US MARKET & NEWS 13.7.2009

Blue chips slipped Friday, after a profit warning from Chevron dragged on oil stocks, but the Nasdaq managed modest gains for the day at the end of a down week for Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 0.45% (-36.7 pts, close 8,146.5). The Nasdaq gained 0.2% (+3.5 pts, close 1,756.0) and the S&P 500 index dropped 0.4% (-3.6 pts, close 879.1). In currency
trading, the dollar gained against the euro and fell against the Japanese yen. U.S. light crude oil for August delivery fell 52 cents to settle at US$59.89 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. (CNNmoney)

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Sentiment among U.S. consumers dropped in July after four months of gains as unemployment approached 10%. The Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary index of consumer sentiment fell by more than forecast to 64.6 from 70.8 in the prior month. Consumers in the survey said they are less likely to buy cars or appliances, suggesting that the recovery may be weaker than anticipated. “Until the employment picture clears up, we can’t anticipate persistent gains in consumer spending." said Jonathan Basile, an economist at Credit Suisse Holdings Inc. (Bloomberg)

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The U.S. trade deficit unexpectedly narrowed in May to the lowest level in almost a decade as exports jumped while imports of crude oil and auto parts declined. The gap between imports and exports decreased 9.8% to US$26bn, the smallest deficit since November 1999, from a revised US$28.8bn in April that was lower than previously estimated, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. Imports fell while exports rose the most since July 2008. (Bloomberg)

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The U.S. economy will expand faster than previously forecast in the second half of this year and in 2010 as a revival in consumer spending signals an end to the recession, a Bloomberg News survey showed. The U.S. economy will expand faster than previously forecast in the second half of this year and in 2010 as a revival in consumer spending signals an end to the recession. Signs of stability in the housing market, improving consumer confidence and smaller declines in auto sales are reinforcing forecasts for gains in consumer purchases. While the recovery is likely to be tempered by job cuts and shrinking household wealth, most economists said a second stimulus package won’t be needed. (Bloomberg)

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The United States financial crisis is expected to complete its cycle through the turmoil within a year, given its accelerated pace compared to the Japanese experience in 1997/98, holder of the Tun Ismail Ali Chair in monetary and financial economics Takatoshi Ito said. He said unlike in the US, where the crisis began in early 2007 and was now in the recovery process, Japan’s banking crisis lasted around 10 years. Speaking on the differences between the two crises, he also cited that the US had avoided nationalising its banks, compared to Japan. (Financial Daily