The residents of south Texas had seen Tropical Storm Don as the hope of their drought-stricken lives;at least initially,it was nothing of the sort.By the time Don reached the Gulf coast,it had been downgraded to a tropical depression.Don seemed to be too weak to significantly penetrate the dry air mass that has been parked there.Scattered showers brought less than an inch of rain to some Texas locations,but the rainfall deficit is on the order of 17 inches.
It is the worst drought in the recorded history of Texas.Agricultural losses from it will inevitably hit consumers in the pocketbook with headline inflation.
Wall Street was disappointed in a Congress that failed to deliver an end to the sovereign debt crisis.In consequence,it had the worst week of the year.The Dow dropped 4.24,and the S&P lost 3.92 as the NASDAQ followed them down 3.58.A dry GDP report didn't help.The nation's economy grew at a worse than expected 1.3% in Q2.That's not enough to create jobs.
The Jefferies/Reuters CRB commodities index fell 0.8 on Friday.Oil was down to 95.70 a barrel,but gold notched a record 1621.20 an ounce in the uncertain economic environment.
The Washington Nationals couldn't create victory,losing their sixth in a row to the New York Mets 8-5 at Nationals Park.The Mets' Jason Bay went 2-4 with a run and RBI to his credit.Reliever Jason Isringhausen,38,successfully closed the game out for the Mets,with whom he started his long major league career in 1995.
Next week sees the release of the critical July employment report.The S&P futures weren't looking forward to it,losing a further 8.40.The longer maturity bond index futures rose.
Showing posts with label Gross Domestic Product. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gross Domestic Product. Show all posts
Friday, July 29, 2011
Friday, August 27, 2010
Mickelson Out,Woods Survives
Phil Mickelson,the number two golfer in the world,missed the cut Friday at The Barclays,the first leg of the PGA Tour Playoffs,at Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus,New Jersey.Mickelson shot a poor 74 for a +4,his second missed cut of the season.Tiger Woods,ranked number one,shot a slightly better 73,but relied on Thursday's score of 65 to make the cut with a -4.Australian Jason Day,22,leads the tournament at -8,while Americans Vaughn Taylor and Kevin Streelman are second at -7.At the LPGA'S Canadian Open in Winnipeg,Manitoba,American Michelle Wie tops the leaderboard,shooting a 69 for a -10.
In baseball,the St.Louis Cardinals handed the Washington Nationals a 4-2 loss at Nationals Park,with Albert Pujols launching a solo home run,his 401st career homer.The market staged a ridiculous rally,based on thin air such as a GDP revision for Q2 of 1.6 instead of the 1.3 estimated revision-as if 0.3 is going to help the economy significantly.Such an irrational move is very suspect,to say the least.Stocks were still down modestly for the week,with the Dow and S&P stepping back 0.6,and the NASDAQ falling 1.2.Stock futures continued the surge this evening,and bond futures gained altitude as well-another reason for caution.
In baseball,the St.Louis Cardinals handed the Washington Nationals a 4-2 loss at Nationals Park,with Albert Pujols launching a solo home run,his 401st career homer.The market staged a ridiculous rally,based on thin air such as a GDP revision for Q2 of 1.6 instead of the 1.3 estimated revision-as if 0.3 is going to help the economy significantly.Such an irrational move is very suspect,to say the least.Stocks were still down modestly for the week,with the Dow and S&P stepping back 0.6,and the NASDAQ falling 1.2.Stock futures continued the surge this evening,and bond futures gained altitude as well-another reason for caution.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Inventory Trade Lifts Earnings
The majority of listed firms are reporting good results for Q2,but consumers remain cautious,holding back the final demand which ultimately creates jobs.As the inventory trade and government stimulus wind down,it will be harder to post such results in the second half,which doesn't bode well for the market,in the view of many.Gross Domestic Product rose a faint 2.4% for Q2,way down from Q1's revised 3.7%.
The market closed flat on the week,but rose around 7% for July-the best monthly gain in a year.Volume remained light,however,and the 10 year bond's yield was less than 3%,indicating an uncertainty underlying the good cheer on the surface.
There was little good cheer to greet new acquisition pitcher Roy Oswalt at Nationals Park as Washington creamed Philadelphia 8-1,ending the Phillies' eight-game winning streak.At the Greenbrier Classic PGA Tour event a few hours away in West Virginia,Jeff Overton topped the leaderboard,shooting a second round 62 for a -14.Boo Weekley was second at -10,while last week's Canadian Open champion Carl Petterson of Sweden was still in contention,having scored a second round 64 for a -5.
Stock futures looked optimistically to next week,with the S&P up 1.30,the Dow gaining 8.0,and the NASDAQ booking a 5.0 gain.Bond futures declined.
The market closed flat on the week,but rose around 7% for July-the best monthly gain in a year.Volume remained light,however,and the 10 year bond's yield was less than 3%,indicating an uncertainty underlying the good cheer on the surface.
There was little good cheer to greet new acquisition pitcher Roy Oswalt at Nationals Park as Washington creamed Philadelphia 8-1,ending the Phillies' eight-game winning streak.At the Greenbrier Classic PGA Tour event a few hours away in West Virginia,Jeff Overton topped the leaderboard,shooting a second round 62 for a -14.Boo Weekley was second at -10,while last week's Canadian Open champion Carl Petterson of Sweden was still in contention,having scored a second round 64 for a -5.
Stock futures looked optimistically to next week,with the S&P up 1.30,the Dow gaining 8.0,and the NASDAQ booking a 5.0 gain.Bond futures declined.
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