The US Commerce Department said that the US economy grew at an annualized rate of 2 percent during the third quarter of the year. The result follows the 1.7 percent increase in the previous quarter, but less than the 3.7 percent growth registered from January to March.
Source: BBC News
Recent revisions to US GDP figures by the Commerce Department, suggest that the recession triggered in late 2007 was actually worse then previously believed. According to the latest information, the US economy actually contracted by 4.1 percent from the fourth quarter of 2007 to the second quarter of 2009. Originally, growth decline was pegged at 3.7 percent.
“We do tend to get bigger revisions at turning points in the economy,” Steven Landefeld, director of the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis, said in a press conference this week. On the more positive side, “in the past, we’ve tended to undershoot the recovery” as well, he said.
Source: Bloomberg
The US Commerce Department announced today that the US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) fell to an annualized rate of 2.4 percent in the second quarter, compared to 3.7 percent in the first quarter. The result is the latest in mounting evidence suggesting that the US economy is slowing.
Encouraging data from the European bank stress tests, and a growing demand for euros from Asian central banks, has helped push the euro to an eleven-week high against the dollar. This, combined with mounting evidence that the US economy is slowing, has investors turning to the European currency, and by 7:30 am EDT, the euro was up 0.6 percent to $1.3075, just shy of a high of $1.3091, its strongest since May 10. Traders said stop-loss orders were triggered above $1.3050, accelerating the currency’s gains, with options barriers seen at $1.3100.
“Data in the euro zone for now is pretty resilient and at the margins that argues for euro/dollar to edge higher, though people are pretty cautious at these levels,” said Tom Levinson, currency strategist at ING.
Source: Reuters
The US Commerce Department said that consumer spending rose by 0.2 percent in May. Despite the slight increase, spending on goods actually decreased in May, while spending on services increased, which the Commerce Department attributed to a greater demand for electricity.
Source: Associated Press
The US Commerce Department announced today that wholesale business inventories fell by 0.8 percent in December. Analysts were caught off-guard by the weak performance with a survey conducted by Thompson Reuters expecting a 0.5 percent increase.
Source: Associated Press
Oil approached $73 a barrel by mid-day trading in London today as a weaker US dollar had investors turning to crude. The price for March delivery rose 85 cents to $72.74 a barrel by 1:30 pm.
“After a very sharp sell off at the end of last week, it’s making a tentative recovery. The dollar is helping and it’s cold in the United States,” said oil trader Christopher Bellew at Bache Financial. He added that signs the volume of oil stored at sea was falling lent additional support.
Source: Reuters
The euro gained on both the dollar and the pound today as traders set aside their worries over the debt levels facing several Euro Zone countries. European leaders – including
“Mr Trichet has not always attended these meetings and so the market is taking his late change in schedule as an indicator that the ECB may be looking to work with the EU on a solution to Greece’s debt problems,” said Joshua Raymond at City Index.
Source: BBC News
The US Commerce Department announced this morning that construction of new homes for the month of December fell by 4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 557,000 from an upwardly revised 580,000. The results were lower than the 580,000 forecast by economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters.
Associated Press
The US Commerce Department said today that orders to factories for durable goods in September rose one percent from August. This is the biggest single month increase in nearly two years, reaffirming other signs that the US is in the early stages of recovery.
Yahoo
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