Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Economic Update for the week of July 29th, 2013

WEEKLY ECONOMIC UPDATE


WEEKLY QUOTE
              
“Do first things first and second things not at all.”
     
- Peter Drucker
     
   
WEEKLY TIP
             
The recently divorced and those planning to divorce should review their insurance coverage in light of changing needs.
  
   
WEEKLY RIDDLE
           
What has two hands but will never clap?
  
 
Last week’s riddle:
Wide as a grapefruit, deep as a cup, but even a river can't fill it up – and you may have to use it when you cook. What is it?
   
Last week’s answer:
A kitchen strainer.


July 29, 2013
    
CONSUMER SENTIMENT CONTINUES TO RISE
In 12 months, the University of Michigan’s index of consumer sentiment has gained almost 13 points. At 85.1, July’s final edition of the index was up 1.0 points from the final June reading. Two notable details: the percentage of respondents saying their home values had increased hit a six-year peak, and more respondents expected their inflation-adjusted incomes to rise in the coming year than at any time since 2007.1
  
TWO DIFFERENT HOME SALES STORIES
Existing home sales declined 1.2% in June with shrinking inventory, but the median sale price was up 13.5% from a year ago, according to the National Association of Realtors. Even as supply fell short of demand, anticipation of rising mortgage rates no doubt contributed to an 8.3% jump in new home buying in June, as well as the greatest yearly improvement in new home sales since 1992 – a 38.1% annual gain.2
    
DURABLE GOODS ORDERS UP 4.2%
June’s impressive overall advance didn’t tell the whole story. Minus the oft-volatile transportation category, core hard goods orders were flat last month.3
       
DOW ADVANCES FOR A FIFTH STRAIGHT WEEK
While the S&P 500 lost 0.03% across five days to settle at 1,691.65 Friday, the DJIA (+0.10% to 15,558.83) and NASDAQ (+0.71% to 3,613.16) pulled higher. Gold settled at $1,321.70 on the COMEX Friday, oil at $104.70 on the NYMEX.4,5
   
THIS WEEK: Earnings from Express Scripts, Hertz, Hartford Financial and Herbalife arrive Monday, and NAR reports June pending home sales. Tuesday brings earnings from Symantec, BP, Chrysler/Fiat, Take Two Interactive, NYSE Euronext, Pfizer, Barclays, Deutsche Bank, Merck, UBS, Aetna, Amgen and Aflac; May’s Case-Shiller Home Price Index and the Conference Board’s July consumer confidence poll also appear. The Federal Reserve makes a policy announcement Wednesday; the end of the month also brings the July ADP employment report, the federal government’s first estimate of Q2 GDP, and earnings from MetLife, Comcast, Honda, MasterCard, Hess, Humana, Sodastream, Allstate, CBS, Marriott, Whole Foods, Dreamworks Animation and Yelp. ISM’s July manufacturing index comes out Thursday, plus the July Challenger job-cut report, new initial claims figures, and earnings from P&G, LinkedIn, Time Warner Cable, Clorox, AstraZeneca, Cigna, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch Shell, Barrick Gold, AIG, Kraft Foods and Leap Wireless. Friday sees the release of the Labor Department’s July jobs report and the Commerce Department’s June consumer spending report, plus quarterly results from Chevron, Toyota and Viacom.
  
% CHANGE
Y-T-D
1-YR CHG
5-YR AVG
10-YR AVG
DJIA
+18.73
+20.72
+7.37
+6.76
NASDAQ
+19.66
+24.88
+11.28
+10.88
S&P 500
+18.61
+24.38
+6.90
+6.94
REAL YIELD
7/26 RATE
1 YR AGO
5 YRS AGO
10 YRS AGO
10 YR TIPS
0.43%
-0.66%
1.79%
2.14%
 

Sources: cnbc.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov - 7/26/135,6,7,8
Indices are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into directly.
These returns do not include dividends.


