Consumer Confidence Surveys – As Of July 31, 2015

Doug Short had a blog post of July 31, 2015 (“Michigan Consumer Sentiment: Small Decline but Still Positive Trend“) in which he presents the latest Conference Board Consumer Confidence and Thomson/Reuters University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index charts.  They are presented below: (click on charts to enlarge images) – – There are a few aspects of the …

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Stock Market Capitalization To GDP – Through Q2 2015

“Stock market capitalization to GDP” is a notable and important metric regarding stock market valuation.  In February of 2009 I wrote of it in “Does Warren Buffett’s Market Metric Still Apply?” Doug Short has recently published a post depicting this “stock market capitalization to GDP” metric. As seen in his July 30, 2015 post titled …

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Real GDP Chart Since 1947 With Trendline – 2nd Quarter 2015

For reference purposes, below is a chart from Doug Short’s “Q2 GDP Advance Estimate at 2.3%, Close to Mainstream Forecasts” post of July 30, 2015, depicting Real GDP, with a trendline, as depicted.  This chart reflects the Gross Domestic Product Q2 2015 Advance Estimate (pdf) of July 30, 2015: _____ The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic …

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Chicago Fed National Financial Conditions Index (NFCI)

The St. Louis Fed’s Financial Stress Index (STLFSI) is one index that is supposed to measure stress in the financial system.  Its reading as of the July 23, 2015 update (reflecting data through July 17) is -1.029. Of course, there are a variety of other measures and indices that are supposed to measure financial stress and other related …

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Durable Goods New Orders – Long-Term Charts Through June 2015

Many people place emphasis on Durable Goods New Orders as a prominent economic indicator and/or leading economic indicator. For reference, below are charts depicting this measure. First, from the St. Louis Fed site (FRED), a chart through June, updated on July 27, 2015. This value is $235,337 ($ Millions): (click on charts to enlarge images) …

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U.S. Deflation – July 27, 2015 Update

This post provides an update to various past posts discussing deflation and “deflationary pressures,” including the most recent post, that of January 27, 2015 titled “U.S. Deflation – January 27, 2015 Update.”   I have extensively written of “deflationary pressures” and deflation as I continue to believe that prolonged U.S. deflationary conditions are on the …

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Money Supply Charts Through June 2015

For reference purposes, below are two sets of charts depicting growth in the money supply. The first shows the MZM (Money Zero Maturity), defined in FRED as the following: M2 less small-denomination time deposits plus institutional money funds. Money Zero Maturity is calculated by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Here is the “MZM …

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