Clarksville Weekly Market Snapshot from Frazier Allen for the week of June 22nd, 2015
June 22, 2015
Clarksville, TN – In its monetary policy statement, the Federal Open Market Committee recognized that “economic activity has been expanding moderately after having changed little during the first quarter.” Labor market slack has “diminished somewhat.” Growth in consumer spending has been “moderate,” while the housing sector “has shown some improvement.”
In the revised Summary of Economic Projections, Fed officials lowered their forecasts of 2015 GDP growth, but raised slightly their expectations for growth in 2016 and 2017.
Frazier Allen
Clarksville Weekly Market Snapshot from Frazier Allen for the week of June 14th, 2015
June 14, 2015
Clarksville, TN – Economists began the week wondering why consumers hadn’t spent the windfall from lower gasoline prices. By the end of the week, we had a partial answer. Retail sales rose strongly in May, as expected. More importantly, we had upward revisions to the data for March and April.
The Bureau of Census also released its quarterly survey of services. These two reports paint a brighter consumer spending outlook and imply an upward revision to the estimate of 1Q15 GDP growth (the second estimate showed a -0.7% annual rate, but should be revised to show a much more modest decline or perhaps a slight increase).
Frazier Allen
Clarksville Weekly Market Snapshot from Frazier Allen for the week of June 10th, 2015
June 10, 2015
Clarksville, TN – The economic data reports were mixed, but nonfarm payrolls rose more than expected (+280,000) in the initial estimate for May. Seasonal adjustment issues may have been a factor (as education job losses were a lot smaller than usual).
The unemployment rate edged up to 5.5%, but that partly reflected increased labor force participation for teenagers and young adults (also consistent with seasonal adjustment problems).
Mining, which includes energy exploration, fell by 17,200, down 68,400 since December.
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APSU student Amber Kearns to serve on archeological dig in Bulgaria
April 28, 2015
Clarksville, TN – By digging into the past, Austin Peay State University student Amber Kearns said she hopes to find her future.
A double major in biology and classics, Kearns will be the first APSU student to participate in an excavation in Bulgaria at the site of the former Greek colony known as Alexandropolis.
APSU student Amber Kearns to travel to Bulgaria for archeological dig.
Clarksville Weekly Market Snapshot from Frazier Allen for the week of April 19th, 2015
April 19, 2015
Clarksville, TN – The economic data reports were mixed. Retail sales picked up in March, following a weak trend in the three previous months. Industrial production fell 0.6%, reflecting a plunge in oil and gas drilling and a decrease in the output of utilities (more normal temperatures).
Manufacturing output edged up 0.1%, with mixed results across industries. Building permits and housing starts fell in March, largely reflecting the usual volatility in the multi-family sector. Single-family permits, the key figure in the report, rose 2.1% (up 4.1% y/y).
Frazier Allen
Southern Watercolor Society Presents Its Juried Exhibition at the Customs House Museum
April 15, 2015
Clarksville, TN – The Customs House Museum is pleased to host the Southern Watercolor Society’s 38th Annual Juried Exhibition this May. The show features eighty-seven paintings, eleven coming from Tennessee artists.
Exhibits Curator, Terri Jordan, states “I am honored to have the Southern Watercolor Society (SWS) present its 38th Annual Juried Exhibition here at the Customs House Museum. We have featured the talents of some of the best artists living in the South and I am happy to add the SWS to that list.”
Bill Bailey – Fly Creek
Clarksville Weekly Market Snapshot from Frazier Allen for the week of March 31st, 2015
March 31, 2015
Clarksville, TN – The economic data were mixed, adding little to the overall picture. Durable goods orders disappointed (again), with orders for nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft (a rough proxy for business fixed investment) down for the sixth consecutive month. Unfilled orders are falling and inventories are outpacing shipments – both are bad signs, but neither is yet at a dangerous level.
Home sales figures were mixed. The third estimate of fourth quarter GDP growth came in at 2.2%, the same as in the previous estimate. This report included corporate profit data for 4Q14, which showed a moderate increase in domestic nonfinancial corporate profits, but a sharp drop in profits from abroad.
Frazier Allen
Clarksville Weekly Market Snapshot from Frazier Allen for the week of March 11th, 2015
March 11, 2015
Clarksville, TN – The economic data were mixed, but the February Employment Report was stronger than expected. Nonfarm payrolls rose by 295,000 (±105,000), with a revision to January of -18,000. The BLS indicated that the payroll survey missed most of the bad weather that hit last month.
The household survey showed that 328,000 could not make it to work due to bad weather, which is about average (it was 601,000 in February 2014). Average weekly hours held steady (no weather impact).
Frazier Allen
Clarksville Weekly Market Snapshot from Frazier Allen for the week of March 1st, 2015
March 1, 2015
Clarksville, TN – Greece’s reform proposals were accepted by European finance ministers, effectively kicking the can down the road for another four months.
In her monetary policy testimony, Fed Chair Janet Yellen signaled that the Fed will begin to consider raising short-term interest rates on a meeting-by-meeting basis. Before then, the Fed will change its forward guidance (currently, the language suggests that the Fed can be “patient” in deciding when to raise rates).
Frazier Allen
Clarksville Weekly Market Snapshot from Frazier Allen for the week of February 22nd, 2015
February 22, 2015
Clarksville, TN – The minutes of the January 27th-28th Federal Open Market Committee meeting showed officials continuing to make preparations for policy normalization.
There was some debate about the risks of moving either too late or too soon. “Several” Fed officials feared that waiting too long to raise rates would risk higher inflation, but “many” (which in Fedspeak, is more than “several”) worried that a premature increase in rates could dampen the economic recovery and leave the Fed with limited options to correct course.
Frazier Allen
