Category Archives: Ann’s Blog
Retail Sales Up, So Are Prices
Retail sales posted a solid 1.1% gain month over month, excluding autos and gasoline, the rise was .6%. Producers Price index (manufacturing level inflation) was up .4%. What it means – the high cost of fuel is trickling (no pun …
Inflation Up, Wages Down
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported last Friday that consumer prices rose by 0.4% last month and 2.9% over the past year. At the same time, wages rose by only .1% last month, so adjusted for inflation wages fell -.3%. …
What It Means
Consumer Credit Inched Higher – The lack of follow-through in retail sales notwithstanding, consumers decidedly pulled out their credit cards over the holidays.2 What it means – The move higher in consumer credit was not confined to student loans and …
What it Means
Retail Sales Disappoint – The December retail sales came in at an anemic 0.1% gain from November, and were actually down -0.2% when autos were excluded. 1 What it Means – This is the second lower reading in a row, …
What It Means
Jobless Claims Jump to 399,000 in December1 What it Means – After several weeks of jobless claims falling, the measurement shot higher to just under the magic 400,000 this week. Of course, since this number gets revised 99.9999% of the …
Dow Surges 490 Points – Wall Street Journal, November 30, 2011
It appears that Santa Claus came a little early this year. Buoyed by news that the world’s central banks were banding together to make emergency funding available to Europe’s troubled banks, the stock market enjoyed one of its best days …
An Abacus and a Pencil
An abacus and a pencil – it may feel like that’s how your retirement claim is being processed. In two separate articles published in GovExec and Federal Times this week, delays in retirement processing by OPM were addressed again. The …
Wall Street News
In the retirement classes I conduct, when federal employees are asked whether they trust Wall Street, there is always a resounding, “No!” Being skeptical myself about the benefits that Wall Street traders supply, I decided to head to the Big …
Home Price Index
Home Price Index Lower…Again…The Case-Shiller 10-city Home Price Index fell by -3.8% year over year, and the 20-city Home Price Index fell even more, -4.6%. The monthly changes were mild positives, however the monthly numbers can be skewed by seasonality …
News about Unemployment
August Unemployment Numbers Flat…For the first time since the 1940s, the number of jobs created in the US came in at exactly zero. The Unemployment Rate remained at 9.1% for the month of August. What it means – This one …
