong in this group: blast, paper, castle, coin, box, storm. Last week’s riddle: Two fathers and two sons shopped for computers at their local big box retailer. Each bought a PC, yet they bought only three PCs total. How could this be? Last week’s answer: The shoppers were a man, his son and his grandson.	March 12, 2012 227,000 NEW JOBS, BUT JOBLESS RATE STILL AT 8.3% While unemployment levels remained unchanged in February, Labor Department data showed that nonfarm payrolls expanded by more than 200,000 positions for the third straight month. The private sector added 233,000 jobs in February, so it was basically responsible for the impressive net job gain. The underemployment rate (representing the jobless plus those settling for less than a 40-hour workweek) was 14.9% in February, a 1.8% drop from a year before. With such consistent job growth, the Federal Reserve faces less pressure to roll out another monetary stimulus.1                                                                                                   SERVICE SECTOR GROWS IN February The Institute for Supply Management’s service sector PMI climbed to 57.3 for February, seeing a half-percent gain. A 3.1% jump in business activity/production and a 1.8% rise in new orders were nice highlights.2 OIL, GOLD END WEEK WITH MODERATE GAINS From Wednesday to Friday, gold futures rose $39.50 and oil futures $2.70. For the week, gains were actually modest: oil advanced but $0.70 on the NYMEX to $107.40 a barrel, while gold racked up a $2.10 gain to end Friday’s COMEX session at $1,710.90 per ounce. The price of unleaded gas was $3.76 a gallon nationally on Friday per AAA’s survey.1,3 LITTLE VOLATILITY AFTER GREEK BOND SWAP On Wall Street, March 5-9 mirrored the week before: the Dow pulled back (-0.43% to 12,922.02) and the NASDAQ (+0.41% to 2,988.34) and S&P 500 (+0.09% to 1,370.87) advanced. The market was still wary of the debt deal out of the EU – last week, 86% of investors holding Greek bonds agreed to swap securities issued by the Greek government for replacement ones worth less, and collective action clauses will force about 10% more of these bondholders to do so. While this seemingly opens the door for a new €130 billion EU/IMF rescue package for Greece, it could be the last bailout Greece receives.1,4 THIS WEEK: In addition to what goes on in Europe, we have a lot of stateside data. Monday, Urban Outfitters and Burger King issue Q4 results. On Tuesday, a Fed policy meeting concludes and February retail sales figures arrive. Wednesday, Fed chairman Ben Bernanke speaks in Nashville and Guess and Youku (China’s equivalent of YouTube) provide Q4 earnings. Besides new initial claims figures, Thursday offers February’s PPI and earnings from Ross Stores and Dole. Friday, February’s CPI arrives plus the initial March consumer sentiment survey from the University of Michigan; the iPad 3 also hits the shelves. % CHANGE Y-T-D 1-YR CHG 5-YR AVG 10-YR AVG DJIA +5.77 +5.80 +1.05 +2.22 NASDAQ +14.71 +8.60 +5.03 +5.49 S&P 500 +9.01 +3.86 -0.46 +1.77 REAL YIELD 3/9 RATE 1 YR AGO 5 YRS AGO 10 YRS AGO 10 YR TIPS -0.24% 0.98% 2.25% 3.48% Sources: money.msn.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov, treasurydirect.gov - 3/9/121,5,6,7,8 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 - money.msn.com/market-news/post.aspx?post=e280f203-b968-4fde-b06c-075eaf9a5756 [3/9/12] 2 - www.ism.ws/ISMReport/NonMfgROB.cfm [3/5/12] 3 - blogs.wsj.com/marketbeat/2012/03/09/data-points-energy-metals-552/ [3/9/12] 4 - www.ism.ws/ISMReport/MfgROB.cfm [3/1/12] 5 - montoyaregistry.com/Financial-Market.aspx?financial-market=common-financial-mistakes-and-how-to-avoid-them&category=29 [3/9/12] 6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=3%2F9%2F11&x=0&y=0 [3/9/12] 6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=3%2F9%2F11&x=0&y=0 [3/9/12] 6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=3%2F9%2F11&x=0&y=0 [3/9/12] 6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=3%2F9%2F07&x=0&y=0 [3/9/12] 6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=3%2F9%2F07&x=0&y=0 [3/9/12] 6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=3%2F9%2F07&x=0&y=0 [3/9/12] 6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=3%2F8%2F02&x=0&y=0 [3/9/12] 6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=3%2F8%2F02&x=0&y=0 [3/9/12] 6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=3%2F8%2F02&x=0&y=0 [3/9/12] 7 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield [3/9/12] 7 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll [3/9/12] 8 - treasurydirect.gov/instit/annceresult/press/preanre/2002/ofm10902.pdf [1/9/02]