Weekly Indicators: 'Tis The Seasonality Edition

By Hale Stewart:
by New Deal Democrat
Monthly data was light this past week. Factory orders for October were down -0.4%. This series has gone flat for the last 3 months. The ISM non-manufacturing index also softened, but remained positive. The University of Michigan's preliminary December consumer confidence report was up more than expected. The expectations index, one of the 10 LEI, was up sharply, having regained over half its loss from July's debt ceiling debacle.The high frequency weekly indicators are at the point where holiday seasonality strongly affects their week over week performance. YoY comparisons are more important, but whether those comparisons are improving or deteriorating is most important. Most of these indicators again showed strength, with the exception of tax withholding, money supply, and gasoline usage. I again remind new readers that my "Weekly Indicators" column is not designed to be a big picture forecast of the future, but ratherComplete Story »