Economic Update for the week of April 22nd, 2014

WEEKLY ECONOMIC UPDATE
WEEKLY QUOTE                “The worst days of those who enjoy what they do are better than the best days of those who don’t.”       - Jim Rohn           WEEKLY TIP               Moving to a new state? Double-check your estate planning documents to see if any changes need to be made.        WEEKLY RIDDLE             I have a horn and am almost as large as a car, but I will never honk my horn or outrun a car or truck. What might I be?         Last week’s riddle: I can certainly run, but I will never be able to walk by myself. Wherever I go, thoughts are close behind me. What am I?     Last week’s answer: A nose.	April 22, 2014      CONSUMER PRICES ADVANCE 0.2% In reviewing March’s mild increase in household inflation, two statistics stand out. The Consumer Price Index measured a 2.7% year-over-year rise in shelter costs (the largest annual gain in six years). Americans also paid 0.4% for food last month. Annualized consumer inflation reached 1.5% in March, up from 1.1% for February.1     MARCH PUTS HOUSEHOLDS IN A BUYING MOOD Retail sales rose 1.1% last month, bettering the (revised) 0.7% advance in February. Census Bureau data showed core retail sales (minus auto buying) up 0.7% for March; they increased 0.3% a month earlier.2     FACTORIES & BUILDERS GROW BUSIER   According to Federal Reserve data, March was another solid month for industrial output – production rose 0.7%, and the Fed revised the February advance to 1.2%. Groundbreaking by builders increased 2.8% in March, though the Census Bureau also measured a 2.4% decline in building permits.2,3   BULLS RUN AGAIN Stocks got a lift last week as the pace of China’s economic growth topped forecasts and Fed chair Janet Yellen stated that the central bank has a “continuing commitment” to supporting the economy. The weekly gains: NASDAQ, 2.39% to 4,095.52; Dow, 2.37% to 16,408.54; S&P 500, 2.71% to 1,864.85.4,5,6    THIS WEEK: On Monday, earnings roll in from Kimberly-Clark, Netflix and Hasbro and the Conference Board’s March LEI also appears. Tuesday brings March existing home sales figures, the April FHFA home price index and earnings from Bank of NY Mellon, Amgen, Harley-Davidson, Comcast, McDonald's, Travelers, Xerox, AT&T, Discover Financial, Yum Brands, Lockheed Martin and Lexmark. March new home sales numbers are out Wednesday, plus quarterly results from Dow Chemical, Owens Corning, Boeing, Procter & Gamble, Facebook, Ericsson, Northrop Grumman, TD Ameritrade, Ingersoll-Rand, E*Trade, Zynga, Texas Instruments, Snapple, Delta Airlines, Raymond James, Safeway and Qualcomm. Thursday, earnings from Broadcom, Under Armour, Starbucks, Jet Blue, Altria, General Motors, Starwood, Microsoft, Amazon.com, Caterpillar, Verizon, 3M, UPS, T. Rowe Price, Novartis, PulteGroup, Raytheon, AstraZeneca, Occidental Petroleum, Eli Lilly, Dunkin Brands, DR Horton and Pandora arrive plus data on March hard goods orders and a new initial claims report. Friday, the University of Michigan’s final April consumer sentiment index comes out, plus earnings from State Street, Colgate-Palmolive, Ford, Goodyear, Honda, Weyerhaeuser and Tyco.      % CHANGE Y-T-D 1-YR CHG 5-YR AVG 10-YR AVG DJIA -1.01 +12.24 +20.36 +5.70 NASDAQ -1.94 +27.80 +28.96 +10.52 S&P 500 +0.89 +20.16 +22.89 +6.44 REAL YIELD 4/17 RATE 1 YR AGO 5 YRS AGO 10 YRS AGO 10 YR TIPS 0.52% -0.64% 1.70% 1.87%   Sources: USATODAY.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov - 4/17/146,7,8,9 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 MarketingPro, Inc., and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their affiliates. This information has been derived from sources believed to be accurate. Please note - investing involves risk, and past performance is no guarantee of future results. 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. 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. This is neither a solicitation nor recommendation to purchase or sell any investment or insurance product or service, and should not be relied upon as such. All indices are unmanaged and are not illustrative of any particular investment. 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 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 - marketwatch.com/story/consumer-prices-rise-02-in-march-2014-04-15 [4/15/14] 2 - briefing.com/investor/calendars/economic/2014/04/14-18 [4/17/14] 3 - latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-housing-starts-20140416,0,4151864.story [4/16/14] 4 - bloomberg.com/news/2014-04-16/u-s-stocks-maintain-gains-as-yellen-signals-support.html [4/16/14] 5 - google.com/finance?q=INDEXDJX:.DJI&ei=5IRQU7iUAaSsiQK1Kw [4/17/14] 6 - usatoday.com/money/markets/overview/ [4/17/14] 7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=4%2F17%2F13&x=0&y=0 [4/17/14] 7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=4%2F17%2F13&x=0&y=0 [4/17/14] 7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=4%2F17%2F13&x=0&y=0 [4/17/14] 7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=4%2F17%2F09&x=0&y=0 [4/17/14] 7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=4%2F17%2F09&x=0&y=0 [4/17/14] 7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=4%2F17%2F09&x=0&y=0 [4/17/14] 7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=4%2F16%2F04&x=0&y=0 [4/17/14] 7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=4%2F16%2F04&x=0&y=0 [4/17/14] 7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=4%2F16%2F04&x=0&y=0 [4/17/14]          8 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield [4/17/14] 9 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll [4/17/14]