Please feel free to forward this article to family, friends or colleagues.
If you would like us to add them to our distribution list, please reply with their address.
We will contact them first and request their permission to add them to our list.


«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. This material represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.  Investments will fluctuate and when redeemed may be worth more or less than when originally invested. 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 - tinyurl.com/ke8ykkl [7/26/13]  
2 - bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-24/new-home-sales-in-u-s-rise-more-than-forecast-to-five-year-high.html [7/24/13]
3 - briefing.com/investor/calendars/economic/2013/07/22-26 [7/26/13]
4 - tinyurl.com/kgkofub [7/26/13]
5 - tinyurl.com/lpca2gz [7/26/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=7%2F26%2F12&x=0&y=0 [7/26/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=7%2F26%2F12&x=0&y=0 [7/26/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=7%2F26%2F12&x=0&y=0 [7/26/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=7%2F25%2F08&x=0&y=0 [7/26/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=7%2F25%2F08&x=0&y=0 [7/26/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=7%2F25%2F08&x=0&y=0 [7/26/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=7%2F25%2F03&x=0&y=0 [7/26/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=7%2F25%2F03&x=0&y=0 [7/26/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=7%2F25%2F03&x=0&y=0 [7/26/13]
7 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield [7/26/13]
8 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll [7/26/13]


Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Economic Update for the week of July 15th, 2013

WEEKLY ECONOMIC UPDATE


WEEKLY QUOTE
              
“Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.”
     
- Albert Einstein
     
   
WEEKLY TIP
             
If you own a house and have children, you should at least have a will, and preferably an estate plan.
  
   
WEEKLY RIDDLE
           
All around yet can’t be seen, has no throat but can be heard. What is it?
  
 
Last week’s riddle:
This house attracts travelers with its brightness, yet it is often the loneliest home on the coast. What kind of house is this?
   
Last week’s answer:
A lighthouse.


July 15, 2013
    
WILL THE EASING END SOONER, OR LATER?
Last Wednesday, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke lifted stocks by noting that the U.S. economy needed “highly accommodative monetary policy for the foreseeable future,” adding that the current 7.6% jobless rate “overstates the health of the labor market.” Remarks like these didn’t exactly suggest the Fed would scale back its asset purchases soon. The June Fed policy meeting minutes showed 11 of 12 Fed officials agreeing to sustain the central bank’s bond-buying campaign, with “about half” of these 11 envisioning QE3 wrapping up late this year. On Friday, Philadelphia Fed president Charles Plosser emerged from that camp, calling for a “gradual and predictable” end to the program before 2014.1,2,3
  
HOUSEHOLD SENTIMENT DECLINES A BIT
The initial July consumer sentiment index from the University of Michigan dipped mildly to 83.9. June’s final reading was 84.1, and economists polled by Reuters had expected the index to rise to 85.0.4
    
PRODUCER PRICES LEAP 0.8%
Minus food and energy prices, wholesale inflation wasn’t so pronounced in June. The core PPI rose just 0.2% last month. Analysts surveyed by Briefing.com had projected an overall PPI gain of 0.3%.4,5
       
WALL STREET GETS A BERNANKE BOUNCE
Dovish comments from the Fed chairman helped the S&P 500 to a new record close of 1,680.19 Friday. On the week, the S&P gained 2.96%. The NASDAQ rose 3.47% for the week to settle at 3,600.08 Friday. The Dow gained 2.17% last week and closed Friday at a fresh all-time peak of 15,464.30.4
   
THIS WEEK: Monday offers Q2 results from Citigroup, Census Bureau data on June retail sales and a Q2 GDP reading from China. The June CPI appears Tuesday, plus the latest NAHB housing market index, data on June industrial output and earnings from Goldman Sachs, Coca-Cola, Johnson & Johnson, Charles Schwab, Yahoo and CSX. Wednesday, Ben Bernanke begins two days of testimony in the Senate, a new Fed Beige Book arrives, and American Express, Bank of America, Bank of NY Mellon, Novartis, Abbott Labs, Mattel, eBay, IBM, Intel and SanDisk report earnings. Thursday offers earnings reports from Capital One, BlackRock, Morgan Stanley, United Health, Verizon, Nokia, Google, Microsoft, AMD and Chipotle, plus the latest initial claims figures and the Conference Board’s index of leading indicators. Friday, a G20 summit wraps up and Schlumberger, GE, Vodafone and Honeywell report Q2 results.
  
