The Great Redoubt: BLS news release

The Required Disclosures

The information presented in this blog and its individual articles is provided for informational use only and should not be considered investment advice or an offer for a particular security. The contents reflect the views and opinions of the individual writer as of the date the article was written and do not necessarily represent the views of the individual writer on the current date. They also do not in any way, shape, or form represent the views of the Firm Never-To-Be-Named. Any such views are subject to change at any time based upon market or other conditions and The Great Redoubt and its individual writers disclaim any responsibility to update such views. These views should not be relied on as investment advice, and because investment decisions for any security are based on numerous factors, may not be relied on as an indication of trading intent on behalf of any contributor to The Great Redoubt. Neither The Great Redoubt nor any individual author can be held responsible for any direct or incidental loss incurred by applying any of the information offered. Please consult your tax or financial advisor for additional information concerning your specific situation.

Showing posts with label BLS news release. Show all posts

Friday, March 25, 2011

Regional and State Employment and Unemployment (Monthly) News Release

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The latest Regional and State Employment and Unemployment news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/laus.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.
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In February 27 states and the District of Columbia had over-the-month unemployment rate decreases, 7 had increases, and 16 had no change. Nonfarm payroll employment rose in 35 states, fell in 14 states and the district, and was unchanged in 1 state.

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News releases archives: http://www.bls.gov/schedule/archives/all_nr.htm
To subscribe or unsubscribe to BLS news releases please visit http://www.bls.gov/bls/list.htm
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Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Market Impacting News

There's a lot of stuff going on out there. Here's some highlights.

Globally

Internationally, equities have recovered somewhat. The Tokyo exchange is up about 4% on reports of progress in containing radiation leaks at Fukushima, but oil and gold were up on the fighting in Libya and the unrest in the Middle East. The euro hit $1.4249 on expectations that the European Central Bank will raise interest rates next month. JPMorgan analysts are also expecting to see crude oil prices rise further once the Japanese nuclear crisis is resolved and the nation shifts to reconstruction.

Japan

Japan parts paralysis spreads as firms cut output. Sony has cut output at five more factories (bringing the total number affected to 15 out of 25), which produce digital and video cameras, televisions and microphones. A sixth plant could reopen Tuesday, but could be disrupted by rolling blackouts. Toyota has delayed restarting all 12 of its Japanese assembly plants until at least Saturday. Iron mining company Rio Tinto has warned that these supply disruptions are a threat to their expansion plans, and companies such as Apple, GM, and Nokia are also feeling the impact.
Steam is venting from Fukushima reactor No. 2, and haze has been seen above reactor No. 3. On the up side, technicians have managed to attach power cables to all six reactors and have started at least one of the cooling pumps. Radiation has been found in seawater near the plant - specifically radioactive iodine (at 126.7 times the allowed limit) and cesium (at 24.8 times the allowed limit). However, according to a TEPCO official, "it would have to be drunk for a whole year in order to accumulate to one millisievert.[1]" The Japanese government has stopped shipments of milk, spinach, and kakina[2] from the area for the time being.
On top of everything else, fuel shortages, icy rain, and power outages are slowing efforts to get humanitarian aid into Japan. Right now, estimates put damage at $250 billion with 21,000 dead or missing. 2.4 million people are without access to water, and 221,000 households remain without power.
The Norwegian Institute for Air Research has detected traces of radioactive particles from Japan in Iceland. "It's only a matter of days before it disperses in the entire northern hemisphere," says Andreas Stohl, a senior scientist for the Institute, "Over Europe there would be no concern about human health."

Libya

The Libyan military has attacked two towns in west Libya. The United States is currently in charge of the UN "no-fly" zone, but plans to cede control sometime soon. "We anticipate this transition to take place in a matter of days and not in a matter of weeks," said President Obama. A F-15E went down in Libya overnight, but the US military is reporting that the crew members have been rescued and that the crash was caused by mechanical failure.
UN air strikes have destroyed a naval facility in the east of Tripoli.

Yemen

The president of Yemen is warning that his country will descend into civil war if he is forced to quit. "Those who want to climb up to power through coups should know that this is out of the question. The homeland will not be stable, there will be a civil war, a bloody war. They should carefully consider this," said President Saleh.

Syria

Syria is experiencing its fifth straight days of anti-government protests.

[1] A sievert, symbol Sv, is the SI derived unit of dose equivalent radiation. For comparison, public dose limits for exposure to radiation are usually at 1 millisievert (1 mSv) per year above background. The maximum permissible dose to radiation workers is an average of 20 mSv per year, with no more than 40 mSv in a single year. Sleeping next to a human being for 8 hours a night, every night, for a year exposes you to 0.02 mSv, eating a banana exposes you to 0.0001 mSv, the sky exposes you to 0.24 mSv per year, and smoking 1.5 packs per day exposes you to between 13 and 60 mSv per year. For a more visual look, check out this Radiation Dose Chart.

[2] Some sort of Japanese vegetable. I got nothing, here.

Friday, March 18, 2011

News That May Move The Market Today

There's no major economic measures coming out today, so let's have a look at the news instead.

