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Strategies & Market Trends : MDA - Market Direction Analysis -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Jerry Olson who wrote (24891)	9/4/1999 9:02:00 AM
From: John Madarasz	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 99985

Jerry, It happens to all of us sometimes... anybody worth their salt is always willing to admit it though. Best Regards and good trading, John M. ****************************************************************** News Archive Economic Week in Review: August 30–September 3, 1999 Investors seemed skittish for much of the week, fearing higher inflation and interest rates, but they were reassured by Friday's employment report showing weaker-than-expected job growth. For the week, the yield of the 30-year U.S. Treasury bond, which moves in the opposite direction from its price, climbed 4 basis points to 6.01% (as of 4:30 p.m. Friday). The S&P 500 Index rose 0.7%. The nation's unemployment rate dipped to 4.2% of the workforce in August, the Labor Department said Friday. However, the report estimated that just 124,000 jobs were added to nonfarm payrolls, about half the expected number. A slowing in employment growth would ease worries that the economy is overheating. Consumer confidence ebbed a bit in August, though it remains at a very high level, according to the Conference Board, a business research organization. Analysts said that rising oil prices and the Federal Reserve Board's June 30 decision to boost short-term interest rates clouded the outlook. Consumer attitudes are probed because they affect consumer spending, which accounts for two-thirds of U.S. economic activity. Another sign of consumer optimism was the Commerce Department's report that home sales rose sharply in July despite higher interest rates on home loans. Americans signed contracts to buy new homes at a feverish annual pace of 980,000 units in July. On Thursday, the Labor Department halved its estimate of the growth rate in productivity—the amount of goods and services Americans produce per hour of work. Productivity rose at an annual rate of 0.6% during the second quarter, down from a 1.3% rate estimated in August. Productivity is hard to measure but very important, because rising productivity allows companies to raise wages or boost profits without raising prices. The government now estimates that unit labor costs—the cost of labor adjusted for changes in productivity—rose at an annual rate of 4.5% during the second quarter, the fastest pace since 1994 and a worrisome sign for inflation. The Conference Board said that its index of leading economic indicators, designed to help forecast future economic activity, rose 0.3% in July, as it had in June. Seven of the index's ten components rose, suggesting continued economic growth into 2000. The manufacturing sector expanded for the seventh consecutive month in August, according to the National Association of Purchasing Management's monthly survey. The group said its activity index was 54.2—above July's level of 53.4 and well into the range that suggests improving business for manufacturers. (A reading above 50 indicates that the sector is expanding; a reading below 50 indicates contraction.) Separately, the Commerce Department reported that factory orders rose 2.1% in July, the third consecutive monthly gain. Investors will have few new economic statistics to digest during the holiday-shortened week of September 6–10. Key reports due for release are the Producer Price Index (scheduled for Friday) and consumer credit (due Wednesday). vanguard.com