% CHANGE
Y-T-D
1-YR CHG
5-YR AVG
10-YR AVG
DJIA
+18.01
+22.99
+7.86
+6.96
NASDAQ
+19.23
+25.61
+12.16
+10.76
S&P 500
+17.81
+25.88
+7.11
+6.83
REAL YIELD
7/12 RATE
1 YR AGO
5 YRS AGO
10 YRS AGO
10 YR TIPS
0.55%
-0.58%
1.48%
1.88%
 

Sources: cnbc.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov - 7/12/134,6,7,8
Indices are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into directly.
These returns do not include dividends.


Please feel free to forward this article to family, friends or colleagues.
If you would like us to add them to our distribution list, please reply with their address.
We will contact them first and request their permission to add them to our list.


«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. This material represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.  Investments will fluctuate and when redeemed may be worth more or less than when originally invested. 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 - cnbc.com/id/100877586 [7/10/13]
2 - cnbc.com/id/100757576 [7/12/13]
3 - blogs.barrons.com/incomeinvesting/2013/07/10/treasury-yields-creep-higher-amid-parsing-of-fed-minutes-bernanke-speech/ [7/10/13]
4 - cnbc.com/id/100882518 [7/12/13]
5 - briefing.com/investor/calendars/economic/2013/07/08-12 [7/12/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=7%2F12%2F12&x=0&y=0 [7/12/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=7%2F12%2F12&x=0&y=0 [7/12/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=7%2F12%2F12&x=0&y=0 [7/12/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=7%2F11%2F08&x=0&y=0 [7/12/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=7%2F11%2F08&x=0&y=0 [7/12/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=7%2F11%2F08&x=0&y=0 [7/12/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=7%2F11%2F03&x=0&y=0 [7/12/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=7%2F11%2F03&x=0&y=0 [7/12/13]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=7%2F11%2F03&x=0&y=0 [7/12/13]
7 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield [7/12/13]
8 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll [7/12/13]

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Economic Update for the week of July 8th, 2013

WEEKLY ECONOMIC UPDATE


WEEKLY QUOTE
              
“Don’t dwell on what went wrong. Instead, focus on what to do next. Spend your energies on moving forward toward finding the answer.”
     
- Denis Waitley
     
   
WEEKLY TIP
             
A 30-day list can help you guard against impulse buying; place all nonessential purchases on the list and check again after 30 days. In many cases, the impulse will have passed. 
  
   
WEEKLY RIDDLE
           
This house attracts travelers with its brightness, yet it is often the loneliest home on the coast. What kind of house is this?
  
 
Last week’s riddle:
At a stop sign on a rural road, there are two trucks in front of a truck, two trucks behind a truck, and one truck in the middle of two trucks. How many trucks are there in total?
   
Last week’s answer:
Three.


July 8, 2013
    
AMERICA ADDS 195,000 JOBS IN JUNE
Payroll growth in June matched that of May, according to the Labor Department (the May gain was revised upward). The private sector hired 202,000 new workers after adding 207,000 in May, offsetting reductions to government payrolls. Economists polled by Bloomberg had forecast net job growth of 165,000, so this was encouraging. Will it encourage the Federal Reserve to taper? The Fed’s next policy announcement occurs on July 31, but it will not revise its economic forecasts at that time and no press conference is scheduled afterward. Some economists think the Fed could start tapering QE3 as soon as September.1
  
ISM INDICES BOTH TOP 50
The June purchasing manager indices from the Institute for Supply Management both showed sector expansion. The pace of growth moderated in the service sector, with June’s reading of 52.2 down 1.5 points from May. ISM’s manufacturing index rebounded impressively from a 49.0 reading in May to 50.9 in June.2
    
