Wells Fargo Weekly Economic & Financial Commentary 2015 Ends With a Whimper GDP in the final quarter of 2015 slowed to a 0.7 percent annualized pace on slower consumer spending, a bigger drag from trade and a further correction in inventories. · Durable goods orders fell 5.1 percent in December, as weakness in the manufacturing […]
Continue ReadingBank of the West: Instant Analysis of Today’s Advance GDP Estimate for Q4 2015 The Bureau of Economic Analysis released its initial estimate on Q4 2015 GDP this morning, coming in at +0.7% SAAR. This was just slightly below my estimate for +0.8% growth. The composition of U.S. growth in the fourth quarter was as […]
Continue ReadingUS Outlook Report: Another Leg Down for Manufacturing It was another week of disappointing readings on the state of U.S. manufacturing. From regional manufacturing surveys to durable goods orders, the near-term outlook for U.S. manufacturing remains moribund. A combination of a strong U.S. dollar and fading demand abroad is having a chilling effect on a […]
Continue ReadingInstant Analysis: FOMC statement for January A lot of dovish hints in the January FOMC statement today, but nothing concrete. Hence the negative reaction from the stock market today. I think the Fed is on hold right now and hasn’t made up its mind yet if the global market volatility and economic developments in China […]
Continue ReadingUS Outlook Report: Keep One Eye on the Fundamentals Periods of high financial market volatility and plunging oil prices like we have seen so far this year have a way of playing on your emotions. It’s easy to sour on the economic outlook when really your stock portfolio is what’s making you a little queasy. […]
Continue ReadingUS Outlook Report: A Market Swoon or a Black Swan? This was the week for cataclysmic predictions from equity analysts. CNBC was rolling out analysts telling folks to “sell everything.” Investors should take note of periods of heightened volatility, like we have seen over the last few weeks, and take the opportunity to review their […]
Continue ReadingUS Outlook Report: 2016 Comes in Like a Lion It’s the New Year’s hangover that never ends. Granted we are only about a week into the New Year, but so far it’s been a doozy. China’s Shanghai stock market plunged 7.0 percent twice this week after tripping new circuit breakers designed to staunch market panic, […]
Continue ReadingLOGIN CREATE AN ACCOUNT January 2016 Bad Month For Exports The value of California’s export trade in November (latest numbers) fell to its lowest level of any November since 2009. Driven by an appreciating U.S. dollar and a slowing global economy, the state’s exports were down 13.6% year-over-year… Read Full Analysis Now SHARE: Meet Our […]
Continue ReadingMixed Data in a Holiday-Shortened Week The latest read on consumer spending was encouraging as personal income grew 0.3 percent in November. This was a bit faster than expected and enough to keep pace with the 0.3 percent increase in real personal spending during the month. The manufacturing sector still faces challenges as the durable […]
Continue ReadingUS Outlook Report: FOMC Signals a Return to Normalcy Citing considerable improvement in labor market conditions – specifically job gains, declining unemployment, and diminished underutilization of labor resources – the FOMC went ahead with its first interest rate hike in more than nine years. The move raises the Fed funds target rate to 25 to […]
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