Posted on 06/01/2016 4:16:13 AM PDT by expat_panama
Consumer spending climbed in April by the most in almost seven years, a sign U.S. households are ready to help jump start growth after a first-quarter slowdown. Key Points Consumer purchases climbed 1% in April (vs. 0.7% forecast) after little change in March Personal income climbed 0.4% for a second month Fed’s preferred measure of inflation (tied to consumer spending) climbed 0.3% from month before, the biggest May 2015; 1.1% from year before
Big Picture
Households will need to do the heavy lifting if a growth rebound is to materialize...
[snip]
The Details
After adjusting for inflation, which generates the figures used to calculate gross domestic product, purchases climbed 0.6% in April, the most since February 2014, after being little changed the prior month Purchases of durable goods jumped 2.2% Price measure excluding food and fuel increased 0.2% in April from month before and 1.6% in 12 months ended April Disposable income (money left over after taxes) increased 0.2% in April from prior month after adjusting for inflation; up 3.3% over past year
(Excerpt) Read more at investors.com ...
--personal spending is at an all time high and last month's jump was downright healthy!
As usual this kind of stat will be impossible for the living w/ parents comic book set that insists everything is doom'n'gloom, but the rest of us who work for a living understand that there's a lot going on and there are times in life where we need to be ready to accept the good as well as the bad.
People are starting to see the Trump light at the end of the tunnel.
When Trump went over the 1237 mark, I expected to see the financial figures improve. It’s optimism and hope for the future. A shot in the arm.
Doh,perhaps fuel prices?
Happy mid-week investors! Stock indexes ended yesterday mixed in heavier trade as the IBD distribution count falls --the NASDAQ count is too far in the past to matter any more. Things are getting a bit choppy tho and the futures heat map pegs the trend continuing at a flat +0.03%.
Precious metals hang on to their bases w/ gold above its $1,200 and silver atop $16. Still. Futures traders see that sagging now....
LOTS OF REPORTS TODAY!!!!
7:00 AM MBA Mortgage Index
8:15 AM ADP Employment Change
10:00 AM Construction Spending
10:00 AM ISM Index
10:00 AM Construction Spending
10:30 AM Crude Inventories
2:00 PM Auto Sales
2:00 PM Truck Sales
2:00 PM Fed's Beige Book
--and really guys, someone really needs to post some of these:
Socialism Sounds Great Until It Is Unwrapped - Thomas Sowell, Investor's
Guaranteed Income Is a Poor Poverty-Fighting Tool - Eduardo Porter,NYT
Tax Millionaires to Death, They Won't Leave - Jordan Weissmann, Slate
Searching For 'Why' Behind Trump's Problems w/Fed - Judy Shelton, Hill
Uber and Taylor Swift Expose a Fed Without Clothes - Ralph Benko, TAS
A Business Deal? What's Next for Cuba? - Oscar Biscet & Jordan Allot, TWS
Any Real Reform of Wall Street Is Very Doubtful - Darrell Delamaide, USA
Why Stocks Did Better Than You Think in '15 - Simon Constable, TheStreet
Who Is Bearing the Most Risk From Fracking? - Editorial, New York Times
Musk Admits All Dumb Things Tesla's Done - Katie Fehrenbacher, Fortune
Consumer spending is not an improvement in the economy. It bumps the numbers in the present moment while doing nothing for the long term. Consumer saving builds the economy for the long term while not giving the politicians the numbers they like to point at to prove how wonderful they are.
All the leaches got their EITC’s.
-PJ
How much of this is spending on goods that they've been putting off but now have to in order to survive? Is spending on health care included?
The one and only cause!
Mr. Trump!
But y’all know who/what will claim the credit, doncha?????
Not ALL Americans are yet awake!
There is still the enemy within; the AINOs!!!!!
Keep working on the truth, America...
Semper FIDELIS
Dick.Gaines: AMERICAN
*****
Buying guns, ammo, food and prepper supplies to avoid the next round of price increases.
When you say “adjusted for inflation” - be careful not to accept the phony Government figure of between 1 and 2%. After all: Venezuela has excellent consumer spending numbers right now.
Shadowstats (http://www.shadowstats.com/) uses the same official inflation-determination method that was used in 1990. They show an inflation rate of between 4 and 5%.
The Chapwood Index (http://www.chapwoodindex.com/) is an index that captures true cost-of-living increases across America. It is not used as the basis of Government index figures. When we look at their results we can guess why.
The Chapwood Index shows that annual price inflation has been running north of 9% over the last five years. They report inflation as high as 13% in some cities.
Chapwood simply track the changes in prices of 500 commonly purchased items. They publish their methodology on their website.
The official CPI figures are completely, utterly wrong. If any of you are wondering why you’re so damn poor while “inflation is less than 2%” then there’s your answer.
It could be. That would involve spending on made-in-USA goods. It would also have to be spending that isn't debt-driven.
You brought up consumer saving, which builds the economy for the long term. Near-zero interest rates are a disincentive to saving. What's the point of putting off a purchase until it can be afforded if the money in the bank isn't growing and if the seller is offering very low or no interest on loans to buy stuff for the first few months?
Do they adjust for inflation? Real inflation?
Complete and utter B.S.
Saving is the only economy builder. That doesn’t mean that saving is sensible to the income earner if there are no incentives and money in the bank is actually at risk of confiscation.
Building economy without debt requires savings.
Building economy with sensibly provided debt requires savings, no matter where the goods are made or by whom.
Tax refunds were delayed this year by 2 to 3 weeks or more. Tax refunds sent out in bulk on same day or by electronic check to bank. Those that receive EIC refund up 5% Most EIC refunds are multiple thousands of dollars. Those who work and are paying taxes usually don’t get a big refund and are paying their taxes tweeked to their W-2 and don’t get big refunds. More people receiving more in tax refunds than their taxes paid. If you are working less than 35 hrs a week and have kids, there is a good chance you will receive EIC above taxes paid.
Agree 100%. What's happening now has just about destroyed the middle class and made it impossible for most to get a few steps ahead financially.
If I were younger I'd worry about even "safe" retirement savings. I'd worry about a future where those savings got automatically transferred into "safe" government annuities. That would mean the principle would be gone for future use and future generations. It's already happening. So many seniors have been talked into forfeiting their savings for annuities, just to compensate for low interest rates on their savings.
The more I learn about things, the more having some physical, easily-verifiable gold or silver in ones possession makes sense.
If the goods are made in the US, that means revenue from local job growth, associated taxes and spending. Manufacturing keeps local communitities solvent. It has to be part of any recovery.
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