Jack Lott's Blog – July 2008 Archive (7)

The U.S. economy expanded less than expected in the second quarter as the burden from housing and rising unemployment thwarted the impact of federal tax rebate checks. Gross Domestic Product grew at a 1.9 percent annualized rate after expanding 0.9 percent in the first quarter. The report also showed a recession may have begun in the final three months of 2007.



The Labor Department reported that the number of applications for initial jobless benefits soared to 448,000, which is an… Continue

The ADP employment index showed that U.S. private-sector employment rose by 9,000 in July. Adding in some 20,000 government workers typically hired in a given month, the index suggests U.S. non-farm payrolls rose by about 30,000 in July which the government will release Friday morning. Economists are expecting a loss of 70,000.



According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, mortgage application volume tumbled 14.1 percent during the week ending July 25th, hitting its lowest level of… Continue

Barack Obama will meet with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. The two are expected to discuss the current credit crisis and Obama's plans to enforce tougher oversight of financial institutions if he is elected president. Obama is also scheduled to speak to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson by phone today.



U.S. chain store sales rose 1.2% in the first three weeks of July compared with the previous month. The index's rise was milder than the targeted 1.4% increase. The index also… Continue

Toyota lowered its global vehicle sales plan for this year to 9.5 million vehicles -- which is down from 9.85 million -- as the listless North American market slows the automaker's momentum.



Emirates Airlines have taken delivery of its first of 58 A380 super jumbo jets from AirBus and said it has signed up to buy another 60 aircraft from the European plane manufacturer.



Private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, which gained fame by taking RJ Reynolds private two decades… Continue

The Value of Calculated Risk

By James Dicks



If you have become a successful investor, you already know that taking a well-planned and deliberate risk is a key factor in reaching your goals. While it might sound a little intimidating, it is an essential part of investing, entrepreneurship and life itself. Think about it – we all take a big risk just getting up in the morning but if we decided to just lie around all day we would never accomplish anything. It takes some type of… Continue

Stronger demand for primary metals, machinery and electronics pushed orders for U.S.-made durable goods up 0.8% in June. Excluding the 2.6% decrease in transportation goods orders rose 2.0%, the sharpest gain since last December and was the largest increase in total orders since February. The increase was much more than anticipated and was mostly related to increased defense spending.



The consumer sentiment index from the University of Michigan hit 61.2 in July, that’s up from an… Continue

The Labor Department reported that first-time claims for initial unemployment benefits rose to the highest level since late March in the latest week. The number of initial claims in the latest reporting period rose 34,000 to 406,000. The consensus forecast was for claims to increase to 380,000.



The National Association of Realtors reported that sales of existing homes fell by 2.6 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.86 million units. That's more than double… Continue