In an effort to prevent the yen from appreciating further, the Bank of Japan bought over $25 billion in US currency yesterday. This helped drive the yen back down to at least ¥81.83 to $1 and also increases the total number of yen in circulation, a goal consistent with the quantitative easing the BoJ has initiated. The G7 industrial nations have also agreed to intervene in the currency markets to help keep the yen from appreciating further by selling dollars, Canadian dollars, Euros, and so forth to Japan as needed.

Now, why are they doing this? Strong currency can be good for a nation, but it tends to restrict exports. Right now, Japan needs to bring currency into the country, and yen repatriation from selling internationally-held assets will only last so long. They will need to export goods and services, and the last thing they need is handicap their export quantities at a time when they need hard cash. (The counter-problem is inflation due to having too many yen in the marketplace, but the BoJ is confident they can soak that up when the time comes.) For some additional insight, have a look at this Reuters interview with Japanese deputy finance minister Fumihiko Igarashi, or these comments from various other Japanese officials.

Of course, the series of disasters plaguing Japan hasn't brought the troubles in the rest of the world to a halt. The United Nations has voted to approve the use of military force to prevent the Libyan government from fighting rebel forces in the newly-minted Libyan civil war. The vote was taken about 8 AM, and Reuters quotes French sources as saying that action could follow within hours. Even before the vote, Egypt's military government began shipping arms and ammunition to the rebels.

In the wake of the vote, CNN is now reporting that the Libyan government has decided on an immediate cease-fire in the civil war.

King Abdullah has, in an attempt to prevent protests and/or rebellion from breaking out in Saudi Arabia, ordered billions of dollars in handouts and government programs.

Monday, Saudi Arabia sent 1000 soldiers into Bahrain to assist the ruling monarchy in maintaining power[1]. The King of Bahrain, with that extra support decided to respond to weeks of protests by the nation's Shi'ite majority, by declaring a three-month "state of emergency" on Tuesday. This gives the defense ministry authority to impose curfews, disperse gatherings, evacuate areas, and use military force to break up protests.

[1] Interestingly enough, particularly in light of the US position regarding Libya, Secretary of State Clinton told Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal that "our advice to all sides is that they must take steps now to negotiate toward a political resolution".

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Consumer Price Index News Release

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The latest Consumer Price Index news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cpi.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.
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On a seasonally adjusted basis, the CPI-U increased 0.5 percent in February after rising 0.4 percent in January. Theindex for all items less food and energy rose 0.2 percent in February, the same increase as in January.

U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes News Release

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The latest U. S. Import and Export Price Indexes news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ximpim.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.
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U.S. import prices rose 1.4 percent in February, following a similar 1.3 percent advance in January. The price index for U.S. exports increased 1.2 percent in February, after rising 1.3 percent the previous month. Higher agricultural and nonagricultural export prices each contributed to the overall advance in February.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Producer Price Index News Release

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The latest Producer Price Index news release (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ppi.pdf) was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.
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The Producer Price Index for finished goods increased 1.6 percent in February, seasonally adjusted. This rise followed advances of 0.8 percent in January and 0.9 percent in December. The index for finished goods less foods and energy rose 0.2 percent.

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Consumer Price Index News Release

On a seasonally adjusted basis, the CPI-U increased 0.4 percent in January, the same increase as in December. The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.2 percent in January after rising 0.1 percent in December.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Producer Price Index News Release

The Producer Price Index for finished goods rose 0.8 percent in January, seasonally adjusted. This advance followed increases of 0.9 percent in December and 0.7 percent in November. The index for finished goods less foods and energy moved up 0.5 percent.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes News Release

The price index for U.S. imports increased 1.5 percent in January, as higher prices for fuel and nonfuel imports each contributed to the advance. U.S. export prices rose 1.2 percent in January, following increases of 1.5 percent in November and 0.6 percent in December.

Friday, December 17, 2010

Regional and State Employment and Unemployment (Monthly) News Release

In November 21 states and the District of Columbia had over-the-month unemployment rate increases, 15 had decreases, and 14 showed no change. Nonfarm payroll employment fell in 28 states, rose in 20 and the District of Columbia, and was unchanged in 2 states.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Regional and State Employment and Unemployment (Monthly) News Release

Here. Have some surprise regional and state employment data.

In October, 19 states and the District of Columbia registered over-the-month unemployment rate decreases, 14 states recorded increases, and 17 states had no change. Nonfarm payroll employment increased in 41 states and the District of Columbia, decreased in 6 states, and was unchanged in 3 states.

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News releases archives:
http://www.bls.gov/schedule/archives/all_nr.htm
To subscribe or unsubscribe to BLS news releases
please visit http://www.bls.gov/bls/list.htm
For help, email news_service@bls.gov
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Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Producer Price Index News Release

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The latest Producer Price Index news release
(http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ppi.pdf)
was issued today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Highlights are below.
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The Producer Price Index for Finished Goods increased 0.4 percent in October, seasonally
adjusted. This advance followed a 0.4-percent rise in both September and August. The index for
finished goods less foods and energy decreased 0.6 percent.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
News releases archives:
http://www.bls.gov/schedule/archives/all_nr.htm
To subscribe or unsubscribe to BLS news releases
please visit http://www.bls.gov/bls/list.htm
For help, email news_service@bls.gov
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