Consumers Pull Back
Sep 30, 10:47 AM ET |
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| U.S. consumer spending and income were both down in August, the Commerce Department announced. |
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| After-tax income received by individuals adjusted for inflation decreased 0.5 % in August, after increasing 0.1 percent in July, according to estimates released by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Real consumer spending declined 1.0 % in August after increasing 0.9 % in July. Over the past 12 months, real DPI increased 1.4 percent, and real consumer spending rose 3.5%. |
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Natural gas spot prices go down
Sep 30, 7:31 AM ET |
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| Prices have declined largely due to Hurricane Rita getting weaker as it reached major gas supply areas in the Gulf of Mexico. |
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| Prices of natural gas went down this week as Hurricane Rita proved a weaker hurricane than anticipated, even while causing massive evacuations of rigs and platforms in the Gulf of Mexico and causing damage to both offshore and onshore energy-related infrastructure. |
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U.S. Second Quarter GDP Steady at 3.3% Growth
Sep 29, 9:09 AM ET |
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| Second quarter GDP rose at a 3.3% annual rate, slightly down vs. a 3.8% growth rate in the first quarter. |
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| The economy advanced at an annual rate of 3.3 % in 2Q, unchanged from the “preliminary” estimate released in August, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. In 1Q, the economy increased at a 3.8 % rate. The bureau also issued a revised estimate of 2Q corporate profits, which rose 16.0 % from the same quarter a year earlier. |
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Jobless Claims Drop by 79,000 to 356,000
Sep 29, 9:04 AM ET |
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| Jobless Claims Related to Katrina Up by 60,000 Last Week, Storm-Related Amount to 279,000. |
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| First-time claims for unemployment benefits fell by 79,000 to a seasonally adjusted 356,000 in the week ending Sept. 24, the Labor Department announced on Thursday. 60,000 of the claims were related to Hurricane Katrina. Over the past four weeks, 279,000 people affected by Katrina have filed for unemployment benefits. The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending Sept. 17 were in Louisiana, while the largest decreases were in Texas. |
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Weekly Petroleum Report
Sep 28, 3:34 PM ET |
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| Gulf of Mexico oil prouction remains shut for the fifth day in a row and natural gas production is at 22% of the normal level. |
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| For the week ending Sept 23 crude inventories fell 2.4 million barrles to 306 million barrels but up 11% from a year ago, gasoline inventories rose 4.4 million barrels to 200 million barrels down 6% from a year ago, distillate inventory fell 0.5 million barrels to 134 million barrels up 7% from a year ago. Natural gas price jump 4% and Crude oil up 2% after the release of the report. |
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Durable Goods Orders Increase 3.3%
Sep 28, 12:32 AM ET |
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| A demand for computers provoked an increase in orders for new U.S.-made durable goods to 3.3% in August. |
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| Computers sales helped boost orders for new U.S.-made durable goods to go up 3.3% in last month. Experts were anticipating orders to increase 0.9%. Durable orders in July were revised to a 5.3% decrease from 4.9% previously estimated. |
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Consumer Confidence Plummets in September
Sep 28, 7:27 AM ET |
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| According to a report from the Conference Board, Consumer Confidence fell, following Hurricane Katrina and soaring gasoline prices. |
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| The Conference Board announced that its Consumer Confidence Index dropped to 86.6 in September from 105.5 in August. With the decrease, the index reached its worst level since October of 2003. Economists had anticipated a somewhat more modest decline to about 98.0. |
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New Home Sales Decline in August
Sep 27, 11:44 AM ET |
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| New home sales experienced a widespread decline in August as rising mortgage rates finally catches up with the housing market. |
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| August new home sales declined 9.9% from revised rate in July but were up 6.2% from a year ago. The decline was more than twice the rate what economists were expecting. Median home sales price in August was $220,300 and average price was $283,000. August sales in Northeast fell 22%, in Midwest fell 10.6%, in South fell 2.2%, and in West fell 17.9%. |
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Existing Home Sales Up 2%, Median Price up 16%
Sep 27, 10:11 AM ET |
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| The median single-family home price was $219,400 in August, up 16.2 percent from a year ago. |
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| Total existing-home sales – including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops – increased 2.0 percent in August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate1 of 7.29 million from a pace of 7.15 million in July. Sales were 7.8 percent higher than the 6.76 million-unit pace in August 2004; the record was 7.35 million in June of this year. |
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The Index of LEI Dropped 0.2 % to 137.6
Sep 23, 6:47 AM ET |
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| July's slight rise was revised to a small decrease and downward revisions to previous months were made. |
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| A widely followed gauge of future economic activity declined for the second month in a row during August as consumer confidence flagged even before Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast. |
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