Blog Feed: The Great Redoubt

World News!

Published on 2012-05-14 08:15:00

Afghanistan A bicycle bomb killed nine people in Faryab. China In an effort to get a larger piece of the lucrative (and large) Chinese market, Ford plans to double production in the country by 2015.  The car maker anticipates sales will reach 30 million vehicles by 2020, approximately double their U.S. sales. China has denied claims that it attempted to > read more

Producer Price Index News Release

Published on 2012-05-13 08:01:00

  Bureau of Labor Statistics The latest Producer Price Index news release has been posted on the BLS website at http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ppi.pdf and also archived at http://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/ppi_05112012.pdf. > read more

FW: World News!

Published on 2012-05-10 09:13:00

Pakistan Following the beheading of a British nurse, the International Committee of the Red Cross has suspended humanitarian activities in Peshawar and Karachi. South Korea In "eeeewww" news, South Korea is stepping up customs inspections in an effort to crack down on the trade in powdered human flesh. Syria A car bomb exploded near an office of the > read more

International Trade

Published on 2012-05-10 08:11:00

International Trade is the shorthand for the U.S. International Trade Deficit[1], a measure of how much we import vs. how much we export.  If the number is positive, that means we're exporting more than we're importing.  If it's negative, then it's the other way around.  The report is lagging, looking at the balance from two months in the past.   This metric is huge, mostly because it > read more

Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report

Published on 2012-05-10 08:11:00

It is, of course, Thursday.  And if it's Thursday, it's time for unemployment!   If you recall from last week, we had an advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims for the week of April 28 come in at 365,000, beating expectations.  The advance figure for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment also declined to 3,276,000.  Even the unadjusted numbers were good:  the > read more

U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes News Release

Published on 2012-05-10 08:10:00

  Bureau of Labor Statistics The latest U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes news release has been posted on the BLS website at http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ximpim.pdf and also archived at http://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/ximpim_05102012.pdf. > read more

Import and Export Prices

Published on 2012-05-10 08:10:00

Import and Export Prices is exactly what it looks like.  A measure of the change in the prices we receive for exporting goods and services, and and a measure in the change in prices for goods and services we import.  It's a separate report from International Trade (go figure), and it is a one month lagging indicator.   March saw a 0.8% increase in export prices, and a 1.3% increase in > read more

Employment Situation

Published on 2012-05-07 08:55:00

This is clearly a few days late, but I don't work on Fridays anymore.   Well, more accurately, I don't come in to the office on Fridays.  Having a 19-month-old means I still work on Fridays.  But that's neither here nor there.  The point is, this is a few days late.   The Employment Situation Report is one of the big reports.  It's put out by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau > read more

Breaking News, Again

Published on 2012-05-03 17:13:00

Facebook has filed Amendment No. 5 with the Securities and Exchange Commission to take its stock public with an offering price between $28 and $35.  the form still does not state an official date.   Looks like the "source familiar with" was pretty familiar. > read more

Breaking News! It's Coming!

Published on 2012-05-03 14:39:00

According to "a source familiar with the IPO", Facebook, Inc plans to price its IPO at a range with a mid-point of $31.50.  That would give the company a valuation around $90 billion.  The final pricing is expected in about two weeks, and "people familiar with the matter" say that the company will begin pitching its stock to investors on Monday.   So far, though, this is all "source > read more

Social Secuirty To Run Dry By 2035

Published on 2012-05-03 12:32:00

> read more

Challenger Job Cut Report

Published on 2012-05-03 08:28:00

More properly, this is the Challenger, Gray & Christmas Job Cut Report.   Challenger, Gray & Christmas is an outplacement consulting firm.  They are brought in when a company is laying employees off, to assist those employees in looking for new jobs.  they primarily cater to executives and middle management, but they - rather like ADP - have access to a great deal of information about > read more

Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report

Published on 2012-05-03 08:26:00

Also known as "jobless claims", this is the Department of Labor's weekly report on... wait for it... how many people are applying for unemployment insurance.   I'll bet you would never have guessed that, from the name.  Right?     Anyway, back to being serious about this.  The Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report is a lagging report, providing information for the previous > read more

World News

Published on 2012-05-02 14:09:00

Egypt Eleven people were killed and more than 160 wounded after armed men[1] attacked protesters demanding an end to army rule in Egypt. Germany A court in Mannheim ruled that Microsoft has infringed Motorola Mobility's patents and has ordered that the Xbox 360 and Window 7 OS be removed from the German market.  A US district court has granted an injunction > read more

Employment Week and the ADP Employment Report

Published on 2012-05-02 14:09:00

It's the first week of the month, which means that the market is looking with bated breath towards Friday and the Employment Situation report.  Analysts will be scrutinizing the preliminary information in an effort to gauge which way the news will swing, and that preliminary information comes in three flavors: The ADP Employment Report (and more on that in a moment) The > read more

U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes News Release

Published on 2011-11-10 08:02:00

  Bureau of Labor Statistics The latest U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes news release has been posted on the BLS website at http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ximpim.pdf and also archived at http://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/ximpim_11102011.pdf. Highlights are below. > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-11-10 08:01:00

Well, it's Thursday.  And if it's Thursday, that means it's time for the First Time Jobless Claims report!   To start with, let's recap last week.  The advance figure for initial claims for the week ending 10/29 came in at 397,000 (which beat the expected 400,000 new claims), and the advance figure for actual initial claims came in at 366,923.  Meanwhile, the total number of people claiming > read more

International Trade

Published on 2011-11-10 08:01:00

International Trade is one of those justifiably influential reports.  Even if you've never paid attention to it before, you've heard of it.  Of course, if you don't follow the economic indicators, you've probably heard of it under a different name:  the US trade deficit.  And that's exactly what International Trade is:  the difference in total dollars between what we import and what we > read more

Employment Situation

Published on 2011-11-04 08:30:00

There's really only one market indicator coming out today, but it's a big one: the Employment Situation report.  this report is the official word on how many nonfarm jobs (and how many nonfarm private sector jobs) were created for the previous month, what the unemployment rate is, how much average hourly earnings changed, and what the average work week is.  A good Employment Situation report > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-11-03 08:02:00

First up for today's economic data is First Time Jobless Claims.  This particular report is a look at, well, exactly what it sounds like.  How many people filed for unemployment insurance for the first time in a given week.  The figures come in two flavors:  seasonally adjusted (which attempts to make allowances for seasonality[1]) and unadjusted (the actual raw number of claimants).  Also, > read more

ADP Employment Report

Published on 2011-11-02 08:52:00

The ADP Employment Report is the second wave of jobs week, and is rather less depressing to look at than the Challenger Job Cuts Report.  Why?  Well, this report looks at the total number of new jobs that were created in the private sector.   ADP, or Automatic Data Processing, is "one of the world's largest providers of business outsourcing solutions" (to quote their website).  In essence,if > read more

Employment Situation News Release

Published on 2011-09-02 07:54:00

I know I've been a bit of a slacker on these updates this week, and I'll get back to them on Tuesday.  But have a look at this.  We added 0 jobs in August.   Expect market panic, going into Labor Day. Bureau of Labor Statistics The latest Employment Situation news release has been posted on the BLS > read more

Q2 2011 Gross Domestic Product, First Revision

Published on 2011-08-26 07:50:00

This is it.  The ur-metric.  The Platonic form of economic figures.  Everything else we look at is just an aspect, a shadow, of the Gross Domestic Product.  Everything else measures portions of the economy, but the Gross Domestic Product is the economy.   Of course, what we have today isn't all that impressive.  Last month, we got an initial release of data, subject to revision twice.  That > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-08-25 08:02:00

Oh my gosh!  Did he finally write a market news post?  Yes he did!  Wow!   Self-sarcasm aside, it's time for the oft-depressing First Time Jobless Claims report.  If you recall from last week, we had a week of bad news.  The 8/6 initial jobless claims were adjusted downwards to 399,000, but the 8/13 advance figure for seasonally adjusted claims came in at an expectations-missing 408,000.  > read more

FW: First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-08-18 08:26:00

And, of course, we have the first time jobless claims.  If you're new to this, this report is a measure of how many people filed for unemployment insurance in the previous week.   Last week, the figures for the week ending 8/6 were better than expected.  New claims for 7/30 were revised upwards to 402,000 - technically putting us at 20 upwards revisions in 24 weeks, although it did only > read more

World News! Now With Exploding Watermelon!

Published on 2011-06-30 15:42:00

China You think the occasional bout of E.coli in the US is bad?  Try pigs laced with toxic levels of steroids, phospherescent blue pork, and watermelon that explodes like landmines. Egypt In a flashback to the beginning of the yea > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-06-30 10:27:00

As you all may remember, I was on vacation last week.  Amongst other things, this means that I did not pay attention to any form of economic data beyond the balance of my checking account.  I have no idea what the figures looked like last week. > read more

World News! Now Back From Vacation!

Published on 2011-06-28 10:58:00

Australia Philip Morris is has threatened to sue the government of Australia over a plan to ban company logos and branding on tobacco packaging.  The company states that the law violates an investment treaty between Australia and Hong > read more

Market Moving Data, 6/20 - 6/24

Published on 2011-06-17 15:55:00

I'm going to be on vacation all next week, so I obviously won't be providing any commentary on the market during that time.  Here's what you'll be looking at, while I'm watching TV and trying to keep my son from eating the dog's food.   Monday, > read more

Regional and State Employment and Unemployment (Monthly) News Release

Published on 2011-06-17 09:40:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Regional and State Employment and Unemployment news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/laus.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highl > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-06-16 15:08:00

Belarus Protesting the economic crisis in the eastern European nation, around 1000 people gathered outside the main administration building in defiance of - stop me if this sounds familiar - orders issued under a State of Emergency bannin > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-06-16 08:51:00

Next on the agenda for market-moving news, we have unemployment insurance claims.   Last week, we had "mixed but bad" results.  The analysts had been calling for 418,000 new claims for 6/4, and we got 427,000 instead.  On the other ha > read more

Housing Starts

Published on 2011-06-16 08:10:00

First up on the market-movement agenda for today is Housing Starts, a monthly examination of how many new residential buildings have started construction.  The figures are given as an annualized rate, meaning we are looking at how many houses wou > read more

World News, In Which We Learn How Much Cash Fits In An Airplane

Published on 2011-06-15 10:36:00

Canada Richard Gadden, director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, has warned that state-sponsored espionage against the country has reached "levels equal to, or greater than those witnessed during the Cold War." Chi > read more

Industrial Production

Published on 2011-06-15 08:33:00

This particular report is another one of those reports that is pretty much exactly what it sounds like.  It's an overview of the monthly change in factory production rates, and then a look at what percentage of our total (theoretical) production > read more

Consumer Price Index News Release

Published on 2011-06-15 08:24:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Consumer Price Index news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cpi.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.----------- > read more

Consumer Price Index

Published on 2011-06-15 07:49:00

Yesterday, we had a look at production cost inflation (through the PPI).  Today, it's time to consult the CPI-U and see what, if anything, has passed on to consumers.   Last month, April's CPI-U was a mixed bag of results.  It increased 0.4%, w > read more

Retail Sales

Published on 2011-06-14 10:05:00

Retail Sales!  This is the report in which the US Census Bureau tells us about the changes in total receipts at stores that sell durable and nondurable goods - that is, goods you can touch, pick up, smell, eat, and so forth.  As opposed to intan > read more

Producer Price Index

Published on 2011-06-14 09:12:00

The Producer Price Index - PPI to its friends - is a Bureau of Labor Statistics index that tracks the change in manufacturing costs in the United States.  If PPI goes up, that implies rising inflation (although it doesn't always prove it, since b > read more

NFIB Small Business Optimism Index

Published on 2011-06-14 09:11:00

The NFIB is the National Federation of Independent Business, an organization that describes itself as "the leading small business association representing small and independent businesses.  A nonprofit, nonpartisan organization founded in 19 > read more

Producer Price Index News Release

Published on 2011-06-14 09:11:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Producer Price Index news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ppi.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.----------- > read more

What's Happening This Week?

