The first major economic report for August offers no comfort for thinking that we’ll break free of the economy’s sluggish growth phase any time soon. Today’s update on the ISM Manufacturing Index reflects an expansion in the sector, but only slightly. The index slipped to 50.6 last month, down from 50.9 in July. A reading above 50 indicates expansion, but with the index declining to its lowest level in more than two years there’s nothing dazzling here.
Daily Archives: September 1, 2011
Jobless Claims Fell Last Week, But So What?
New jobless claims fell by a seasonally adjusted 12,000 last week to settle at 409,000, but no one’s going to see that as much more than another round of statistical noise. This leading indicator of economic activity has been stuck in a rut for months and it’s going to take more than one sizable downshift to convince the crowd that something’s changed. It doesn’t help that there’s another one-time event in the mix. Some of the drop is reportedly due to the end of the Verizon strike, which pushed new claims higher in early August. But the same factor in reverse had the opposite effect a few weeks back. Round and round we go.
Major Asset Classes | August 31, 2011 Performance Update
The summer from hell may be history, but the wounds still smart as stocks took another beating in August. For the fourth straight month, equity markets around the world tumbled. U.S. stocks (Russell 3000) were down by a hefty 6.0%, the deepest monthly decline since May 2010. Foreign equities in unhedged dollar terms fared even worse, with developed markets (MSCI EAFE) off by 9% and emerging markets (MSCI EM) down by 8.9%. In other words, it’s been close to non-stop selling for stocks since May.