|
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WEEKLY QUOTE
“Don’t
rule out working with your hands. It does not preclude using your head.”
- Andy Rooney
WEEKLY TIP
If
you are newly married, think about creating a joint savings or checking
account to which you can both contribute each month. The money in the account
can be used to pay for jointly incurred financial/household expenses.
WEEKLY RIDDLE
Katherine
and Sterling each have the same amount of pears. How many pears does
Katherine need to give Sterling so that Sterling has 10 more pears than she
does?
Last week’s riddle:
I am astonishingly light, but even the strongest person in the
world can only hold me for a few minutes. What am I?
Last week’s answer:
Air.
|
February 24,
2015
GREECE DEAL, FED MINUTES REASSURE
INVESTORS
On
Friday, Greece reached an agreement with eurozone finance ministers to extend
its economic bailout through June. The four extra months of financial aid
depend on reforms that the country will present to its creditors this week (they
must be approved by April). Stateside, minutes from the Federal Reserve’s
January policy meeting noted that most Fed officials favored “keeping the
federal funds rate at its effective lower bound for a longer time,” which
also pleased the markets.1,2
PRODUCER PRICES FALL BY MOST IN 5 YEARS
Labor
Department data showed an 0.8% dip in the Producer Price Index in January,
the largest monthly decline since November 2009. Cheaper fuel costs were the
major factor. The core PPI (minus food and energy prices) was flat
year-over-year.2
LESS GROUNDBREAKING IN JANUARY
The pace of housing starts slowed 2.0% last month – not
surprising given the rough weather in much of the nation. January also saw building permits
decline 0.7%. While the Commerce Department reported fewer
single-family projects starting up, multi-family construction actually
accelerated in the year’s opening month.2
STOCKS MOVE NORTH
Solid gains occurred during a short trading week: DJIA,
0.94% to 18,140.44; NASDAQ, 2.02% to 4,955.97; S&P 500, 0.63% to
2,110.30. WTI crude fell 5.20% for the week, settling Friday at $49.91 a barrel;
gold slipped 2.36% for the week to a Friday COMEX settlement of 1,199.10.3
THIS WEEK: The
National Association of Realtors reports January existing home sales on Monday.
Tuesday, Fed chair Janet Yellen begins two days of testimony to the Senate
Banking Committee, and February’s Conference Board consumer confidence index,
the December S&P/Case-Shiller home price index, a new reading on euro
area inflation and earnings from Home Depot, Hertz Global, Comcast, Macy’s,
First Solar, Domino’s, Hewlett-Packard and Office Depot arrive. Wednesday, investors
assess the Census Bureau’s report on January new home buying, an HSBC factory
PMI for China and earnings from Lowe’s, Campbell Soup, RBC, SodaStream, TJX,
Target, Chesapeake Energy, Dollar Tree and Transocean. News items for
Thursday include January’s CPI and durable goods orders, new initial claims figures
and quarterly results from Sempra Energy, AMC Networks, Anheuser-Busch,
Autodesk, Gap, Herbalife, J.C. Penney, Kohl’s, L Brands and Monster. On Friday,
the second estimate of Q4 GDP arrives, plus the University of Michigan’s
final February consumer sentiment index and NAR’s January pending home sales
report.
Sources: online.wsj.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov - 2/20/154,5,6,7
Indices
are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into
directly. These returns do not include dividends. 10-year TIPS real yield =
projected return at maturity given expected inflation.
|
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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 - tinyurl.com/kfx2gv2 [2/20/15]
2 - bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-18/factory-production-in-u-s-climbed-less-than-forecast-in-january
[2/18/15]
3 - markets.on.nytimes.com/research/markets/usmarkets/usmarkets.asp
[2/20/15]
4 - markets.wsj.com/us [2/20/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=2%2F20%2F14&x=0&y=0
[2/20/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=2%2F20%2F14&x=0&y=0
[2/20/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=2%2F20%2F14&x=0&y=0
[2/20/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=2%2F19%2F10&x=0&y=0
[2/20/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=2%2F19%2F10&x=0&y=0
[2/20/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=2%2F19%2F10&x=0&y=0
[2/20/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=2%2F18%2F05&x=0&y=0
[2/20/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=2%2F18%2F05&x=0&y=0
[2/20/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=2%2F18%2F05&x=0&y=0
[2/20/15]
6 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield
[2/20/15]
7 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll
[2/20/15]
|
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Economic Update for the week of February 24th, 2015
Thursday, February 19, 2015
Economic Update for the week of February 19th, 2015
|
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WEEKLY QUOTE
“The
real problem is not whether machines think but whether men do.”