Published on 2011-06-13 13:22:00

Just a quick look into the future, so you know what to expect in the way of market-moving economic measures.   Tuesday brings us the NIFIB Small Business Optimism Index (aka "what sort of mood are half the employers in the United States in" > read more

US International Trade In Goods And Services, April 2011

Published on 2011-06-09 10:54:00

International Trade is another term for trade surplus (or deficit).  This is one of those important economic measures, because it directly impacts GDP - by definition, a trade surplus is directly added to GDP and a trade deficit is directly subtr > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-06-09 09:47:00

It's Thursday!  And Thursday means unemployment!  Well, specifically, it means the Department of Labor's statistics on initial (and, to a lesser extent, continuing) unemployment claims.   Last week, the week ending 5/28, the news was sad and > read more

World News, In Which The Possibility Of A US Debt Default Is Explored, And In Which US Debt Holders Express Certain Concerns

Published on 2011-06-08 12:02:00

Africa The Famine Early Warning Systems Network, an arm of the nonprofit US Agency for International Development, issued a report today warning that after two consecutive seasons of significantly below-average rainfall, nations on the > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-06-07 12:08:00

China In commentary that was quickly removed from the Chinese State Administration of Foreign Exchange, Guan Tao advised that China should guard against "economic and political risks in excessive holdings of US dollar assets" > read more

FAO Food Price Index

Published on 2011-06-07 09:40:00

The FAO is the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.  The FAO Food Price Index is, according to their web site, "a measure of the monthly change in international prices of a basked of food commodities."  Nice and str > read more

World News Is All Up In UR Internetz!

Published on 2011-06-06 10:42:00

Chile One-upping Iceland, the Puyehue-Cordon-Caulle volcano range - running about 500 miles south of Santiago - erupted over the weekend.  Colombia A US judge has allowed lawsuits brought against Chiquita by at least 4000 Colombia > read more

What's Good For The Goose...

Published on 2011-06-05 14:35:00

In what sounds like something straight out of the Onion, a couple in Florida had a Bank of America office foreclosed on after the bank failed to pay legal fees as ordered by a judge.Really, I don't know if I can add anything to this, except to say th > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-06-03 11:15:00

Greece Greece has apparently agreed in principle to a new bail-out package.  Greece has agreed to another 6.4 billion euros in austerity measures and to (finally) start its 50 billion euro privatization program, and in return they wil > read more

Commissioner's Statement on the Employment Situation News Release

Published on 2011-06-03 08:30:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Commissioner's Statement on the Employment Situation (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/jec.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The text is b > read more

Employment Situation

Published on 2011-06-03 08:28:00

And now, the moment you've all been waiting for with baited breath, the balm bringing sweet surcease of sorrow to soothe the hurts of the market...   It's the Employment Situation report!  The Bureau of Labor Statistics' monthly review of how > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-06-02 14:18:00

Bahrain Bahrain has lifted its Saudi Arabia-supported (through money and troops) state of emergency, after 11 weeks and 20 deaths.  The state of emergency was originally implemented to suppress pro-democracy protesters demanding c > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-06-01 11:29:00

Australia In "Ministry of Love" news, the state of Victoria is about to approve a new law that will allow police to levy fines of up to Aus$240 on people who use "offensive words or phrases" in public. Europe In &qu > read more

ADP Employment Report

Published on 2011-06-01 08:52:00

Now, a (hopeful) look at the positive side of employment data.   ADP is short for Automatic Data Processing, which claims (with some probable justification) to be "one of the world's largest providers of business outsourcing solutions". > read more

The Challenger Job Cut Report

Published on 2011-06-01 08:33:00

It's Employment Situation season, and in celebration of that fact we'll be looking at employment data for the rest of the week.  Right out of the gate, we have the Challenger Job Cuts report.  This report comes to us courtesy of the outplacement > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-05-31 15:59:00

Belarus In "well, it guess things could be worse" news, the central bank of Belarus has raised its main interest rate from 14% to 16% in an effort to fight inflation (which is projected to hit 39% by year end), and is also nego > read more

S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index

Published on 2011-05-31 11:00:00

This is, of course, a report that tracks the average change in house prices in a set of 10-city and 20-city metropolitan areas throughout the United States.  It's a lagging indicator, since it looks at data from two months in the past, so it > read more

Consumer Confidence

Published on 2011-05-31 10:30:00

Consumer Confidence is upon us!  And what is Consumer Confidence you ask?[1]  It is a current to foreword-looking survey of what consumer households think about the economy.  It samples what people think about current and future economic condit > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-05-27 14:50:00

Greece The IMF has warned that they may refuse to release the June tranche of aid payments to Greece if the country does not start reducing its deficit and otherwise begin acting with more fiscal responsibility. Greek Prime Minis > read more

Pending Home Sales

Published on 2011-05-27 10:32:00

Contender number two in our mixed bag of economic data is "pending home sales", an index maintained by the National Association of Realtors that tracks the number of pending home sales[1].  These are defined as a sale in which a contrac > read more

Personal Income and Outlays. Now With 100% Less ROYAL WEDDING!!!!!!

Published on 2011-05-27 08:24:00

We've got a mixed bag of economic data coming out today,starting off with personal income and outlays.  Which is, of course, an index that tracks overall changes in personal income.  And personal outlays[1].  It also has one particular measure > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-05-26 13:53:00

Egypt The "transitional" Egyptian military government will permanently reopen the Rafah border crossing into Gaza to most Palestinians.  This crossing is the only passage into Gaza that bypasses Israel. France The Group of > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-05-26 08:44:00

Have you caught your breath from that GDP beating yet?  Good, because it's time for the left hook in that one-two punch combo as First Time Jobless Claims come out.   Last week was extremely good.  The advance figure for seasonally adjusted ini > read more

Q1 2011 GDP, First Revision

Published on 2011-05-26 08:44:00

We've got an economic one-two punch coming down the track this morning.  We open up with Gross Domestic Product, the "other fist of steel" to first time jobless claim's "one fist of iron"[1].  And Gross Domestic Product is > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-05-25 10:13:00

China In "really?" news, 43% of respondents to a survey conducted by the European Union Chamber of Commerce believe that Beijing discriminates against foreign businesses (an increase from last year's 36%), with 46% believing > read more

MBA Purchase Applications

Published on 2011-05-25 08:06:00

This is, of course, the Mortgage Bankers' Association indices of mortgage application activity for the previous week.  It actually consists of three indices:  the Market Composite Index (which tracks overall mortgage application activity), the P > read more

Durable Goods Orders

Published on 2011-05-25 08:06:00

With the mortgage applications out of the way, it's time to move on to an economic index the market cares about.  Durable Goods Orders.   According to Barron's Dictionary of Finance and Investment Terms,  durable goods are "goods that hav > read more

Chrysler Repays Outstanding TARP Loans

Published on 2011-05-24 13:53:00

Chrysler Repays Outstanding TARP Loans Early Repayment Comes Six Years before Loans Mature in 2017 115,000 Jobs Added in Auto Industry since June 2009 – Strongest Growth in a Decade WASHINGTON – Today, the > read more

Remarks by Under Secretary for International Affairs Lael Brainard on Global Agriculture and Food Security

Published on 2011-05-24 13:52:00

Remarks by Under Secretary for International Affairs Lael Brainard on Global Agriculture and Food Security Chicago Council of Global Affair's Symposium on Global Agriculture and Food Security As Prepared for Deli > read more

New Home Sales

Published on 2011-05-24 10:12:00

This is a little late, but it's worth it.   New Home Sales (technically, New Residential Sales) is exactly what it sounds like on the box - a seasonally adjusted look at the annual rate of sales of newly constructed residential buildings.  Keep > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-05-24 09:32:00

Australia In "Ray Kurzweil must be proud" news, engineers and scientists at the University of Queensland have designed robots that are capable of inventing their own language and then teaching it to other robots.  It's crude > read more

Yarrr! Student Debt!

Published on 2011-05-23 09:11:00

  > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-05-23 09:04:00

China In "North Korea Crazy" news, China has confirmed that Kim Jong-Il and his furry hat of power are touring the nation for the third time this year on an educational trip to "understand the development of China and be > read more

M&T Bank Corporation Returns $700 Million in TARP Funds, Providing Additional Positive Return for Taxpayers on TARP Bank Programs

Published on 2011-05-19 15:07:00

M&T Bank Corporation Returns $700 Million in TARP Funds, Providing Additional Positive Return for Taxpayers on TARP Bank Programs WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced that M&T Bank C > read more

Treasury Department Statement Regarding Leadership of the International Monetary Fund

Published on 2011-05-19 15:07:00

Treasury Department Statement Regarding Leadership of the International Monetary Fund WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury issued the following statement from Secretary Tim Geithner following > read more

Administration Takes Additional Steps to Hold the Government of Syria Accountable for Violent Repression Against the Syrian People

Published on 2011-05-19 15:06:00

Administration Takes Additional Steps to Hold the Government of Syria Accountable for Violent Repression Against the Syrian People WASHINGTON – Today, President Obama signed an Executive Order (E.O.) imposing san > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-05-19 13:19:00

China In "You forgot to mention the prospect of an impending zombie apocalypse" news, a statement from China's State Council acknowledged that a number of serious problems have occurred in the wake of the construction of the > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-05-19 07:53:00

It's Thursday!  And if it's Thursday, it's time for unemployment insurance claims!   Last week, the figures for the week ending 5/7 came in pretty much in line with expectations.  The first time claims for 4/30 were revised downwards to 473,00 > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-05-16 18:18:00

Israel Israeli troops used live ammunition to suppress Palestinian protesters attempting to enter Israel from Lebanon.  The protesters were there to commemorate Nakba Day, by throwing rocks at the soldiers.  Reports are that 10 Pales > read more

Remarks by Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner on the Release of the Social Security and Medicare Trustees Reports

Published on 2011-05-13 15:21:00

"But in 2036, one year earlier than was projected in last year's report, the Social Security Trust Fund will exhaust its assets and incoming revenues will be insufficient to maintain payment of full benefits.  Due to technical changes i > read more

Consumer Price Index News Release

Published on 2011-05-13 10:23:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Consumer Price Index news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cpi.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.----------- > read more

World News and Happy Friggatriskaidakaphobia Day!

