Nov. 25: Real GDP Q3 annualized, Personal Consumption Q3, Consumer Confidence, S&P Case-Shiller
Real GDP Q3
US third quarter growth was at 3.9% Vs. an estimated 3.5%. GDP reflects the value of all goods and services produced by the U.S. and it’s the best measure of the nation’s economic health. This is great since its showing the strength of the US economy vs. a global slowdown.
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-third-quarter-growth-raised-to-39-2014-11-25
Real Personal Consumption Q3
Consumption expenditures increased by 2.2% compared to the 2.5 in the 2nd qtr. This increase helped to raise the overall number for GDP.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-11-25/u-s-third-quarter-second-gross-domestic-product-text-.html
Consumer Confidence (Nov)
Consumer confidence fell to 88.7 from an October reading of 94.1. Estimated had a reading of 96 with estimates ranging from 93.5- 99. It appears that even though consumer confidence is lower, many plan to spend for the holidays.
S&P Case-Shiller home price index
The home price index covering 10 major US cities increased to 4.8% in September which is done from 5.6% in August. This is the first decline since November 2013. Most think this slowdown is due to winter, which typically slows the sale of homes.
Nov. 26: Personal Income (Oct), Personal Spending (Oct), Initial and continuing jobless claims, Consumer sentiment, New and pending home sales (Oct)
Personal Income (Oct)
Personal income rose to 32.9 Billion an increase of .2%. Disposable income increased to 23.4 Billion or .2%. This news is good for the economy in general since it appears people have more money to spend.
http://www.esa.doc.gov/economic-indicators/2014/11/personal-income-and-outlays-october-2014
Personal Spending (Oct)
Consumer spending rose by .20% to match rise in Personal income. The rise was under the estimated .30% by a Bloomberg survey. This is a good indicator that people are doing a better job of not spending beyond their means in the US.
Initial and continuing jobless claims
Jobless claims increased by 21,000 to 313,000. The highest level since early September. Initial claims were estimated to fall by 5000. Continuing jobless claims declined to 2.316 million vs. and estimated increase to 2.360 million.
http://www.nasdaq.com/article/us-initial-jobless-claims-rise-to-11-week-high-last-week-cm417566
Thomson Reuters/ University of Michigan consumer confidence sentiment (Nov)
Consumer confidence rose to the highest level since July 2007 to a level of 88.8. The estimated amount was 90. It's always good to see that consumers are feeling better about the economy.
New and pending home sales (Oct)
New home sales rose for the month of October at a rate of .70% and seasonally adjusted annual rate of 458,000 units. The estimated amount by Reuters was 467,000. September's figures were revised down to 455,000. Pending home sales fell by 1.1% in October to a level of 104.1. The estimated amount by a Bloomberg survey was an increase of .60%. This year's levels are lower than estimated, but still higher than last year's level of 101.9.
