Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Quick Notes for the Day - November 17

PPI Rises 0.3% - The Labor Department reported that the producer price index (PPI) rose a seasonally adjusted 0.3% on higher food and energy costs. The core PPI number (excludes food and energy) fell 0.6% which is the largest decrease in three years. The PPI has dropped 1.9% year over year while the core PPI has risen 0.7%.

Industrial Output Rises 0.1% - The Federal Reserve reported that industrial production rose just slightly by 0.1% in October after the previous three months had been very strong. Industrial production has fallen 7.1% over the past year with a slow Q4 and Q1 to blame.

October's rise was based mostly on a 1.6% jump in utility output due to cooler temperatures in the nation. Capacity utilization rose to 70.7% in October from 70.5% in September.

Foreign Asset Purchases Rise in September - The Treasury Department reported that net foreign purchases of long-term securities increased to $40.7 billion in September from $34.2 billion in August. When short-term securities and bank lending data are included, $133.5 billion worth of capital flowed into the US in September which is a substantial rise from $25.3 billion in August. Net foreign purchases of long-term U.S. securities were $55.7 billion in September.

New Financial Fraud Task Force - A new financial fraud task force was created on Tuesday with the Department of Justice heading it up with the Treasury Department, HUD and the SEC serving as the steering committee. The group replaces the Corporate Fraud Task Force established in 2002.

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