Published on 2011-05-13 09:54:00

Galactic Empire In a press conference late last night, Lord Darth Vader announced that Obi-Wan Kenobi was killed in a firefight with Imperial forces on Sunday.  "The death of Kenobi marks the most significant achievement to date > read more

Consumer Price Index

Published on 2011-05-13 07:43:00

The CPI-U[1].  A measure of the rate of change in the overall price of a fixed basket[2] of goods and services from month to month.  The premier measure of inflation in the United States.   March CPI was nowhere near as bad as February.  CPI- > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-05-12 11:25:00

China The Chinese central bank has raised the reserve requirement ratio for commercial banks by another 50 bps, effective 5/18.  This will bring the reserve requirement to 21%, and is distinctly an effort to bring inflation down from > read more

Retail Sales

Published on 2011-05-12 08:20:00

And now, it's time for the US Census Bureau to tell us about the changes in total receipts at stores that sell durable and nondurable goods.   If you recall, March results were mixed.  Overall retail sales were up only 0.4% (missing expectatio > read more

Producer Price Index News Release

Published on 2011-05-12 08:20:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Producer Price Index news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ppi.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.----------- > read more

Producer Price Index

Published on 2011-05-12 07:55:00

This week isn't just about employment, however.  It's also about inflation.  And today, we'll be focusing on the impact of inflation on producers.  The Producer Price Index is a report that measures the change in manufacturing costs in the Unit > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-05-12 07:53:00

It's Thursday, so once again it is time to return to the well and examine the jobless claims report.   As you may recall, last week's results were staggeringly bad.  Initial claims for 4/23 were revised upwards to 431,000, and then the initial c > read more

World News

Published on 2011-05-11 12:52:00

China Wang Jian, a researcher with China's national Development and Reform Commission, said that China may begin cutting interest rates for the rest of the year in an effort to stave off a possible economic slowdown.  "The centra > read more

US International Trade In Goods and Services

Published on 2011-05-11 08:13:00

It's time for what we optimistically call the trade balance and what we realistically call the trade deficit.  This is a measure of how much the US exports, how much it imports, and what the net difference is between the two.  If the net is posi > read more

MBA Weekly Applications Survey

Published on 2011-05-11 07:28:00

Once again, it's time for the Mortgage Bankers Association to bring us up to speed on the week's mortgage application activity.  Last week, as you may recall, the situation had improved nicely.  The Market Composite Index was up 4.0%, mostly dri > read more

U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes News Release

Published on 2011-05-10 09:03:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest U. S. Import and Export Price Indexes news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ximpim.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights a > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-05-10 09:03:00

European Union German Chancellor Angela Merkel, speaking about yesterday's reports of a possible second bailout for Greece, indicated that she would only discuss the possibility of further aid for the spendthrift nation after reviewing > read more

NFIB Small Business Optimism Index

Published on 2011-05-10 07:34:00

It's time for the National Federation of Independent Businesses to release its survey of small business attitudes towards topics such as employment, capital spending, inventories, credit conditions, and so on and so forth.  You know.  All those > read more

CNN Breaking News - Microsoft agrees to buy Skype

Published on 2011-05-10 07:12:00

From: CNN Breaking News [mailto:BreakingNews@mail.cnn.com] Sent: Tuesday, May 10, 2011 8:02 AMTo: textbreakingnews@ema3lsv06.turner.comSubject: CNN Breaking NewsMicrosoft agrees to buy Skype for $8.5 billion, Fortune has confirmed. You have opte > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-05-09 09:35:00

China China and the US will have another two day summit, beginning today, this time about economic issues.  It is expected that the US will demand Chinese currency reform once more, which will be countered by a Chinese demand that the > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-05-06 10:04:00

Afghanistan A video purporting to show frontline Taliban fighers has been released, vowing to continue fighting NATO-led and Afghan troops.  "Even if the news of Osama bin Laden's martyrdom is true, it will not change our jihad poli > read more

Commissioner's Statement on the Employment Situation News Release

Published on 2011-05-06 08:12:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Commissioner's Statement on the Employment Situation (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/jec.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The text is b > read more

Employment Situation

Published on 2011-05-06 08:12:00

We've been building up to this all week, and now it's finally here!  The Employment Situation report!  Yaaaay!   If you recall, last month's report was pretty good.  For February, we had a 216,000 increase in nonfarm payroll employment (beati > read more

World News Special Edition: Oil and Gold and Silver

Published on 2011-05-05 16:06:00

By special request, let's have a look at what's going on with commodities.  And what is going on with commodities, you ask?  Well, according to Bloomberg, Brent Crude Futures dropped 9.4%, WTI Crude Futures dropped 9.39%, the gold 100 oz future > read more

World News

Published on 2011-05-05 14:53:00

Australia Claude Choules, the last known World War One combat veteran, died in his sleep last night.  He was 110. European Union The European Central Bank held rates at 1.25%.  Speculation is that rates will be increased again ne > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-05-05 09:39:00

The Christmas-like anticipation of tomorrow's Employment Situation report continues, fueled by First Time Jobless Claims.   Last week, as you no doubt recall, the jobless claims news was full of crushing despair. Initial claims for the week endin > read more

FAO Food Price Index

Published on 2011-05-05 08:00:00

This particular report, which is not even noticed by the average Wall Street analyst, is released each month by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.  In it, the FAO looks at monthly average changes in overall food prices a > read more

World News

Published on 2011-05-04 14:52:00

Afghanistan Afghanistan has weighed in on the whole "Osama Bin Laden was apparently living 35 miles from Islamabad for years" controversy.  Defence Ministry spokesman Zaher Azimy stated "If Pakistan's spy agency was not > read more

ADP Employment Report

Published on 2011-05-04 08:35:00

Waiting for Friday's Employment Situation is kind of like waiting for Christmas when you're young.  The days drag out endlessly and you dream of what that special day will bring.  And then, when the day arrives, you rush to open your presents an > read more

The Challenger Job Cut Report

Published on 2011-05-04 08:10:00

It's only Wednesday, but we're starting to get some employment data crawling out of the woodwork in preparation for Friday's Employment Situation report.   The Challenger Job Cuts report is issued by the outplacement consulting firm Challenger, G > read more

MBA Weekly Applications Survey

Published on 2011-05-04 07:58:00

If you recall from last week, the Mortgage Bankers Association didn't have a lot of good news.  They reported a 5.6% decline in the Market Composite Index for the week ending 4/22, driven by a mild decline in refinancing (0.6%) and a steep declin > read more

Fight of the Century

Published on 2011-05-03 21:02:00

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World News

Published on 2011-05-02 18:23:00

Osama Bin Laden (Yes, I'm perfectly aware that he isn't a country.  But he is the single biggest news item today.) Old news at this point, but Osama Bin Laden was killed in a a gun battle with US forces in his three-story resort for > read more

Report on Foreign Holdings of U.S. Securities at End - June 2010

Published on 2011-05-02 11:24:00

Report on Foreign Holdings of U.S. Securities at End - June 2010 The final results from the survey of foreign portfolio holdings of U.S. securities at end-June 2010 are released today on the U.S. Treasury web site at (htt > read more

Sometimes, The Marketplace is a Pack of Jackals

Published on 2011-05-02 07:39:00

By now, you've probably seen the headlines and heart the news that Osama Bin Laden is dead. He was apparently found in a summer resort town about 35 miles north of Islamabad, in what is being described as a "million dollar compound"[1].&qu > read more

Personal Income and Outlays

Published on 2011-04-29 09:48:00

WHO CARES!!!!  ROYAL WEDDING!!!!!   Ahem.   Personal income and outlays tracks overall changes in - at the rick of sounding stupid about this - personal income.  And personal outlays.  Essentially, how much has the average person's income cha > read more

World News

Published on 2011-04-29 07:43:00

THERE IS A ROYAL WEDDING!!!!! THERE IS NO OTHER NEWS!!!!!!   Tornadoes are ripping through the southern United States?   WHO CARES!!!!  THERE IS A ROYAL WEDDING!!!!   Thousands of Syrians, acting in support of the tank-plagued people of De > read more

World News

Published on 2011-04-28 15:47:00

Bahrain Four pro-democracy protesters have been sentenced to death.  The official charge was for killing two police officers, although it is quite likely that the actual crime was "being a pro-democracy protestor." Cambodia > read more

Advance Q1 2011 GDP

Published on 2011-04-28 07:59:00

I believe that I've remarked on this before, but there is simply no bigger economic measure than GDP.  It's the Gross Domestic Product, the sum total of private domestic consumption plus gross private domestic investment plus government spending > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-04-28 07:58:00

If it's Thursday, it must be time for the crushing despair of first time jobless claims.   Well, all right.  Crushing despair is overstating things to a significant degree.  But the figures really haven't been all that good for a few years now > read more

World News

Published on 2011-04-27 09:38:00

Belgium Belgium is celebrating one full year without a government today.  Caretaker Prime Minister Yves Leterme says three more months will be required to form a coalition government.  Belgium's economy grew at an annualized rate of 1.6 > read more

Durable Goods Orders

Published on 2011-04-27 08:15:00

Durable Goods Orders are up now, carrying with them the hopes and fears of anyone and everyone who invests in the manufacturing sector.  Or who invests in something that is impacted by GDP.  And everyone invests in something impacted by GDP.   > read more

MBA Weekly Applications Survey

Published on 2011-04-27 07:36:00

Even after last week, we just can't seem to get enough housing data.  Last week, the Market Composite Index increased 5.3%, with the Refinance Index increasing 2.7% and the Purchase Index increasing 10.0%.  Refinancing dropped to 58.5% of total > read more

Andrew Wakefield Must Be Proud

Published on 2011-04-26 14:45:00

On April 20, the World Health Organization's European Region reported 6500 cases of measles year to date in 2011.  France alone has experienced 4937 cases reported between January and March 2011.  To put that in perspective, they reported 5090 > read more

World News

Published on 2011-04-26 11:47:00

China One day before a two-day human rights dialogue set to begin tomorrow, the Chinese government has stated that they "oppose any country using human rights issues as an excuse to interfere in China's domestic affairs."  Give > read more

Consumer Confidence

Published on 2011-04-26 09:17:00

It's time for Consumer Confidence, your monthly gauge of what consumer households think about the economy.  This is a huge measure, because it's current to forward looking, and because it directly samples the feelings of a group of people whose e > read more

World News

Published on 2011-04-25 10:23:00

First of all, Happy World Penguin Day!   Afghanistan In shades of the "Great Escape", 478 prisoners escaped from a prison in southern Afghanistan by digging a 320-meter tunnel over the course of 5 months. Japan Toyota Mo > read more

The Markets Are Closed Today

Published on 2011-04-22 11:12:00

It's a market holiday. The bond markets are closed. The equity markets are closed. It isn't a settlement day.For many people, it's also a religious holiday.So, if you find yourself getting ready to call your broker today - particularly if you find > read more

World News

Published on 2011-04-21 10:48:00

Australia Detainees at an Australian immigration detention center in Sydney have rioted, burning down nine buildings.  They also threw roof tiles and furniture at firefighters, preventing them from putting the fires out. Japan The J > read more

The Philadelphia Fed Survey

Published on 2011-04-21 09:05:00

"I once spent a year in Philadelphia.  I think it was on a Sunday." --W. C. Fields   The Philadelphia Fed Survey is a survey of business conditions in the Philadelphia Federal Reserve District, and is considered to be a bellwether of > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-04-21 08:11:00

