Thursday, September 24, 2009

Quick Notes for the Day - September 24

Initial Jobless Claims Drop - The Labor Department reported that intial claims for state unemployment benefits fell to their lowest level since July by falling 21,000 to 530,000. Estimates had been for a rise in claims to 550,00. The four-week average of initial claims fell 11,000 to 553,500. This is the lowest level since late January. Meanwhile, the number of Americans receiving state jobless benefits fell 123,000 to 6.14 million in the week ending Sept. 12. The four-week moving average of continuing claims fell 1,250 to 6.19 million.

Existing Home Sales Drop Unexpectedly - The National Association of Realtors reported that sales of existing homes dropped for the first time in five months by 2.7% in August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.10 million. Inventories of unsold homes dropped to the lowest level since April 2007 at an 8.5 month supply.

Oil Drops on Demand - Oil futures dropped by 4% on Thursday morning as a lack of demand in the commodity and higher inventories hit prices. Oil fell close to $66 per barrel which is the lowest in about a month.

Natural Gas Inventories Close to Record - The EIA reported that natural gas inventories rose 67 billion cubic feet to 3,525 Bcf which is only 20 Bcf away from the record high hit in November 2007. At the current level, inventories are 509 Bcf higher year over year and 485 Bcf above the five-year average according to the EIA.

No comments: