Economics Update

Well, we had mixed signals, with factory activity rising faster than expected and construction spending falling faster than expected.

As to what you follow, I'll go with disposable personal income and personal consumption expenditures, where spending went up less than income, increasing the savings rate, meaning that the consumer is still well into the "paradox of thrift", and as The Big Picture observes, most of the increase in personal income is from government stimulus spending, but Obama has decided to go all 1937 on the budget. (Separate post for the budget)

Meanwhile in central bank/bond finance land, the Obama's budget, along with the industrial growth reading pushed bond prices down, and yields up.

Meanwhile, in Oz, the Reserve Bank of Australia kept its benchmark rate at 3.75%, it had been expected to raise the rate to 4%, and so its currency took a hit.

Meanwhile in currency and energy, the ISM's index of national factory activity drove both oil and the dollar up.