Succinct Summations for the week ending July 27th, 2018
Positives:
1. GDP rose to 4.1% annualized rate for the second quarter, up from previous 2.0% rise.
2. Agree to agree in the future? US and EU might avoid a trade war, or reverse steel and aluminum tariffs. More soybean buying by the Europeans offset sharp drop from China;
3. Same store sales rose 3.8% w/o/w, higher than the previous 3.3% rise.
4. Jobless claims came in at 217k w/o/w, slighter better than expected 219k.
5. PMI composite flash came in at 55.9 for July, higher than previous 56.
6. Consumer sentiment reads 97.9 for July, up 0.8 from mid-month reading.
Negatives:
1. Panicked stockpiling ahead of tariffs likely boosted GDP growth — effects that are likely to be reversed later this year. (Levies on steel and aluminum have yet to filter through to prices).
2. Durable goods orders rose 1.0% m/o/m, lower than the expected 3.2%;
3. Existing home sales fell from 5.430M to 5.380M, on the low end of expectations; New home sales fell 58k m/o/m from 689k to 631k
4. MBA home mortgage applications fell a seasonally adjusted 1% w/o/w.
5. International trade in goods deficit fell from -64.8B to -68.3B for month of June.
6. FHFA house price index rose 0.2% m/o/m, lower than expected 0.4%.
Thanks, Matt!
