Adam in CO
07-17-2006, 04:30 PM
Last Week in the News Growing geopolitical instability in the Middle East drove the price of oil to a record $78.40 a barrel on July 14. On the same day, rising gasoline prices were cited as the primary reason for slowing retail sales, which dipped 0.1% in June, according to the Commerce Department. The decline surprised economists, who had predicted a 4% sales increase.
Climbing energy prices helped fuel a 0.8% increase in the U.S. trade deficit, which grew to $63.84 billion in May from a revised $63.34 billion in April, the Commerce Department said July 12. The shortfall, however, was better than expected, largely because U.S. exports rose by 2.4% to $118.7 billion in May from $115.9 billion in April.
Personal bankruptcies plunged 69% to 142,815 at the end of the 2006 second quarter from 458,991 a year earlier, according to Lundquist Consulting, which collects data from U.S. Bankruptcy Courts. Last year, a new federal law made it harder for borrowers to erase their debt.
Initial jobless claims rose by 19,000 to 332,000 for the week ended July 8, reflecting temporary shutdowns at some auto factories retooling for the 2007 models.
Interest rates on 30-year mortgages fell for the first time in five weeks amid expectations that the Federal Reserve won't push rates much higher, Freddie Mac reported July 13.
This week look for Labor Department updates on the Producer Price Index on July 18 and the Consumer Price Index on July 19.
Climbing energy prices helped fuel a 0.8% increase in the U.S. trade deficit, which grew to $63.84 billion in May from a revised $63.34 billion in April, the Commerce Department said July 12. The shortfall, however, was better than expected, largely because U.S. exports rose by 2.4% to $118.7 billion in May from $115.9 billion in April.
Personal bankruptcies plunged 69% to 142,815 at the end of the 2006 second quarter from 458,991 a year earlier, according to Lundquist Consulting, which collects data from U.S. Bankruptcy Courts. Last year, a new federal law made it harder for borrowers to erase their debt.
Initial jobless claims rose by 19,000 to 332,000 for the week ended July 8, reflecting temporary shutdowns at some auto factories retooling for the 2007 models.
Interest rates on 30-year mortgages fell for the first time in five weeks amid expectations that the Federal Reserve won't push rates much higher, Freddie Mac reported July 13.
This week look for Labor Department updates on the Producer Price Index on July 18 and the Consumer Price Index on July 19.