- B.F. Skinner
WEEKLY TIP
One
fundamental rule about consumer debt: never arrange a loan that may outlast
the life of whatever you are buying.
WEEKLY RIDDLE
I
am astonishingly light, but even the strongest person in the world can only
hold me for a few minutes. What am I?
Last week’s riddle:
What 8-letter name would be cute and logical for a house cat living
below the Mason-Dixon line?
Last week’s answer:
Southpaw.
|
February 19,
2015
RETAIL SALES DECREASE AGAIN
Recently,
economists have worried about a decline in household spending. The 0.8% fall
for retail sales in January affirmed their anxieties. Consumers have
certainly been buying less fuel, but even with gas purchases removed, there was
still an 0.2% retreat. Headline retail sales have now sunk for consecutive
months; earlier Commerce Department data showed an 0.9% falloff in December.1
HOUSEHOLD SENTIMENT INDEX DECLINES
Did
the rough weather blasting much of the nation affect the reading of the
latest University of Michigan consumer sentiment index? Quite possibly. The
final January edition came in at an 11-year high of 98.1, but February’s
initial edition fell to 93.6 – and per region, the major declines came in the
Midwest and Northeast.1
OIL ENDS THE WEEK WITH A RALLY
Rising 3.1% in a day, WTI crude settled at $52.78 a barrel
on
the NYMEX Friday. Over on the COMEX, silver rose 3.6% on the week to $17.29
while gold slipped 0.6% across five days to $1.227.10.2
S&P 500 CLOSES AT A NEW RECORD HIGH
Thanks to a 2.02% weekly ascent, the index settled at
2,096.99 Friday. Rising crude prices and signs of economic improvement in the
euro area helped. Those factors also assisted the Dow and Nasdaq: the former
gained 1.09% on the week, the latter 3.15%. Friday brought a close of
4,893.84 for the Nasdaq, 18,019.35 for the Dow.3
THIS WEEK: U.S.
stock and bond markets are closed Monday for Presidents’ Day, but eyes will
be on Europe as Greece formally asks to renegotiate its bailout. On Tuesday, earnings
roll in from MGM Resorts, Goodyear, Medtronic, Waste Management, Norwegian
Cruise Line, Agilent, Fossil, Jack in the Box, and Bridgestone. Wednesday,
Wall Street looks at the minutes from the January Federal Reserve policy
meeting, the latest Producer Price Index, data on January industrial output,
building permits and housing starts and earnings from Fluor, Duke Energy,, Hilton,
Avis Budget Group, SolarCity, Virgin America, Hyatt Hotels, Marathon Oil,
Healthstream, Denny’s, Barrick Gold, Marriott and Garmin. The
Conference Board’s January index of leading indicators arrives Thursday, plus
a new initial claims report, earnings from Nestle, Wal-Mart, Priceline,
Hormel, DirecTV, Boise Cascade, Clear Channel, Novatel, Noble Energy, Six
Flags Entertainment, Newmont Mining, Public Storage and Nordstrom … and for
the first time ever, minutes from a European Central Bank meeting (January
22). Friday sees earnings from Choice Hotels and Deere.
Sources: online.wsj.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov - 2/13/154,5,6,7
Indices
are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into
directly. These returns do not include dividends. 10-year TIPS real yield =
projected return at maturity given expected inflation.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 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 - tinyurl.com/pfjbxc4 [2/13/15]
2 - proactiveinvestors.com/companies/news/59878/gold-gains-05-to-1227-wti-rises-31-to-5278-59878.html
[2/13/15]
3 -
markets.on.nytimes.com/research/markets/usmarkets/usmarkets.asp [2/13/15]
4 - markets.wsj.com/us [2/13/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=2%2F13%2F14&x=0&y=0
[2/13/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=2%2F13%2F14&x=0&y=0
[2/13/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=2%2F13%2F14&x=0&y=0
[2/13/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=2%2F12%2F10&x=0&y=0
[2/13/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=2%2F12%2F10&x=0&y=0
[2/13/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=2%2F12%2F10&x=0&y=0
[2/13/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=2%2F14%2F05&x=0&y=0
[2/13/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=2%2F14%2F05&x=0&y=0
[2/13/15]
5 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=2%2F14%2F05&x=0&y=0
[2/13/15]
6 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield
[2/13/15]
7 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll
[2/13/15]
|
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Economic Update for the week of February 10th, 2015
|
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WEEKLY QUOTE
“No
problem is so formidable that you can’t walk away from it.”
- Charles M. Schulz
WEEKLY TIP
Student
discounts abound. Urge your son or daughter to take advantage of every retail
discount they can get with a campus ID card.
