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Preliminary Read on Consumer Sentiment Worse Than Expected
The first monthly look at consumer sentiment for October wasn’t pretty. The University of Michigan survey said sentiment fell 4.1 points to 69.4, erasing more than half of September’s 7.8 point leap.rnrnAnalysts were looking for continued strength as the equity market as climbed to annual highs in the first two weeks of the month. Jobless claims have also moderated in five of the past six weeks to nine-month lows, and home prices have been rising modestly. Even so, indexes for six-month expectations and current conditions each fell.
Industrial Production Improves in September
Industrial production figures surprised Wall Street this morning. Despite aggreate hours falling half a percentage in September, production managed to climb 0.7%, far above +0.2% expectations and marking the third straight monthly gain. Upward revisions also pushed the August headline up four-tenths to +1.2%.rnrnThree consecutive gains put the quarterly advance at a +5.2% annual rate, not a bad pace after five straight quarterly contractions.rn
Foreign Purchases of Treasuries Up to $28.6 Billion in August
The Treasury said foreign intake of long-term US financial assets expanded in August, but compared to pre-crisis levels analysts said purchases were tepid.rnrnNet foreign purchases of long-term securities were in line with forecasts at $28.6 billion in August, compared with $15.3 billion in the prior month.rnrn“This is all fine and good, but the fact remains that foreign appetite for U.S. securities is much less than it was pre-crunch,†said TD strategist Eric Lascelles, who noted the monthly average in 2007 was $64 billion. “This presents clear risks for USD and Treasury yields,†he added.
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