If it's Thursday, it's time for unemployment!   Last week, as you hopefully remember, the news for the week ending 4/9 was terrible.  First time claims came in at 412,000, missing expectations by 22,000.  The unadjusted number of initial claim > read more

Existing Home Sales

Published on 2011-04-20 09:45:00

This is the counterpart to yesterday's New Home Sales, and the market loves the heck out of it for similar reasons.  Home sales of any sort have that broad pattern trickle-down impact, causing people to throw money to the banks and mortgage compa > read more

World News

Published on 2011-04-20 09:14:00

China Paleontologists announced the discovery of a 165 million year old spider with a 15 cm (about 7 inches) legspan. European Union The European Commission has asked for a 4.9% budget increase.  The short version of the respo > read more

MBA Weekly Applications Survey

Published on 2011-04-20 07:42:00

Continuing the trend started with yesterday's release of the housing starts, we kick off the morning with the MBA Weekly Applications Survey.  If you recall last week, things weren't all that great for the week ending 4/8.  The Market Composite > read more

Regional and State Employment and Unemployment (Monthly) News Release

Published on 2011-04-19 09:59:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Regional and State Employment and Unemployment news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/laus.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highl > read more

World News

Published on 2011-04-19 09:17:00

Cuba The Cuban Communist Party congress has approved an economic reform that will allow individuals to buy and sell their homes for the first time since 1959.  Details have not yet been announced, and President Raul Castro has also wa > read more

Housing Starts

Published on 2011-04-19 09:14:00

Housing starts are big economic news.  They represent actual new construction beginning for residential units.  The markets like this a lot, because of the overall impact this can mean to the economy.  New homes hopefully mean new home sales, w > read more

Chinese Reverse Merger Companies

Published on 2011-04-18 18:05:00

These have been in the news recently,  but what the heck is a Chinese reverse merger company?   To answer that, let's start off with what a reverse merger is.  Investopedia defines a "reverse merger" as "a type of merger used by > read more

Statement of Treasury Assistant Secretary for Financial Markets Mary Miller on Credit Rating Agency Announcements Today

Published on 2011-04-18 13:02:00

Statement of Treasury Assistant Secretary for Financial Markets Mary Miller on Credit Rating Agency Announcements Today Treasury Welcomes S&P Affirmation of AAA Rating, Moody's View of Recent Fiscal Announcemen > read more

E-Trade Baby Loses Everything

Published on 2011-04-17 16:09:00

> read more

Treasury International Capital Data for February

Published on 2011-04-15 14:07:00

Treasury International Capital Data for February WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of the Treasury today released Treasury International Capital (TIC) data for February 2011. The next release, which will report on data f > read more

FW: Remarks by Under Secretary for International Affairs Lael Brainard

Published on 2011-04-15 14:07:00

Remarks by Under Secretary for International Affairs Lael Brainard Center for Global Development's Conference on "Enabling Africa's Next Growth Decade" As Prepared for Delivery This week W > read more

Consumer Price Index News Release

Published on 2011-04-15 09:02:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Consumer Price Index news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cpi.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.----------- > read more

World News

Published on 2011-04-15 09:01:00

China GDP grew at 9.7% in Q1 2010 while inflation hit a annual 5.4% rate in March. Ireland Moody's has cut Ireland's sovereign rating from BAA1 to BAA3, making it barely investment grade.  The cuts were based on weak economic growt > read more

CPI

Published on 2011-04-15 08:02:00

Right on the heels of yesterday's Producer Price Index information comes the Consumer Price Index.  Yes, that's right, it's time to find out how you are being affected by inflation.   February was a bad month for CPI.  The CPI-U was up 0.5% (m > read more

Written Testimony of Under Secretary for Domestic Finance Jeffrey A. Goldstein

Published on 2011-04-15 07:13:00

Written Testimony of Under Secretary for Domestic Finance Jeffrey A. Goldstein Before the House Financial Services Committee Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations on “Oversight of the Financial Stability Oversig > read more

Secretary Geithner Marks 20th Anniversary of Treasury's Office of Technical Assistance

Published on 2011-04-15 07:13:00

Secretary Geithner Marks 20th Anniversary of Treasury's Office of Technical Assistance WASHINGTON – Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, senior Treasury officials and leaders from the development community today mark > read more

World News!

Published on 2011-04-14 08:51:00

China Working with information from WikiLeaks, the Information Office of China's State Council has released a report indicating that 63% of the 109,000 people killed in the Iraq war were civilians.  The report is largely seen as a res > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-04-14 07:58:00

It is indeed that time of the week.  That magical moment in which the US Department of Labor tells us how many people filed for unemployment benefits in the last week.   For the week ending 4/2, we mildly beat expectations.  Analysts were looki > read more

Producer Price Index News Release

Published on 2011-04-14 07:57:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Producer Price Index news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ppi.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.----------- > read more

Producer Price Index

Published on 2011-04-14 07:57:00

The Producer Price Index, released monthly by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, is a survey of the change in manufacturing costs in the United States.  It isn't considered a measure of inflation, precisely, but it is a barometer of sorts for inf > read more

World News

Published on 2011-04-13 09:51:00

Egypt Despite having been admitted to the hospital yesterday for a "heart crisis", Hosni Mubarak has been ordered detained for fifteen days.  An army helicopter was used to move him from his hospital in Sharm el-Sheikh to Ca > read more

MBA Weekly Applications Survey

Published on 2011-04-13 08:04:00

Every Thursday at 7 AM, the Mortgage Banker's Association releases a weekly survey of mortgage activity.  It's not a huge market mover but, since it examines changes in one of the largest sectors for consumer spending, it is still examined by ana > read more

Retail Sales

Published on 2011-04-13 08:04:00

It is now time for the US Census Bureau to tell us about the changes in total receipts at stores that sell durable and nondurable goods[1].   February was right in line with expectations.  Overall, retail sales increased by 1.0%, with ex-auto r > read more

U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes News Release

Published on 2011-04-12 07:50:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest U. S. Import and Export Price Indexes news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ximpim.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights a > read more

US International Trade In Goods and Services

Published on 2011-04-12 07:49:00

Also known as international trade, trade balance, and (for years now) the trade deficit, this is a measure of how much the United States exports, how much it imports, and what the net is.  In January, we had an unexpectedly large trade deficit o > read more

The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index

Published on 2011-04-12 07:39:00

This is a survey of members of the National Federation of Independent Business on topics including employment, capital spending, inventories, credit conditions, sales, and economic expectation.  The index is not a major market mover - odd, in my > read more

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and National Association of Attorneys General Presidential Initiative Working Group Release Joint Statement of Principles

Published on 2011-04-11 14:47:00

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and National Association of Attorneys General Presidential Initiative Working Group Release Joint Statement of Principles Consumer Bureau, State Attorneys General Partnership > read more

Remarks by Special Advisor to the Secretary of the Treasury on the CFPB Elizabeth Warren to the National Association of Attorneys General

Published on 2011-04-11 14:47:00

Remarks by Special Advisor to the Secretary of the Treasury on the CFPB Elizabeth Warren to the National Association of Attorneys General Presidential Initiative Summit Charlotte, NC As Prepared for Delivery Than > read more

World News Update

Published on 2011-04-11 10:38:00

From CNN:      Ivory Coast strongman Laurent Gbagbo has been arrested, the French ambassador tells French news agency AFP. Gbagbo lost a presidential election to Alassane Ouattara in November, according to international observers, but refused > read more

World News

Published on 2011-04-11 08:35:00

Ivory Coast UN and French helecopters have attacked forces loyal to former president Laurent Gbagbo. Ivorian forces loyal to President Alassane Quattara have successfully detroyed a magical block of stone that was keeping the port c > read more

World News

Published on 2011-04-08 08:50:00

China In the wake of last weeks shutdown of half the country's 1,176 dairies, three children in north-west China have died after drinking milk tainted with nitrate.  The milk was provided by two local dairies in the region. European Un > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-04-07 07:59:00

It is that time of the week again, so grab your noisemakers and party hats and get ready for the First Time Jobless Claims!   Last week, as you no doubt recall, results were mixed.  The advance seasonally adjusted initial claims figure came in > read more

World News! Now With 100% Less Spiders!

Published on 2011-04-07 07:59:00

Europe The European Central Bank, acting on fears of increasing inflation, has raised interest rates by 25 bps to 1.25%.  The ECB is specifically concerned that oil prices could boost inflation.  Far from being surprised, European fi > read more

FAO Food Price Index

Published on 2011-04-06 09:09:00

The FAO is the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.  Amongst other duties, they track the monthly change in international prices of a basket of food commodities.  The overall index is the average of five commodity group price > read more

What in the World?

Published on 2011-04-06 08:43:00

Great Britain A study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine indicates that working more than 11 hours per day increases the risk of heart disease by 67%, compared with working 7 to 8 hours per day.  It is unclear whether the long > read more

MBA Weekly Applications Survey

Published on 2011-04-06 07:28:00

This survey, conducted by the Mortgage Bankers Association, tracks the weekly rate of change in applications for new mortgages and refinanced mortgages.  It's not a significant market mover in its own right, but it provides valuable clues to pred > read more

What's Happening in the World?

Published on 2011-04-05 09:28:00

It's a light day for economic data, so let's have a look at the news to get a sense of what might be moving the markets.   Australia In the face of growing political opposition, Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan has announced that he plans t > read more

Employment Situation

Published on 2011-04-01 11:29:00

This came out three and a half hours ago, so this is probably not news to any of you at this point.   Anyway, this is the Employment Situation report from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.  This is considered the definitive look at employment l > read more

Chicago PMI

Published on 2011-03-31 10:45:00

The Chicago Purchasing Managers Index report is a report from the Chicago Institute for Supply Management that examines business conditions in the Windy City.  It's a report of modest importance, but investors and analysts like it as a strong reg > read more

Factory Orders

Published on 2011-03-31 10:45:00

More formally, this is the Full Report on Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories, and Orders.  It's information collected and released by the US Census Bureau's Department of Commerce, and it tracks the rate of change in new orders for manufacture > read more

World News

Published on 2011-03-31 10:09:00

Japan In the first post-earthquake visit by a foreign leader to Japan, French President Nicolas Sarkozy has called for the creation of new and legally binding global nuclear regulations.  Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan is backing > read more

Gross Assails US Debt as Greek-Like

Published on 2011-03-31 08:23:00

If you actually click on the link to read Bill Gross' article, it's even more scathing than this summary makes it sound. View this article on our website: Gross Assails U.S. Debt as Greek-Like Gross Assails U.S. Debt > read more

Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-03-31 08:12:00

Continuing the countdown to tomorrow's Employment Situation report, we turn now to First Time Jobless Claims.   If you recall last week's data, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims for the week ending 3/19 was 382,000 (which > read more

Monster Employment Index

Published on 2011-03-31 07:30:00

What is the Monster Employment Index?  It is, according to the index's web site, "a broad and comprehensive monthly analysis of US online job demand conducted by Monster Worldwide, Inc.  Based on a real-time review of employer job opportun > read more

Farm Products Price Index

Published on 2011-03-30 17:04:00

This report comes from the USDA, and tracks changes in the prices received by farmers and in prices paid by farmers.  It doesn't get a lot of respect from the equity markets - the contents of this report are typically the things getting excluded > read more