1-YEAR DELAY FOR EMPLOYER HEALTH CARE MANDATE
The Obama administration is postponing one of the key reforms of the Affordable Care Act – businesses with 50 or more full-time employees now won’t have to provide health insurance to workers until 2015. As around 85% of Americans already have health care coverage, the decision doesn’t impact a majority of individuals or businesses. Most uninsured individuals will still need to buy health coverage in 2014 and businesses with fewer than 50 FTEs won’t be required to sponsor health insurance plans next year. Still, the delay raises new questions about whether national health care reforms can proceed on schedule.3,4
       
ABBREVIATED TRADING WEEK SEES BIG GAINS
Stocks started July well. The S&P 500 rose 1.59% in four days to settle at 1,631.89 Friday. The DJIA rose 1.52% to close at 15,135.84 at week’s end, and the NASDAQ advanced 2.24% to wrap up the week at 3,479.38. Oil settled at $103.22 Friday, with prices soaring 6.7% in a week on worries about political instability in Egypt.5,6
   
THIS WEEK: The Q2 earnings season begins Monday with results from Alcoa.  Nothing major is scheduled for Tuesday. Wednesday, the June 19 FOMC minutes are released along with data on May wholesale inventories; Yum! Brands and Family Dollar report earnings. Thursday brings the latest initial jobless claims report plus earnings from Progressive and TXI. Friday, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo report quarterly results, June’s Producer Price Index arrives, and the University of Michigan publishes its initial July consumer sentiment survey.
  
% CHANGE
Y-T-D
1-YR CHG
5-YR AVG
10-YR AVG
DJIA
+15.50
+17.36
+6.82
+6.69
NASDAQ
+15.23
+16.91
+10.99
+10.92
S&P 500
+14.42
+19.33
+5.84
+6.56
REAL YIELD
7/5 RATE
1 YR AGO
5 YRS AGO
10 YRS AGO
10 YR TIPS
0.66%
-0.51%
1.42%
2.09%
 

Sources: usatoday.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov - 7/5/137,8,9,10
Indices are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into directly.
These returns do not include dividends.


Please feel free to forward this article to family, friends or colleagues.
If you would like us to add them to our distribution list, please reply with their address.
We will contact them first and request their permission to add them to our list.


«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. This material represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.  Investments will fluctuate and when redeemed may be worth more or less than when originally invested. 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 - bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-05/payrolls-in-u-s-increased-195-000-in-june-unemployment-7-6-.html [7/5/13]
2 - briefing.com/investor/calendars/economic/2013/07/01-05 [7/5/13]
3 - nytimes.com/2013/07/03/us/politics/obama-administration-to-delay-health-law-requirement-until-2015.html [7/3/13]
4 - kansascity.com/2013/07/03/4328512/qa-on-impact-of-health-law-delay.html [7/3/13]
5 - markets.on.nytimes.com/research/markets/overview/overview.asp [7/5/13]
6 - reuters.com/article/2013/07/05/us-markets-oil-idUSBRE9640FE20130705 [7/5/13]
7 - usatoday.com/money/markets/overview/ [7/5/13]
8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=7%2F5%2F12&x=0&y=0 [7/5/13]
8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=7%2F5%2F12&x=0&y=0 [7/5/13]
8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=7%2F5%2F12&x=0&y=0 [7/5/13]
8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=7%2F3%2F08&x=0&y=0 [7/5/13]
8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=7%2F3%2F08&x=0&y=0 [7/5/13]
8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=7%2F3%2F08&x=0&y=0 [7/5/13]
8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=7%2F3%2F03&x=0&y=0 [7/5/13]
8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=7%2F3%2F03&x=0&y=0 [7/5/13]
8 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=7%2F3%2F03&x=0&y=0 [7/5/13]
9 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield [7/5/13]
10 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll [7/5/13]