WEEKLY ECONOMIC UPDATE - OCTOBER 3, 2011
AMERICANS SPEND A BIT MORE, EARN A BIT LESS
In August, personal spending improved by 0.2% while personal incomes retreated by 0.1%. This was the first monthly decline in household incomes since October 2009; July’s household earnings gain was revised down to 0.1%.1
AMERICANS SPEND A BIT MORE, EARN A BIT LESS
In August, personal spending improved by 0.2% while personal incomes retreated by 0.1%. This was the first monthly decline in household incomes since October 2009; July’s household earnings gain was revised down to 0.1%.1
An IMPROVEMENT IN CONSUMER SENTIMENTSeptember’s final University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey came in at 59.4, much better than the final August mark of 55.7 and topping the consensus forecast of 57.8 from economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index ticked up 0.2% to 45.4 this month.1
DURABLE GOODS DEMAND HOLDS UP IN AUGUST
The Commerce Department said overall hard goods orders declined 0.1% in August, but a closer look revealed some positives. Core capital goods orders (excluding the aircraft and transportation sectors) improved by 1.1% and core capital goods shipments were up by 2.8%.2
The Commerce Department said overall hard goods orders declined 0.1% in August, but a closer look revealed some positives. Core capital goods orders (excluding the aircraft and transportation sectors) improved by 1.1% and core capital goods shipments were up by 2.8%.2
SURVEYING THE REAL ESTATE SECTOR New home sales slipped 2.3% in August but showed a 6.1% annual gain, according to the Census Bureau. The same trend held true for pending home sales: the National Association of Realtors said they were down 1.2% for August but up 7.7% from a year before. The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller home price index rose 0.9% in July with prices 4.1% underneath July 2010 levels.3,4,5
MIXED WEEK CLOSES OUT TOUGH MONTHSeptember saw major losses for the Dow (-6.03%), NASDAQ (-6.36%) and S&P 500 (-7.18%). Last week’s numbers showed the blue chips rising: DJIA, +1.32% for the week to settle Friday at 10,913.38; NASDAQ, -2.73% last week to 2,415.40; S&P 500, -0.44% last week to 1,131.42.6
THIS WEEK: Monday, ISM comes out with its September manufacturing index and we learn about September auto sales. Tuesday, Fed chairman Ben Bernanke speaks to Congress, the latest Apple iPhone is unveiled and Yum Brands announces 3Q earnings. Wednesday offers ISM’s September service sector index plus earnings from Costco, Marriott and Monsanto. On Thursday, the European Central Bank and Bank of England make monetary policy announcements, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner testifies in Congress, and new initial claims figures also arrive. Friday, the Labor Department releases the September unemployment report.
% CHANGE
|
Y-T-D
|
1-YR CHG
|
5-YR AVG
|
10-YR AVG
|
DJIA
|
-5.74
|
+1.16
|
-1.31
|
+2.35
|
NASDAQ
|
-8.95
|
+1.97
|
+1.39
|
+6.32
|
S&P 500
|
-10.04
|
-0.86
|
-3.06
|
+0.89
|
REAL YIELD
|
9/30 RATE
|
1 YR AGO
|
5 YRS AGO
|
10 YRS AGO
|
10 YR TIPS
|
0.17%
|
0.75%
|
2.27%
|
3.50%
|
Sources: cnbc.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov, treasurydirect.gov - 9/30/116,7,8,9
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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