World News

Published on 2011-03-30 09:47:00

Egypt In the wake of last week's protests, which forced President Hosni Mubarak out of office, the Egyptian cabinet approved a law yesterday that criminalises strikes, protests, demonstrations, and sit-ins that interrupt private or state > read more

ADP Employment Report

Published on 2011-03-30 07:46:00

ADP, also known as Automatic Data Processing, is "one of the world's largest providers of business outsourcing solutions.  Leveraging over 60 years of experience, ADP offers a wide range of HR, payroll, tax and benefit administration solutio > read more

The Challenger Job Cut Report

Published on 2011-03-30 07:43:00

Challenger, Gray, and Christmas is, according to their web site, "the nation's first, oldest and premier outplacement consulting organization.  Our firm has a proven track record of successfully providing top quality outplacement programs fo > read more

Consumer Confidence

Published on 2011-03-29 10:34:00

Consumer Confidence is one of the big movers and shakers amongst economic measures.  It's current to forward-looking, so it's one of the leading indicators of consumer spending.  And since consumer spending is a huge chunk of GDP, good consumer > read more

Store Sales

Published on 2011-03-29 08:27:00

I'm just going to cover the ICSC-Goldman Store Sales and the Redbook in a single article this morning.   Last week, the ICSC-Goldman Store Sales survey showed week-over-week sales down 0.1%, and year-over-year sales up 3.0%.  The Redbook, on th > read more

World News

Published on 2011-03-29 08:27:00

China A study of international scientific output - as defined by the total number of peer-reviewed papers published by scientists in various nations - indicates that China is on course to overtake the US in scientific output by 2013.  > read more

Personal Income and Outlays

Published on 2011-03-28 07:50:00

Personal Income and Outlays is a report tracking (brace yourselves) personal income.  And outlays.   No, really, that's pretty much it.  What do you want?  It's very much a "truth in advertising" report.   All right, technically, i > read more

Remarks by Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner at NanoMech Manufacturing Plant and Labs

Published on 2011-03-25 16:15:00

Remarks by Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner at NanoMech Manufacturing Plant and Labs Springdale, AR As Prepared for Delivery Thanks to Jim Phillips and Dr. Ajay Malshe.  I admire what you have bui > read more

Secretary Geithner, Northwest Arkansas Business Leaders Discuss Efforts to Create Jobs, Spur Economic Growth and Boost US Competitiveness

Published on 2011-03-25 16:14:00

Secretary Geithner, Northwest Arkansas Business Leaders Discuss Efforts to Create Jobs, Spur Economic Growth and Boost US Competitiveness New Treasury Report Shows Research Tax Credit Will Leverage More Than $100 > read more

Regional and State Employment and Unemployment (Monthly) News Release

Published on 2011-03-25 10:11:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Regional and State Employment and Unemployment news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/laus.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highl > read more

G.E.'s Strategies Let It Avoid Taxes

Published on 2011-03-25 09:32:00

So David Kocieniewski reports in the New York Times that:   "General Electric, the nation's largest corporation, had a very good year in 2010.   "The company reported worldwide profits of $14.2 billion, and said $5.1 billion of the t > read more

World News

Published on 2011-03-25 08:14:00

Bahrain Despite last week's imposition of martial law (aided by Saudi troops), thousands of Bahrainis turned out for a Shi'ite sermon ahead of the "Day of Rage" protests scheduled for today. Japan Radiation fears spiked > read more

Q4 2010 GDP, Final Revision

Published on 2011-03-25 07:41:00

GDP, or Gross Domestic Product, is the sum of all private domestic consumption plus gross private domestic investment plus government spending plus the current trade balance.  This is a huge economic data point, because it represents the economic > read more

What's Happening In The World?

Published on 2011-03-24 08:31:00

Japan Two of the Fukushima Daiichi reactors are now in cold shutdown[1], while the other four continue to vent steam and smoke periodically.  Power has been restored to all of the reactors, but safety checks need to be made before the > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-03-24 07:51:00

Reviewing the news for the week of 3/12, seasonally-adjusted first time jobless claims came in at 385,000, right in line with expectations, and the unadjusted number of initial claims was 372,370.  The seasonally-adjusted level for state program > read more

Durable Goods Orders

Published on 2011-03-24 07:51:00

So.  What are durable goods orders, and why does anyone care?  Well, the durable goods orders report tracks the percent change in manufacturing orders for real, physical products.  Positive results mean that new orders are increasing, which is > read more

Chavez says capitalism may have ended life on Mars

Published on 2011-03-22 15:51:00

Because a day without Hugo Chavez is like a day without sunshine...     Chavez says capitalism may have ended life on Mars On Tuesday March 22, 2011, 2:47 pm EDT   By Eyanir Chinea   CARACAS (Reuters) - Capitalism may be to blame for the > read more

Obama Administration Announces Funds for Connecticut, Missouri, and Vermont to Spur at Least $534 Million in New Small Businesses Lending, Help Create Jobs

Published on 2011-03-22 15:43:00

Obama Administration Announces Funds for Connecticut, Missouri, and Vermont to Spur at Least $534 Million in New Small Businesses Lending, Help Create Jobs WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announ > read more

Remarks by Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner at the Access to Capital Conference

Published on 2011-03-22 15:43:00

Remarks by Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner at the Access to Capital Conference As Prepared for Delivery Good morning.  Welcome to Treasury.  We're very pleased to have everyone here today for our Access > read more

Market Impacting News

Published on 2011-03-22 12:15:00

There's a lot of stuff going on out there.  Here's some highlights.   Globally Internationally, equities have recovered somewhat.  The Tokyo exchange is up about 4% on reports of progress in containing radiation leaks at Fukushima, but o > read more

Redbook

Published on 2011-03-22 09:33:00

Continuing the trend of retail sales figures of minor importance to the market, we now have the Redbook Report.  The week ending 3/12 saw a year-over-year increase in chain store and department store sales of 2.0%  Econoday is now reporting th > read more

A Day In The Life Of A Financial Advisor

Published on 2011-03-22 09:19:00

It's far more like this than you would think. > read more

ICSC-Goldman Store Sales

Published on 2011-03-22 07:31:00

Today, what metrics we have are pretty much retail sales figures.  For the week ending 3/12, the ICSC-Goldman Store Sales survey showed week-over-week sales up 0.1% (which was rather mediocre), with year-over-year sales up 3.1% (which was fairly > read more

Treasury to Begin Orderly Wind Down of Its $142 Billion Mortgage-Backed Securities Portfolio

Published on 2011-03-21 17:40:00

Treasury to Begin Orderly Wind Down of Its $142 Billion Mortgage-Backed Securities Portfolio Treasury Will Authorize Sale of up to $10 Billion in Agency-Guaranteed Mortgage-Backed Securities per Month Part o > read more

News That May Move The Market Today

Published on 2011-03-18 08:16:00

There's no major economic measures coming out today, so let's have a look at the news instead.   In an effort to prevent the yen from appreciating further, the Bank of Japan bought over $25 billion in US currency yesterday.  This helped drive th > read more

Written Testimony of Special Advisor to the Treasury Secretary for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Elizabeth Warren

Published on 2011-03-17 11:26:00

Written Testimony of Special Advisor to the Treasury Secretary for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Elizabeth Warren Before the House Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit Committee on Finan > read more

Written Testimony by Secretary of the Treasury Timothy F. Geithner before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing & Urban Affairs

Published on 2011-03-17 11:12:00

Written Testimony by Secretary of the Treasury Timothy F. Geithner before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing & Urban Affairs Chairman Johnson, Ranking Member Shelby, and members of the committee, thank you > read more

The Philadelphia Fed Survey.

Published on 2011-03-17 11:09:00

This then, is the Philadelphia Fed's survey of business conditions in their district.  Even though their district isn't much bigger than the New York Fed's, their report is considered more influential.  Maybe, one of these days, I'll find out wh > read more

Consumer Price Index News Release

Published on 2011-03-17 09:07:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Consumer Price Index news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cpi.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.----------- > read more

CPI

Published on 2011-03-17 07:51:00

The CPI is the Consumer Price Index, a measure of the rate of change in the average price of a fixed basket of goods and services purchased by consumers.  This is one of the major measures of inflation and, as such, is split into two primary comp > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-03-17 07:51:00

First off, let's review the week ending 3/5.  We had a seasonally adjusted 397,000 new initial claims (missing expectations by 12,000).  In unadjusted numbers, 406,096 people filed initial claims for unemployment insurance (up 52,147 from the pr > read more

More Than 99 Percent of TARP Disbursements to Banks Now Recovered as Six Financial Institutions Deliver Nearly Half Billion Dollars in Proceeds to Taxpayers

Published on 2011-03-17 07:03:00

More Than 99 Percent of TARP Disbursements to Banks Now Recovered as Six Financial Institutions Deliver Nearly Half Billion Dollars in Proceeds to Taxpayers TARP Bank Programs Continue to Near Profitability   > read more

U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes News Release

Published on 2011-03-17 07:02:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest U. S. Import and Export Price Indexes news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ximpim.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights a > read more

Written Testimony of Secretary Timothy F. Geithner Before the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government

Published on 2011-03-17 07:02:00

Written Testimony of Secretary Timothy F. Geithner Before the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government Chairwoman Emerson, Ranking Member Serr > read more

Finra Tracking Social Media IPO Scams

Published on 2011-03-16 08:46:00

View this article on our website: Finra Tracking Social Media IPO Scams Finra Tracking Social Media IPO Scams Article published on March 16, 2011 By Joe Morris SPAN.bar { MARGIN: 5px 0px 1px; DISPLAY: > read more

Producer Price Index News Release

Published on 2011-03-16 08:42:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Producer Price Index news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ppi.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.----------- > read more

Producer Price Index

Published on 2011-03-16 08:41:00

Getting away from housing (or, at least, from direct exposure to housing), we turn to the Producer Price Index.  This is, of course, the change in costs incurred by producers.  It isn't a direct measure of inflation - not the way that CPI or th > read more

MBA Weekly Applications Survey

Published on 2011-03-16 08:12:00

It's time for this week's look at mortgage applications.  If you recall, last week's survey results (for the week ending 3/4) were pretty good.  The Market Composite Index was up 15.5%, the Purchase Index was up 12.5%, and the Refinance Index w > read more

Housing Starts

Published on 2011-03-16 08:11:00

This is, of course, the joint US Census Bureau and US Department of Housing and Urban Development  survey of new residential construction.  It has a one-month lag, so we'll be looking at February.   January was a good month.  Expectations we > read more

FOMC Announcement (Late, I Know)

Published on 2011-03-16 07:28:00

What with all the excitement about Japan, I completely overlooked this yesterday.   First of all, the Federal Open Market Committee voted to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 0 to 1/4 percent.  No surprise, there.  They be > read more

Treasury International Capital Data for January

Published on 2011-03-15 11:29:00

Treasury International Capital Data for January WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of the Treasury today released Treasury International Capital (TIC) data for January 2011. The next release, which will report on data > read more

The Potential Economic Impact of Japan

Published on 2011-03-15 08:46:00

  The current series of disasters in Japan make it easy to grasp, intuitively, why the markets are so concerned about what has happened.  However, it is not just the human cost that is driving market concerns.  Japan wields considerable economi > read more