WEEKLY RIDDLE
What
8-letter name would be cute and logical for a house cat living below the Mason-Dixon
line?
Last week’s riddle:
A ship cruised out of the Pacific Ocean and into the Atlantic
Ocean through the Panama Canal – but as it went through the Panama Canal, it
didn’t travel east. How is this possible?
Last week’s answer:
The Panama Canal runs
northwest-southeast. Ships travel northwest through the canal to enter the
Caribbean Sea (and the Atlantic Ocean).
|
February 10,
2015
EMPLOYERS ADD 257,000 JOBS IN JANUARY
That
beat the 230,000 hires forecast in a MarketWatch consensus of analysts. Yes,
the headline jobless rate actually rose 0.1% to 5.7% last month, and the
total unemployment rate (U-6) rose for the first time in six months to 11.3%
- but average hourly wages were up 0.5%, a striking shift after the 0.3%
December decrease.1,2
ONE ISM PMI FALLS, ANOTHER RISES
The
Institute for Supply Management’s January factory PMI lost 1.6 points to come
in at 53.5, while its January service sector index advanced 0.2 points to
56.7. Analysts polled by MarketWatch projected readings of 55.0 for the
manufacturing gauge and 56.5 for the services gauge. In related news, the
Federal Reserve said factory orders fell 3.4% in December, twice the November
decline.1
CONSUMER SPENDING SANK IN DECEMBER
December saw a welcome 0.3% gain in consumer
incomes but also a 0.3% pullback in consumer spending – the largest monthly
dip since 2009. The Commerce Department noted sizable December declines in
car and truck sales – and less spending on gas and other fuels. The personal
savings rate rose 0.6% to 4.9%.3
MOMENTUM RETURNS TO THE MARKET
Oil rallied, hiring topped expectations and the euro area
was poised to receive an economic stimulus, so big gains were the order of
the week. The Dow soared 3.84% in five trading days, settling Friday at
17,824.29. The same stretch saw the Nasdaq climb 2.35% to 4,744.40 and the
S&P 500 jump 3.03% to 2,055.47. Light sweet crude gained 8.84% last week
in New York to reach $52.08 a barrel Friday; gold futures lost 3.62% on the
COMEX.4
THIS WEEK: Monday, Wall
Street reviews Q4 results from Loews Corp. and Hasbro. Tuesday
brings data on December wholesale stockpiles plus earnings from CVS Health,
Akamai, Dean Foods, LifeLock, Monster, Genworth, Kinross Gold, Molson Coors, Spirit
Airlines, Starwood Hotels and Western Union. More earnings appear on Wednesday:
Cisco, Tesla, Baidu, MetLife, Applied Materials, Panera, AOL, Cheesecake
Factory, NetApp, Mosaic, Nvidia, PepsiCo, Owens Corning, Panera, Tesoro, Time
Warner, TripAdvisor, Whole Foods and Zulily. January retail sales and
December business inventories reports are out on Thursday, along with the
latest initial jobless claims numbers and earnings from Coca-Cola, Avon,
Apache, Groupon, Zynga, AIG, Boyd Gaming, CBS, Kellogg, Kraft Foods and
Shutterfly. The University of Michigan’s initial February consumer sentiment
index and earnings from J.M. Smucker and Red Robin complete the week on Friday.
Sources: online.wsj.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov - 2/6/155,6,7,8
Indices
are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into
directly. These returns do not include dividends. 10-year TIPS real yield =
projected return at maturity given expected inflation.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 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/economy-politics/calendars/economic [2/6/15]
2 - tinyurl.com/nyfpnt2 [2/6/15]
3 - marketwatch.com/story/consumer-spending-posts-biggest-drop-since-2009-2015-02-02
[2/2/15]
4 -
markets.on.nytimes.com/research/markets/usmarkets/usmarkets.asp [2/6/15]
5 - markets.wsj.com/us [2/6/15]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=2%2F6%2F14&x=0&y=0
[2/6/15]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=2%2F6%2F14&x=0&y=0
[2/6/15]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=2%2F6%2F14&x=0&y=0
[2/6/15]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=2%2F5%2F10&x=0&y=0
[2/6/15]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=2%2F5%2F10&x=0&y=0
[2/6/15]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=2%2F5%2F10&x=0&y=0
[2/6/15]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=2%2F7%2F05&x=0&y=0
[2/6/15]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=2%2F7%2F05&x=0&y=0
[2/6/15]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=2%2F7%2F05&x=0&y=0
[2/6/15]
7 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield
[2/6/15]
8 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll
[2/6/15]
|
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