Kevin M. Nast Presents: WEEKLY ECONOMIC UPDATE

– Samuel Clemens

WEEKLY TIP

Most homeowner insurance policies do not cover damage from floods and earthquakes. You will need to purchase separate coverage for protection from those calamities.

WEEKLY RIDDLE

What 9-letter word remains an English word each time you remove a letter from it, until it becomes a 1-letter word? (Hint: You can remove letters from any part of the word.)

Last week’s riddle:

You hold 3 U.S. coins in your hand. None of them are dimes, pennies or quarters. They total 60¢. What 3 coins do you have in hand?

Last week’s answer:

A 50-cent piece and 2 nickels.

September 10, 2012

WILL THIS JOBS REPORT PROMPT THE FED TO ACT?

In August, employers added 96,000 jobs – far short of the 144,000 consensus estimate of economists polled by Briefing.com. About 40% of the new hires were in four low-paying sectors (retail, leisure & hospitality, temporary help and home health care services). The jobless rate did fall to 8.1% last month – but that was because more Americans stopped looking for work. So will the Fed announce a stimulus later this week, or signal that interest rates will stay at record lows for another year or two? Some analysts think we will see both those moves made.^1,2,3

ECB ANNOUNCES THIRD ROUND OF EASING

Stocks climbed worldwide last week after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi unveiled the Outright Monetary Transactions program. The ECB would use the OMT to buy short-term government bonds of nations adopting austerity cuts to try and reduce borrowing costs for these countries. The proposal passed 22-1 in the ECB’s governing council – only Germany voted against it. Wednesday, Germany’s high court issues an opinion about the legality of the new EU bailout fund.⁴

MANUFACTURING SLOWS, AUTO SALES UP

The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing sector PMI was at 49.6 for August, down from 49.8 in July and indicating further (slight) contraction. ISM’s service sector PMI improved to 53.7 in August from a 52.6 July mark. Overall U.S. auto sales in August were up 20% from a year before, with big increases for Honda (60%), Toyota (46%), Chrysler (14%), Ford (13%) and GM (10%).^2,5

BIG GAINS ON WALL STREET

Friday, the S&P 500 closed at 1,437.92 (a 4-year high), climbing 2.23% for the week. The NASDAQ (+2.26% to 3,136.42) and Dow (+1.65% to 13,306.64) also rose substantially. Oil futures ended the week at $96.42; a gallon of gas averaged $3.82 Friday. Gold settled at $1,740.50 – its highest COMEX close since February 28.^3,6

THIS WEEK: On Monday, Del Monte, OSH and Casey’s General Stores issue earnings reports. Tuesday brings earnings from Texas Instruments. Wednesday, the German Constitutional Court rules whether that nation can continue to legally participate in the EU’s sovereign debt relief effort; stateside, Apple is expected to announce a new iPhone. Thursday, the Fed will get the world’s attention with its latest policy statement, the August PPI will be released along with weekly jobless claims figures, and Neiman Marcus presents earnings. Friday, the August CPI arrives plus the preliminary University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey for September and data on August’s retail sales and industrial output.

Sources: money.msn.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov, treasurydirect.gov – 9/7/12^3,7,8,9

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This material was prepared by MarketingLibrary.Net Inc., and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their affiliates. Marketing Library.Net Inc. is not affiliated with any broker or brokerage firm that may be providing this information to you. This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a price-weighted index of 30 actively traded blue-chip stocks. The NASDAQ Composite Index is an unmanaged, market-weighted index of all over-the-counter common stocks traded on the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System. The Standard & Poor’s 500 (S&P 500) is an unmanaged group of securities considered to be representative of the stock market in general. It is not possible to invest directly in an index. NYSE Group, Inc. (NYSE:NYX) operates two securities exchanges: the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”) and NYSE Arca (formerly known as the Archipelago Exchange, or ArcaEx®, and the Pacific Exchange). NYSE Group is a leading provider of securities listing, trading and market data products and services. The New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc. (NYMEX) is the world’s largest physical commodity futures exchange and the preeminent trading forum for energy and precious metals, with trading conducted through two divisions – the NYMEX Division, home to the energy, platinum, and palladium markets, and the COMEX Division, on which all other metals trade. Additional risks are associated with international investing, such as currency fluctuations, political and economic instability and differences in accounting standards. All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however we make no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. All economic and performance data is historical and not indicative of future results. Market indices discussed are unmanaged. Investors cannot invest in unmanaged indices. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services. If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.

LD044661-09/12

Citations.

1 – www.latimes.com [9/7/12]

2 – briefing.com [9/7/12]

3 – money.msn.com [9/7/12]

4 – www.cnbc.com [9/7/12]

5 – online.wsj.com [9/4/12]

6 – montoyaregistry.com [9/7/12]

7 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com [9/7/12]

7 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com [9/7/12]

7 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com [9/7/12]

7 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com [9/7/12]

7 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com [9/7/12]

7 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com [9/7/12]

7 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com [9/7/12]

7 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com [9/7/12]

7 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com [9/7/12]

8 – treasury.gov [9/7/12]

8 – treasury.gov [9/7/12]

9 – treasurydirect.gov [7/10/02]