Import and Export Prices

Published on 2011-03-15 08:13:00

So, what do we have here?  This is a report, prepared by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, showing the change in prices paid for imported goods and prices received for exported goods, on both a monthly and year-over-year basis[1].  It's not a h > read more

U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes News Release

Published on 2011-03-15 08:13:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest U. S. Import and Export Price Indexes news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ximpim.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights a > read more

Empire State Manufacturing Survey

Published on 2011-03-15 07:52:00

The is is the New York Fed's monthly survey of business conditions for manufacturers in New York State.  The Empire State Manufacturing Survey isn't seen as being as important as the Philadelphia Fed Survey, mostly because it is more tightly foc > read more

ICSC-Goldman Store Sales

Published on 2011-03-15 07:23:00

We're starting the morning off with a quick look at retail sales figures for major chain stores.  Last week, the week ending 3/5, the figures were mixed.  Weekly sales had improved substantially (up 2.3%), but the year-over-year sales were only > read more

Guns N' Roses Vet Forms Advisor for Rockers

Published on 2011-03-11 10:02:00

Not so much an important market news item, as an amusing one.  Duff McKagan is still asking if you've got the money, honey, because he's got your disease. View this article on our website: Guns N' Roses Vet Forms Advisor for Rockers Here' > read more

Retail Sales

Published on 2011-03-11 07:55:00

We've had hints about this subject for several weeks now, mostly from the Redbook Reports and the ICSC-Goldman Reports.  This, however, is the burly big brother of these reports.  Retail Sales looks at changes in total receipts at stores that se > read more

Regional and State Employment and Unemployment (Monthly) News Release

Published on 2011-03-10 09:26:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Regional and State Employment and Unemployment news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/laus.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highl > read more

Report: Pimco Sells off All US Government Holdings

Published on 2011-03-10 08:36:00

Report: Pimco Sells off All US Government Holdings NEW YORK March 9, 2011 (AP)   The world's largest bond investor has sold off all his fund's U.S. government-related holdings, according to a published report.   The move by Bill Gross, founder > read more

Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-03-10 07:59:00

This is, of course, the weekly report examining how many people claimed unemployment insurance for the first time that week (and then also looking at how many people are continuing to claim benefits for the week).  This is an important report for > read more

International Trade

Published on 2011-03-10 07:59:00

This report, looking at the US trade surplus (or, more likely, deficit), is one of the more important economic reports from the perspective of the market.  It relates directly to GDP, which is a measure of the value of all goods and services p > read more

Oil Futures Are Up On Libya, Disappointing OPEC Statements

Published on 2011-03-09 08:42:00

One of the delegates to the informal OPEC consultations about oil output, speaking anonymously, has stated that OPEC is not likely to increase production.  "There have been consultations and we don't see a need to meet at the moment." > read more

MBA Weekly Applications Survey

Published on 2011-03-09 07:30:00

The Mortgage Bankers Association has released its Weekly Application Survey, which is a look at the rate of change in applications for mortgages for both initial purchases and refinances.  In and of itself, this is not a huge market mover.  It c > read more

Redbook

Published on 2011-03-08 08:15:00

The final bit of economic data for the morning is the Redbook, a weekly measure of sales at chain stores, discounters, and department stores conducted by Johnson Redbook Service.  Although the methodology is different, it tracks similar sorts of > read more

Morgan Stanley May Shed "Smith Barney" Name

Published on 2011-03-08 07:58:00

If you don't subscribe to FundFire and would like a free trial, click here View this article on our website: Morgan Stanley May Shed 'Smith Barney' Name Morgan Stanley May Shed 'Smith Barney' Name Article published on March 8, 2011 > read more

ICSC-Goldman Store Sales

Published on 2011-03-08 07:46:00

We move now to major retail chain store sales, with the International Council of Shopping Centers-Goldman Store Sales report.  This is a look at weekly and year-over-year changes in comparable store sales  at major retail chains only, account > read more

NFIB Small Business Optimism Index

Published on 2011-03-08 07:46:00

This is the National Federation of Independent Business' Small Business Optimism Index, a survey of NFIB members on topics including employment, capital spending,  inventories, credit conditions, sales, and economic expectations.  This is not co > read more

Consumer Sentiment

Published on 2011-02-25 09:43:00

Given all of the international excitement, one burning question fills the hearts and makes sleepless the nights of the average broker:  How is the American consumer taking the news?  Well, maybe I exaggerate.  But it is an interesting question. > read more

Fourth Quarter 2010 GDP, Preliminary Revision

Published on 2011-02-25 08:04:00

The big mover for economic data today is Gross Domestic Product, which (if you aren't familiar with it) is the sum of all private domestic consumption, plus gross private domestic investment, plus government spending, plus the current trade balan > read more

Al Qaeda's Hallucinogenic Chocolate Milk

Published on 2011-02-24 17:23:00

The Libyan "protests"[1] continue to escalate.  Reuters is reporting that that the fighting in Zawiyah has resulted in fatalities.  The official Libyan newspaper puts the death toll at 23, and Al Jazeera is reporting it at 100 or more. > read more

New Home Sales

Published on 2011-02-24 10:04:00

Better late than never, right?   Last month, we had results that were substantially better than expected.  The Econoday analysts were looking for 300,000 new single-family home sales in December, and we had 329,000 sales.  This month, the same > read more

Guns, Swords, And Oil

Published on 2011-02-24 09:37:00

What we may have to be calling the Libyan Revolution continues to dominate the news.  Reuters reports that rebel forces have seized important cities near the capital of Tripoli, including Misrata (the third largest city in Libya) and Zawiyah )an > read more

And Toyota Looks Like It'll Have A Bad Day As Well...

Published on 2011-02-24 09:37:00

From: CNN Breaking News [mailto:BreakingNews@mail.cnn.com] -- Toyota recalls more than 2 million vehicles to fix problem of gas pedals getting stuck in floor mats.One CNN Center Atlanta, GA 30303(c) & (r) 2011 Cable News Network > read more

When Your Husband Goes To Jail, How Do You Pick Up The Pieces?

Published on 2011-02-24 08:29:00

Well, if you're Diane Passage, the third wife of convicted-but-not-yet-sentenced Ponzi fund operator Kenneth Starr, you do it by returning to the career you left behind when you got married.   In this case, as a stripper.  At Scores.  On the > read more

First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-02-24 08:15:00

Durable goods orders did pretty well.  Will first time jobless claims continue the trend, giving us something optimistic to look at while we wait for Libya's burgeoning civil war to sink all of Africa into (more) chaos and turmoil (and wrecking > read more

Durable Goods Orders

Published on 2011-02-24 08:14:00

Last month, the market was disappointed by a 2.5% decline in durable goods orders for December.  Analysts had been looking for a 1.5% increase, so this was very much a letdown.  But, last month's terrible shock notwithstanding, the Econoday-surv > read more

You decide...

Published on 2011-02-23 09:38:00

Is this man a)  A military dictator vowing to die a martyr in his country b)  A failed contestant for American Idol c)  An extra seen in the background of a rerun of Samford and Son d)  Some homeless guy beatboxing on a subway for change > read more

Existing Home Sales

Published on 2011-02-23 09:20:00

The news is out, and it looks good.  Turning to the National Association of Realtors for the data, we learn that existing home sales for December were revised downward to 5.22 million.  That's the bad news.  The good news is that January exist > read more

Why Are The Markets Worried About Libya?

Published on 2011-02-23 08:59:00

It's a fair question.  At first glance, while the situation there looks pretty bad for at least two groups of people in the nation[1], there doesn't seem to be a huge reason for the international markets to panic about what is happening there.  > read more

Mortgages and Sales

Published on 2011-02-23 08:59:00

We begin the morning off with the MBA Weekly Applications Survey.  Last week was pretty bad, with the composite index falling 9.5%, the purchase index falling 5.9%, and the refinance index falling 11.4%.  The only bright spot, and this was only > read more

Consumer Confidence

Published on 2011-02-22 09:20:00

As economic measures go, this is one of those big movers and shakers.  Traders like to see good confidence numbers, because consumer spending is a large (roughly 30%-50%) component of GDP.  And how did we do?   The Conference Board's press rel > read more

S&P Case-Shiller HPI

Published on 2011-02-22 08:29:00

We're starting the morning off with home prices.  We don't have any analyst expectations (or, at least, none that are being reported by Econoday), so let's just move on to the results.   According to the press release, home prices are still tren > read more

Morning Metrics

Published on 2011-02-18 08:01:00

There aren't any today.  At least not on the Econoday economic calendar.   So, uhm.  Yeah.    Oh, wait.  Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has delivered remarks at the Banque de France Financial Stability Review Launch Event.  You can > read more

Philadelphia Fed Survey

Published on 2011-02-17 09:19:00

"As goes Philadelphia, so goes the nation."   Yeah, that's a misquote, but the quote has been misquoted so frequently that I don't actually know what the original quote was.  Maybe it was Sumerian:  "As goes Ur, so goes the Fertil > read more

Consumer Price Index News Release

Published on 2011-02-17 08:14:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Consumer Price Index news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cpi.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.----------- > read more

CPI and Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-02-17 07:51:00

We've got a few major indicators coming out today.  Right now we have CPI and First Time Jobless Claims, and then we'll be getting the Philadelphia Fed Survey at 10 AM.   CPI for December was ever so mildly disappointing.  For the month it was > read more

Industrial secrets! Major fines! Depressing Fed Commentary! Bankruptcy! Mergers and acquisitions! Global currency!

Published on 2011-02-16 09:36:00

Let's start things off right.  Industrial secrets!  Major fines!  Depressing Fed commentary!  Bankruptcy!  Mergers and acquisitions!  Global currency!   A normal day in the market, in other words.   To begin with, there 's a rather bre > read more

Industrial Production and Capacity

Published on 2011-02-16 08:31:00

The last major metric moving the morning[1] is industrial production and capacity, a look at how much our[2] factories are producing and how many of our factories are involved in that production.  The market likes this because, let's face it, a > read more

Producer Price Index News Release

Published on 2011-02-16 08:03:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Producer Price Index news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ppi.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.----------- > read more

Morning Economic Data With 100% Less Showtunes

Published on 2011-02-16 08:02:00

Let's start off with the Mortgage Bankers' Association Weekly Application Survey which, if you remember, wasn't all that great last week.  The composite index fell 5.5%, the purchase index fell 1.4%, and the refinance index fell 7.7%.  Now, this > read more

U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes News Release

Published on 2011-02-15 09:19:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest U. S. Import and Export Price Indexes news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ximpim.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights a > read more

Something For Everyone...

