Succinct Summations week ending November 15, 2013.
Positives:
1. S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average both closed at all-time highs, advancing for the sixth straight week.
2. FOMC Chair nominee Janet Yellen gives traders what they want in her testimony: More accommodative Fed policy to come
3. Gas prices are down more than 10% since the start of September.
4. U.S. third-quarter productivity advanced 1.9%.
5. 10 yr yield though remains sticky at 2.70%+
6. Japan has had 4 consecutive quarters of growth, its best run in three years.
7. EU’s economy grew for 2nd straight Q by modest 0.1% after 0.3% in Q2. Note this follows 6 consecutive of contraction.
8. Bearish sentiment among newsletter writers hasn’t been this low since 1989 (I know, SELL!)
9. Credit growth slows in China in October from excessive levels. Total financing drops to 856b yuan from 1.4T in September.
Negatives:
1. Initial jobless claims came in at 339k v 330k expected (on the + side, they dropped for the 5th straight week).
2. Empire state manufacturing collapses to -2.2 v expectations of 5, lowest level in 6 months.
3. U.S. trade deficit widens 8% to $41.8b, the highest level in 4 months (is this even bad).
4. U.S. industrial production fell 0.1% in October after climbing 0.7% in September.
5. Productivity in Q3 was 1.9%, below the estimate of 2.2% and Q2 was revised lower to 1.8% from 2.3% and remains a drag on growth.
6. NFIB small business optimism index was not optimistic in October due to the government shut down and poor Obamacare launch. It fell to 91.6 from 93.9, the lowest since March.
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