EconomicCrisis.US

U.S. consumer confidence unexpectedly rose to 53.5 in August, the Conference Board said, as Americans became somewhat more positive about the short-term outlook for the economy.

A Bloomberg survey had expected the index to rise to 51.0 in August from 50.4 in July. It hit a record low of 25.3 in April 2009.

In August, two of the index’s three components rose, with consumers’ expectations for both the job market and the future economic conditions showing improvement.

Consumers expecting more jobs in the months ahead rose in August to 14.6% from 14.2% in July, while those anticipating fewer jobs decreased to 19.4% from 20.9%.
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The estimated rise in gross domestic product, the value of goods and services produced, for the period between April and June was revised down from 2.4pc to just 1.6pc, as companies reined in inventories and the trade deficit widened.

The revision – despite beating economists’ estimates of a 1.4pc rise – would appear to provide further evidence that the recovery is losing steam.

The US economy enjoyed a 3.7pc expansion in the first quarter.

The cut in growth stemmed from mainly from a “sharp acceleration in imports and sharp deceleration in private inventory investment,” the department said.
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Orders for U.S. durable goods increased less than forecast in July, a sign that one of the few remaining bright spots in the economy is cooling.

Bookings increased 0.3 percent, compared with the 3 percent median estimate of 75 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News, figures from the Commerce Department showed today in Washington. Excluding transportation equipment, demand unexpectedly fell.

Manufacturing is slowing after leading the U.S. out of the worst recession since the 1930s as consumers cut back on spending. The pullback in factory activity will probably contribute to deceleration in growth in the second half of the year.
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Housing led the U.S. out of seven of the last eight recessions. This time, it may kill the recovery.

Home sales collapsed after a federal tax credit for buyers expired in April. Since then, the manufacturing-led expansion, which began in the second half of 2009, has been waning, with jobless claims rising and factory orders falling.

“If foreclosures continue to mount and depress home prices, that could send the economy back into a recession,” said Celia Chen, an economist who tracks the industry for Moody’s Analytics Inc. “The housing market and the broader economy are closely intertwined.”
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