Published on 2011-02-15 09:18:00

Something familiar, Something peculiar, Something for everyone: A comedy tonight!   We've got some store sales, We've got retail sales, Something for everyone: A comedy tonight!   Let's start off with the ICSC-Goldman Store Sales, in which we > read more

Morning Metrics

Published on 2011-02-11 08:15:00

We've got two important economic measures coming out today:  the international trade balance (due at 8:30 AM) and consumer sentiment (due at 9:55 AM).   International trade is the bigger of the two measures, since it represents our trade surplu > read more

SEC Suspects ETFs Used in Insider Trading

Published on 2011-02-10 08:29:00

View this article on our website: SEC Suspects ETFs Used in Insider Trading SEC Suspects ETFs Used in Insider Trading Article published on February 10, 2011 SPAN.bar { MARGIN: 5px 0px 1px; DISPLAY: bloc > read more

First Time Jobless Claims, Exchange Mergers, Night Dragons, and Cranky Dictators

Published on 2011-02-10 08:23:00

First Time Jobless Claims are first on the agenda, and we may be hard pressed to beat last week's note of optimism.  As you hopefully recall, we had seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims of 415,000 (which beat expectations by 10,000), with t > read more

Morning News

Published on 2011-02-09 08:16:00

We start off the day with the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Application Survey.  Not because it's of vast important, mind you (except possibly to people who follow the financial sector), but because it is a bellwether of things to come > read more

Fiat Funnies

Published on 2011-02-08 08:17:00

> read more

What's Happening In The World?

Published on 2011-02-08 08:05:00

There really isn't a whole lot of economic data coming out (unless you count the 164 companies releasing their earnings announcements for today).  We do have the ICSC-Goldman Store Sales figures.  If you recall from last week, those showed a 1.0 > read more

By Popular Demand: Oil Sands

Published on 2011-02-03 11:03:00

Oil sands are beginning to show up more and more on the radar of investors with an interest in commodities.  But what are they?   Wikipedia defines oil sands as:  "Bituminous sands - colloquially known as oil sands (and sometimes referred > read more

Non-Economic News

Published on 2011-02-03 08:13:00

There is a report out from researchers at Indiana University indicating that President Obama's goal of getting 1 million electric cars on US roads by 2015 may not happen.  Why?  Consumers, that's why.  The average car-buying individual is conc > read more

Productivity And Costs And First Time Jobless Claims

Published on 2011-02-03 08:02:00

This is looking to be a morning full of economic measures.  Coming out at 8:30 AM EST we have the big boys on the Street, First Time Jobless Claims and Productivity and Costs.  Then, at 10 AM EST, we have the ISM Non-Manufacturing Index and Fac > read more

SEC Green-Lights "Historic" Arbitration Rule

Published on 2011-02-02 08:27:00

View this article on our website: SEC Green-Lights ‘Historic’ Arbitration Rule SEC Green-Lights ‘Historic’ Arbitration Rule Article published on February 2, 2011 By Beagan Wilcox Volz SPAN.bar > read more

News That Isn't Economic Data

Published on 2011-02-02 08:23:00

Most Asian stock markets will be closed on February 3 and 4 for the Lunar New Year.  China's markets (except for Hong Kong) will be closed on February 7 and 8 as well.   Egyptian President Mubarak's promise not to seek reelection in September ha > read more

Jobs And Mortgages

Published on 2011-02-02 07:46:00

That's what's going to be driving the futures around this morning, at least as far as economic data is concerned.  Jobs and mortgages.   So let's start off with the mortgages.  The Mortgage Bankers Association has released it's Weekly Mortgage > read more

And Now, By Popular Demand, Why Is The Market Up?

Published on 2011-02-01 13:35:00

A few factors seem to be contributing.  First and foremost, everyone seems to have liked the ISM Manufacturing Index report, with its happy-fun heart-warming "every part of this report is showing positive numbers" results.  That, and > read more

Sales And Manufacturing Data To Warm The Cold Winter Market

Published on 2011-02-01 10:38:00

Well, we hope the sales and manufacturing figures will warm the market, anyway.   First, we have the ICSC-Goldman Store Sales figures, which is a "weekly measure of comparable store sales at major retail chains".  It specifically focus > read more

Why Are The Markets Freaked Out By Egypt?

Published on 2011-01-31 09:34:00

It's a good question, right?  Why are the markets - particularly the US markets - worried about the current unrest in Egypt?  After all, it's a fairly small country that stopped being a major player in international politics round about the time > read more

Personal Income and Outlays

Published on 2011-01-31 08:07:00

Today, we're getting a look at Personal Income and Outlays, which tracks several things:  the rate of change in personal income, the rate of change in consumer spending, and the rate of change in the costs of a fixed basket of goods and services[ > read more

(There Is Very Little ) Consumer Confidence

Published on 2011-01-28 09:35:00

This is, of course, an attempt to gauge how confident consumers are about current economic conditions and about the future.  Analysts really only try to predict the Consumer Sentiment portion of the index (and they're looking for 73.0, down from > read more

Do You Know Someone With An AOL E-Mail Account? Help Them.

Published on 2011-01-28 09:08:00

Reluctant as I am to credit anything the Huffington Post says as having accuracy, this particular news item actually comes from quoting an article in the New Yorker.  Accessing the original article requires a paid subscription, so I'll just quot > read more

The US Will Destroy The Global Economy. Also, GDP.

Published on 2011-01-28 07:52:00

Gross Domestic Product - specifically, the initial GDP estimate for Q4 2010 - is the big news for the morning.  And since GDP is a measure of the entire economic output of the country - consumer spending, private sector spending and production, > read more

Ifo Business Climate Germany

Published on 2011-01-27 13:16:00

The Ifo Business Climate Indices have been released, and things look pretty good.  The overall climate index rose 50 bps to 110.3, the situation index fell 10 bps to 112.8, and the expectations index rose 100 bps to 107.8.  The manufacturing se > read more

Municipal Bond Risks discussed on CNBC

Published on 2011-01-27 10:16:00

Anyone remember Meredith Whitney[1] on 60 Minutes last month?  She didn't cause the municipal bond not-quite-a-panic, but she became the public face of it.  "There's not a doubt in my mind that you will see a spate of municipal bond defaul > read more

Durable Goods Orders! Jobless Claims!

Published on 2011-01-27 08:32:00

We've got two major sets of data points out now, so let's see if there will be more joy in the US than in Japan this morning.   First off, Durable Goods Orders.  We're about to look at the December 2010 figures, and analysts are looking for subs > read more

Morning Metrics!

Published on 2011-01-27 08:31:00

Our typical jaunt round the globe begins in Japan, where last night at 6:50 PM EST their Merchandise Trade figures were released.  This is more or less the same thing as the US Trade Balance figures, and looks at the trade deficit or surplus on t > read more

Taco Bell Meat, the US Budget Deficit, and The Invisible Hand Of The SEC

Published on 2011-01-26 16:35:00

Let's start right off with Yum! Brands getting sued.  The Beasley Allen law firm has initiated a consumer rights class action lawsuit against Taco Bell Corporation (a subsidiary of Yum! Brands), challenging "Taco Bell's practice of represent > read more

Brace Yourself For The Shock...

Published on 2011-01-26 13:45:00

The FOMC has spoken.   The committee has confirmed that the economic recovery is continuing, but not enough to improve the labor market.  They like the improvement in household spending, but they dislike the fact that household spending is bein > read more

Memento Mori. Plan Appropriately.

Published on 2011-01-26 11:42:00

Probably the single most common concern people have when talking to brokers is retirement planning, and probably the single most common question when talking about retirement planning is "how long should I plan for"?   Well, to help wit > read more

New Home Sales

Published on 2011-01-26 09:41:00

About an hour ago, I indicated that the analysts were looking for 300,000 new single-family home sales in December 2010.  Since then, the US Census Bureau has released its official report, and we actually hit a seasonally adjusted 329,000 (up fro > read more

Market News That Isn't The State Of The Union

Published on 2011-01-26 08:29:00

Yeah, sure, the State of the Union and its promises of job creation and freezes in government spending and reductions in corporate taxes has excited the market.  But that's not everything that's going on today.  What else is happening?   Well, > read more

Consumer Confidence

Published on 2011-01-25 09:44:00

Last month, we saw evidence of a decline in consumer confidence.  The actual Consumer Confidence Index dropped to 53.3, while the Present Situation Index was at 24.9 and the Expectations Index was at 72.3.   For January, analysts were expecting > read more

S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Indices

Published on 2011-01-25 08:36:00

Home prices are down, pretty much across the board  for November (the most period covered by the most recent report).   As you recall, this is a set of indices looking at the growth rate of home prices in a 10-City area and a 20-City area.  Th > read more

FW: SEC Commissioner: Budget Woes Will Impact Fund Oversight

Published on 2011-01-25 07:58:00

View this article on our website: SEC Commissioner: Budget Woes Will Impact Fund Oversight SEC Commissioner: Budget Woes Will Impact Fund Oversight Article published on January 25, 2011 By Peter Ortiz > read more

International Indicators

Published on 2011-01-25 07:34:00

You miss one day, you miss... well, not too much, actually.  There just wasn't a whole lot out yesterday.   Today?  Well, today's a different story.  Let's start out in the Pacific Basin, where Australia has released their CPI figures for Q4 2 > read more

Existing Home Sales! Leading Indicators! The Philadelphia Fed!

Published on 2011-01-20 09:24:00

First off, existing home sales.  You want to see this up for the trickle-down impact.  It's not as significant as new home sales, but people will still tend to take out mortgages and buy durable goods when they buy an existing home, so good numb > read more

First Time Jobless Claims Are Pretty Good, Actually

Published on 2011-01-20 08:35:00

Once again, it's time for First Time Jobless claims, where analysts are expecting to see the number of new claims drop to a seasonally-adjusted 420,000/  And what does the Department of Labor think of that prediction?  The Department of Labor t > read more

Asian Tiger Metric Stance!

Published on 2011-01-20 07:47:00

First off we have New Zealand's CPI figures for Q4 2010.  Q3 saw a 1.1% increase, and the analysts were looking for Q4 to be up 1.9%.  In reality they were up 2.3%, missing expectations by 40 bps (which also caused CPI to be up 4.0% for the year > read more

British Unemployment, Manufacturing For Loonies, And US Housing

Published on 2011-01-19 08:06:00

First, we look overseas.  Great Britain released its Labour Market Report at 4:30 AM EST today, and it was relatively good.  November saw claimant count unemployment[1] drop a revised 3200 to a level of 4.5%.  For December, claimant count unemp > read more

T-Note Flash Crash, Federal Reserve May Need A Bailout, And WikiLeaks Outs Tax Evaders

Published on 2011-01-18 16:03:00

You might have missed it, but the Treasury bonds were crushed earlier today by a roughly $6 billion trade in 30-year Treasuries..Yes, billion.  With a "b".  In Treasuries.  At one point, the 30-year Treasury was down 1 6/32, bringing > read more

News You Can Use

Published on 2011-01-18 09:26:00

Remember all the excitement about the private placement sale of Facebook shares?  Well, under regulatory and media scrutiny, Goldman Sachs has decided to limit the private placement to shareholders outside the United States.  Goldman is denying > read more

A Slow Day For Economic Measures

Published on 2011-01-18 08:12:00

The three-day market weekend has dragged on into a fourth day, at least as far as economic data is concerned.  There's just not a lot due out today.   Great Britain reported CPI figures, which were bad.  CPI was up 60 bps for the month to 1.0% > read more

This Is NOT How Arbitration Works....

Published on 2011-01-14 23:39:00

Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce to you Vincent McCrudden.Actually, that LinkedIn profile doesn't really do him justice. Here's how he describes himself on the web site of Alnbri Management, LLC:Vincent McCrudden - CEOMr. McCrudden worked on W > read more

And, On The Heels Of That, More Domestic Economic Data Than You Can Shake A Stick At!

