| | | I'm not a fan of Bloomberg reporting but I thought I'd post their version of today's "news".
The last thing one would expect based on this report would be the market selling off 1.5% LOL
businessweek.com
American factories received more orders for machinery, communications gear and electrical equipment in August as an improving economy gave companies the confidence to expand.
A 0.6 percent advance in bookings for non-military capital goods excluding aircraft followed a 0.2 percent decrease in July that was smaller than previously estimated, according to data from the Commerce Department issued today in Washington. Another report showed firings remain low.
Growing sales paced by demand for automobiles and housing are prompting companies to invest in new equipment and hire more workers, which will give the world’s largest economy a boost in the second half of the year. Other data today showed a softening in consumer sentiment, reflecting a drop among lower-income households that may prevent more broad-based gains in spending.
Video: U.S. Durable Goods Orders Surge on Aircraft Demand
“It’s very encouraging that businesses are starting to ramp up spending,” said Russell Price, senior economist at Ameriprise Financial Inc. in Detroit. “Demand has been good, and improving. We’re getting to the point where companies are going to invest both for replacement and for growth.”
Stocks declined as Apple Inc. led a selloff in technology shares and concern grew that Russia may seize foreign assets. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index dropped 1.5 percent to 1,969.15 at 12:28 p.m. in New York after climbing yesterday by the most in over a month.
Demand for all durable goods -- items meant to last at least three years -- slumped last month as commercial aircraft orders dropped after surging a month earlier, the Commerce Department report also showed.
Video: Chris Rupkey on July Durable Goods Orders, Economy
Jobless Claims The number of applications for unemployment benefits increased less than forecast last week as an improving economy prompted employers to retain staff, according to figures from the Labor Department today. First-time jobless claims climbed 12,000 to 293,000 in the week ended Sept. 20. They reached a 14-year low of 279,000 in mid-July.
“This is all good news,” said Ray Stone, managing director at Stone & McCarthy Research Associates in Princeton, New Jersey, who correctly forecast the increase in claims. “The labor market is doing pretty good.”
Orders for non-military capital equipment excluding aircraft are considered a proxy for the outlook for business investment. Shipments of those goods, used in calculating gross domestic product, advanced 0.1 percent after rising 1.9 percent, more than previously estimated.
Video: U.S. Jobless Claims Rise; Durable-Goods Orders Climb
GDP Forecast A report tomorrow is projected to show the economy expanded at a revised 4.6 percent annualized rate in the second quarter, the best performance since the last three months of 2011, according to the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg ahead of Commerce Department data.
The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey called for a 0.4 percent gain in non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft after a previously reported 0.7 percent decline in July.
Total durable goods orders slumped a record 18.2 percent after jumping 22.5 percent the prior month, the Commerce Department report showed.
Video: I’m Very Bullish on the U.S.: Von Pfeil
Bookings for civilian aircraft, which are often volatile, dropped 74.3 percent in August after jumping almost 316 percent the previous month. Boeing Co., the Chicago-based aerospace company, said it received 107 orders in August, following 324 in July.
While demand for automobiles declined 6.4 percent in August, the most this year, it followed a 10 percent surge a month earlier, according to the Commerce Department’s data. Bookings are up 4.6 percent so far in 2014 compared with the same period last year.
Auto Sales Vehicle purchases remain a source of strength for manufacturing and the economy. Sales of cars and light trucks rose to a 17.5 million annualized rate in August, the highest since January 2006, from a 16.4 million pace a month earlier, according to data from Ward’s Automotive Group.
Video: U.S. Economy Grows; Jobless Claims Little Changed
Chrysler Group LLC reported its best August in 12 years for U.S. vehicle deliveries, while Ford Motor Co. ( F:US), Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. also posted results that surpassed analysts’ projections.
“The recent economic indicators remain very favorable and consistent with our expectations for growth,” Emily Kolinski Morris, senior U.S. economist at Dearborn, Michigan-based Ford, said on a Sept. 3 conference call with analysts. Improving employment and robust manufacturing activity are among developments that “should provide positive momentum for the economy as we continue in the second half,” she said. |
|
