Market News
Housing
Pending sales of previously owned U.S. homes rose at a faster-than-expected pace in June, a real estate trade group said on Tuesday, more evidence the housing market was starting to claw out of a three-year slump.
The National Association of Realtors said its Pending Home Sales Index, based on contracts signed in June, rose 3.6 percent to 94.6. It was the fifth straight month of advance and the first such streak in six years, the industry group said.
Aug 4 · 10:23:00 AM · Source: Reuters.com
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by Rich Pike
Incomes
U.S. personal incomes tumbled 1.3 percent in June, more than forecast and the biggest drop in four years, signaling that consumer spending will take time to recover.
The decline partly reflected the unwinding of one-time transfer payments from the Obama administration’s stimulus plan, which boosted incomes 1.3 percent in May, figures from the Commerce Department showed today in Washington. Spending rose 0.4 percent in June as prices climbed. Adjusted for inflation, purchases fell 0.1 percent, the report showed.
Aug 4 · 9:19:00 AM · Source: Bloomberg.com
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by Rich Pike
IMF
The sharp contraction in the U.S. economy "seems to be ending" but recovery will be slow with risks still looming from the weak labor and housing markets, the International Monetary Fund said on Friday.
The IMF, in its annual report on the U.S. economy, stuck to earlier forecasts that gross domestic product will shrink by 2.6 percent in 2009 and then rise by 0.8 percent in 2010.
Jul 31 · 1:22:00 PM · Source: Reuters
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by Rich Pike
GDP
Gross domestic product fell at a seasonally adjusted 1.0% annual rate April through June, the Commerce Department said Friday in the first estimate of second-quarter GDP.
The pace of contraction has slowed. It fell 6.4% in the first quarter and 5.4% in the fourth quarter.
Jul 31 · 10:02:00 AM · Source: Wall Street Journal
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by Rich Pike
Unemployment
USA Today is reporting that unemployment rates rose from May to June in 348 of more than 370 metro areas, according to an Associated Press analysis of Labor Department data released Wednesday.
The Labor Department does not provide seasonally adjusted metro area unemployment data. It does adjust the national unemployment rate for seasonal factors. The U.S. jobless rate, which hit 9.5% in June, is expected to rise to 9.7% when the department reports the July rate next week.
Jul 30 · 5:21:00 PM · Source: USA Today
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by Rich Pike
Treasuries
Treasuries fell Thursday, pushing the yield on seven-year notes to near the highest level in more than a month, as the U.S. prepares a $28 billion offering of the debt amid concern the deluge of supply will overwhelm demand.
The yield on the seven-year note rose five basis points, or 0.05 percentage point, to 3.35 percent at 11:42 a.m. in New York, according to BGCantor Market Data. The 10-year note yield rose four basis points to 3.70 percent. The 30-year bond yield increased three basis points to 4.53 percent.
Jul 30 · 12:28:00 PM · Source: Bloomberg.com
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by Rich Pike
U.S. Dollar
The dollar and yen fell against most of their major counterparts after a U.S. government report showed a third weekly reduction in the number people collecting unemployment benefits, boosting demand for higher yields.
“The dollar is under pressure as risk comes back on today,” said Gavin Friend, a markets strategist at National Australia Bank in London. “We’re not out of the woods yet when it comes to risk aversion. Tomorrow’s U.S. gross domestic product numbers will be key for giving the market some direction.”
Jul 30 · 12:19:00 PM · Source: Bloomberg.com
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by Rich Pike
Gold
Gold rose in New York and London after two straight declines as rising equity markets signaled increased willingness to take on risk, weighing on the dollar.
Gains in equities are a sign of “falling risk aversion,” which may reduce demand for the dollar, pushing gold higher, said Carsten Fritsch, a Commerzbank AG analyst in Frankfurt.
Jul 30 · 12:18:00 PM · Source: Bloomberg.com
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by Rich Pike
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