Market Update Economic Data Initial claims came in as expected in the range between 440k and 470k. This number is better than the previous 468k.  Continuing claims however continued to trend upwards (4565k from 4487k).  Consumer confidence dropped lower than expected and new home sales came in better than expected. This week’s numbers are largely […]

U.S. Market News Ben Bernanke on the Economy Wednesday and Thursday the Chairman of the Federal Reserve gave the Senate and the House his semiannual monetary policy briefing. Although the briefing in the House and Senate were the same the questions differed slightly.  The main concern on most of the congressmen’s minds was the high […]

Market Update Equity markets traded down on Thursday as signs of growth waned.  China’s May leading economic index indicated that  PPI, CPI, retail sales and industrial production all grew at slower paces than expected.  The Bank of Japan kept its target rate at .10%.  There continues to be signs of slowing growth in the global […]

Equity Markets Increased Retail Sales Reflects Consumer Confidence Sales gains have been reported by U.S retailers this month, with the majority led by department stores and the like. This increase in sales is attributed by the recent Memorial day sales, back-to school shopping, clearance sales to make room for the fall merchandise and comparatively warmer […]

U.S. Markets Major Indices, Commodities, Treasuries As of Thursday, July 01, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has lost just about 3.94% for the week thus far. Since the index’s current annual high of 11204.28, it has dropped about 13.23%. The S&P 500 has had similar losses of -4.35% for the week-to-date, and -15.61% since its […]

Economic Data FOMC Keeps Rates at a Record Low This week there was a great deal of economic volatility amid a large number of government reports indicating that the economic recovery is much more pessimistic than previously thought.  Despite new home sales being at their lowest level since 1963, US jobless claims and durable goods […]

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to be De-listed On Wednesday, June 16, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were “ordered…to voluntarily de-list”, according to the Wall Street Journal. The decision was pushed by Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Edward DeMarco. The two mortgage giants own 53% of the United States total outstanding residential mortgages, at the […]

U.S. Economic News According to the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, the economy has continued the path to recovery with “modest growth” across all twelve districts. Consumer spending has increased and it appears that “sales of spring and summer apparel were strong in the Boston, New York, Philadelphia, St. Louis, Kansas City, and Dallas Districts”; however, […]

Index Price Action As of Thursday, June 03, 2010, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 10,255 points. Although this is about a 1.2% increase for the week so far, looking at the price action over the year clears the picture for us a bit. Below is a daily candle graph of the Dow Jones […]