Economy continues to underperform
The news on the economic front was none too
promising, despite the stock market rally on Thursday. Personal incomes were
expected to rise half a percent in July. That's what they normally do in a
healthy economy. What happened this July? They only rose by 0.1%.
The Consumer Confidence Index also declined from
105.7 to 98.2. The Purchasing Managers Index declined from 64.7 to 57.3. The ISM
Manufacturing Index declined from 62 to 59. And U.S. autosales plunged in
August, General Motors reporting a 14% decline, Ford a 13% decline, and Chrysler
a 5.7% decline. All this despite an increased buying incentive from $4,027 to
$4,203.
If the economy is really in a
period of recovery, how come we continue to see these mixed
results?
Those who have kept up with
this blog should know. It's all smoke and mirrors. The fundamentals for the
economy still suck; and until they are (per impossible) improved, there can be
no full-fledged recovery.
Posted: Fri - September 3, 2004 at 03:06 AM