Prince William and Kate Middleton are now married. Surprisingly, the markets appear to be unaffected as a result.
News that did hit the markets is best described by this headline: “Oil Prices Hitting Consumers”. This was particularly transparent in the report that personal income rose 0.5% in March, however, the moderate rise in incomes is barely enough to offset higher energy prices. Personal consumption rose 0.6% in the month and after subtracting out food and energy, spending only rose 0.1% in March. This tells us the higher oil prices are taking a big enough bite out of consumer expenditures to make real economic growth minimal.
The Chicago Purchasing Managers reported their business barometer dipped, but still reflects expanding economic activity.
Bond prices held firm Thursday in spite of a weak 7 year note auction, and commodity prices continue their trek higher following the Fed news release from this week’s FOMC meeting. Gold is up to $1,539/oz., silver is nearing $50/oz., and oil is trading north of $113/bbl. The U.S. dollar is trading at an 18 year low against the Chinese yaun.
The good news for us is mortgage prices are slightly better again today, just in time for the spring buying season.
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