Published on 2011-01-14 09:22:00

The United States, not to be outdone by its European relatives, has a massive stack of economic data coming out today as well.  CPI, Retail Sales, Industrial Production, and Consumer Sentiment.   Starting with the CP, the Street is expecting t > read more

International Metrics!

Published on 2011-01-14 07:56:00

Let's start the cavalcade of international data off with Japan, where their Corporate Goods Price Index (think PPI, here) was up 30 bps to close out at a 0.4% increase for the month of December.  This means that, even though analysts were expecti > read more

National "Pat Robertson Should Shut Up" Day

Published on 2011-01-13 08:31:00

A year ago yesterday, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake devastated the nation of Haiti. A massive outpouring of international aid was the result.A year ago today, a massive gusher of racism and hatred struck the nation of Haiti.Mr. Robertson, on behalf of t > read more

Producer Price Index News Release

Published on 2011-01-13 08:18:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Producer Price Index news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ppi.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.----------- > read more

What's Happening At Home?

Published on 2011-01-13 08:18:00

The short answer is:  we're unemployed, business costs are up, and we're running a significant (but mildly improved) trade deficit.  Hooray?   First off, the US International Trade Balance.  In October, we had a revised trade deficit of $38. > read more

What's Happening Abroad?

Published on 2011-01-13 08:17:00

Everything.  Everything is happening abroad.   Let's start with the antipodes, where Australia has released it's Labor Force Survey.  This is, in essence, the Australian equivalent of the US Employment Situation, and it's mixed.  Employment o > read more

The Beige Book, Honey Laundering, And Fiduciary Standards

Published on 2011-01-12 15:51:00

The Fed's Beige Book is out for January, providing an insight into some of the economic data that will drive Fed decisions about interest rates and other stimulus activities at the next FOMC meeting.  And right now, that insight seems to point t > read more

Get Rich Or Die Tryin

Published on 2011-01-12 09:05:00

So, have you ever heard of H&H Imports, Inc?   No?  Well, you must not be one of the 3.8 million Twitter followers of rapper 50 Cent, who seems to have indulged himself in a little[1] market manipulation last weekend.  His tweets include > read more

U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes News Release

Published on 2011-01-12 08:37:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest U. S. Import and Export Price Indexes news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ximpim.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights a > read more

"When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again, Hurrah, Hurrah"

Published on 2011-01-12 08:36:00

"He'll find Import and Export Prices then, "Hurrah, Hurrah! "Tim Geithner speaks and the Beige Book comes out "The Treasury Budget will also come out "And we'll all place trades as Johnny comes marching home"   Tha > read more

"Over There, Over There, Say A Prayer, Say A Prayer For Over There"

Published on 2011-01-12 07:54:00

"For Metrics are coming, "Metrics are coming, "And they've been announced Over There."   Let's start with Italy, shall we?  Industrial Production figures were released about 7 AM EST for that first among PIIGS nations, and r > read more

Despire Failure, Most Public Pensions Safe

Published on 2011-01-12 07:54:00

Well, those of you who actually still have pensions will be gratified to know this. If you don't subscribe to FundFire and would like a free trial, click here View this article on our website: Despite Failure, Most Public Pensions Safe > read more

Schwab to Pay $119 Million in Yieldlus Settlement With Regulators

Published on 2011-01-12 07:53:00

Just to put this fine in perspective, Charles Schwab's Q3 2010 net income was $335 million.  This fine represents about 35% of that income. If you don't subscribe to Ignites and would like a free trial, click here View this article on our we > read more

"It is an ancient ECB, And he stoppeth two of three."

Published on 2011-01-10 18:03:00

The Dow was down 37.31, the NASDAQ was up 4.63, and the S&P 500 was down 1.75.  What happened?   Portugal.  Portugal happened.   Portugal is the current albatross around the neck of the marketplace.   The European Central Bank kicked of > read more

Big Ben: "The Federal Government Is On An Unsustainable Fiscal Path"

Published on 2011-01-07 16:41:00

"Big" Ben Bernanke spoke before the Senate Budget Committee, and he didn't really pull any punches. The full text of his prepared remarks are available on the Federal Reserve's web site. Here's some excepts, with comments, grouped more > read more

US Employment Situation: A Fata Morgana Looks Pretty Good, Too

Published on 2011-01-07 08:26:00

A Fata Morgana, in case you're wondering, is a rare and complex form of superior mirage. And now, the US Employment Situation. Last month we had a surprisingly bad increase of only 39,000 nonfarm jobs (badly missing expectations), with the une > read more

Commissioner's Statement on the Employment Situation News Release

Published on 2011-01-07 08:24:00

---------------------------------------------------------------------------The latest Commissioner's Statement on the Employment Situation (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/jec.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The text is b > read more

Metrics: European And Canadian

Published on 2011-01-07 08:23:00

Let's start with Europe, shall we? We've got economic data flowing in from Switzerland, Germany, France, and the EU as a whole. In Switzerland, seasonally adjusted unemployment remains flat at 3.6% (missing expectations by 10 bps), while non-s > read more

Seasonal Adjustment

Published on 2011-01-06 16:36:00

Something interesting to keep in mind about the 409,000 new first time jobless claims, is that that figure is the seasonally adjusted figure.  The actual, unadjusted figure for first time jobless claims was 577,279 for the same period, up 52,038 > read more

Europe Is Happy, And Jobless Claims Are Better Than Expected

Published on 2011-01-06 07:51:00

In Europe, Swiss CPI fell 20 bps to a level of 0.0% for December - good news, but still missing expectations by 20 bps (and bringing the annual CPI increase to a 0.5%, which also misses expectations by 20 bps).  German Manufacturer's Orders clim > read more

POMO Day!

Published on 2011-01-05 11:10:00

Your POMO du jour is an Outright Coupon[1] Purchase, with $9,360 million face submitted, and $1,500 million face purchased.  There will be similar transactions tomorrow (looking for $6-$8 billion), Friday (looking for another $6-$8 billion), Mond > read more

Petroleum and Manufacturing

Published on 2011-01-05 09:45:00

The ISM Non-Manufacturing Index came in at 57.1% for December, beating expectations by 110 bps.  Meanwhile, looking to the EIA Petroleum Balance Sheet, crude oil stocks dropped 4.2 million barrels (about 0.4%), with all of it draining from comme > read more

Food: More Expensive, Still Not Core

Published on 2011-01-05 09:14:00

The Food Prices Indices are out from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.  The overall Food Price Index climbed 9 bps to a level of 215 in December.  Meat[1] climbed 1 bps to 142, dairy[2] remained flat at 208, cereals c > read more

No, The Article Title Isn't A Typo

Published on 2011-01-05 08:11:00

  New Northern Trust Unit Targets Wealthy Gays Article published on January 5, 2011 SPAN.bar { MARGIN: 5px 0px 1px; DISPLAY: block; BACKGROUND: #c22724; HEIGHT: 14px } .body { MARGIN-TOP: 20px } H2 { M > read more

Fidelity Preps Clients for Interest Rate Changes

Published on 2011-01-05 08:11:00

This isn't so much an article about Fidelity Investments, as it is about Liability-Driven Investing.  This is the radical concept that pensions, 401(k)s, and really anything else, should have enough assets to meet all liabilities - current and fu > read more

ADP: Employment Is Good. (Also, Other Metrics)

Published on 2011-01-05 08:09:00

Starting in Europe, the European Union reported its November PPI around 5 AM EST today.  October saw a 0.4% increase (for a 4.4% increase year over year), and the consensus expectation was for an additional 0.1% increase (keeping the year over ye > read more

Market Wrap-up

Published on 2011-01-04 15:56:00

Dow's up 20.43 (0.18%), NASDAQ's down 10.27 (0.38%) and S&P 500's down 1.67 (0.13%).  But the news was good!  What happened?   Well, your word for the day is "profit taking"[1].  Well, that and Morgan Stanley downgrading Superva > read more

FOMC Minutes. Nothing To - Wait, Is That A QE3?

Published on 2011-01-04 14:27:00

The Federal Open Market Committee minutes are out for December.  Pull up the statement or the actual text of the minutes, and join me in breathless anticipation as we see what the Masters of the Economy have said.  In their opinion: Economi > read more

US Motor Vehicle Sales...

Published on 2011-01-04 14:26:00

...are nearly impossible to find.  Seriously.  I have no primary sources for this, just Reuters.  Which I'm not sneering at, mind you.  It's just that I like going to the source.   Overall, US auto sales rose more than 11% to a level over 13 > read more

Factory Orders, Sanjo!

Published on 2011-01-04 09:16:00

Not all that long ago, I reported that there was no real joy expected from Factory Orders.  They were down overall 0.9% for October, and it was expected that they would be absolutely flat for November.   Well, that fairly bleak expectation has b > read more

Political "Cooperation" and Robo-Signing

Published on 2011-01-04 08:42:00

President Obama is on his way back from Hawaii.  On Air Force One he sad, when asked about working with the new Republican majority in Congress, "I'm pretty confident that they're going to recognize that our job is to govern and make sure t > read more

Metrics: Domestic and Foreign

Published on 2011-01-04 08:40:00

Highlights from around the world (well, from Europe anyway) and around the corner.   In Europe, Germany reported it's December 2010 unemployment rate, which remains unchanged at 7.5%  Great Britain's PMI Manufacturing Index beat expectations b > read more

The Markets Are Happy, And "Voodoo Economics" Takes On A Whole New Meaning

Published on 2011-01-03 16:31:00

The markets decided to celebrate the New Year by throwing a little rally.  The Dow ended p 93.24 (0.81%), the NASDAQ was up 38.65 (1.45%) and the S&P 500 was up 14.25 (1.13%), mostly on the good ISM Manufacturing Survey numbers.  There's not > read more

ISM! Construction Spending! Dead Birds!

Published on 2011-01-03 09:33:00

We have metrics on a Monday morning!  Inconceivable![1]   This is not a normal thing.   And what is it we're going to have?  The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing survey for December 2010 (expected to climb 60 bps to a level > read more

Monsanto Has A Little List...

Published on 2011-01-01 20:30:00

The prospect of domination of the nation's scholars by Federal employment, project allocations, and the power of money is ever present – and is gravely to be regarded. Yet, in holding scientific research and discovery in respect, as we should, we > read more

Wrapping up 2010

Published on 2010-12-31 15:53:00

Well, that's it.  From a trading perspective, 2010 is dust and ashes.  So, how did the year do?   The Dow closed at 11,577.51, up 1029.00 (9.75%) from 12/31/2009.  The NASDAQ closed at 2652.87, up 359.95 (15.7%) from 12/31/2009.  The S&P > read more

The Iraqi Dinar: Penny Stock, FOREX Style

Published on 2010-12-31 09:51:00

Apparently, the new hotness for the get-rich-quick schemes on teh intarwebz is investing in the Iraqi Dinar.  A representative web site for this may be found at, say, DinarTRADE[1] - which also offers investments in the Korean Won, the Chinese Y > read more

Farm Prices, Farm Costs, and the Money Supply

Published on 2010-12-31 09:01:00

Internationally and here in the states, there are no economic measures due to be reported.  None.  Zip.  Nada.  There are a few items from yesterday,though.   The Agricultural Prices report was released yesterday, falling unperceived and unca > read more