| The KUIK Morning Market Report for Thursday, February 7: | |||||||
| Markets have opened down. | |||||||
| Index | Direction | Change | Units | Last | Time | Change | |
| Dow | Down | (50) | points | 13,937 | 7:07 AM | ||
| S&P500 | Down | -0.21% | percent | 1,509 | (3.13) | points | |
| Nasdaq Composite | Down | -0.22% | percent | 3,162 | (6.94) | points | |
| 30 Year Treasury | Down | (1) | Basis Points | 3.17 | Annual Yield | ||
| The number of Americans losing their jobs every week has remained steady over the past six months. Initial jobless claims fell by 5,000 to a seasonally adjusted 366,000 in the week ended Feb. 2, according to the Labor Department. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch forecast a drop to 360,000. Claims from two weeks ago were revised up to 371,000 from an initial reading of 368,000. | |||||||
| The Labor Department also reported that productivity fell at a 2.0% annual rate in the October-to-December period, according to the agency’s preliminary assessment. The decline is the sharpest in almost two years and partly reverses a revised 3.2% gain in the third quarter. | |||||||
| Early reports show U.S. retailers turning in strong sales for January, a time of heavy promotions to clear holiday goods and make way for early spring merchandise. January is the end of the fiscal year for most retailers and the month is important because it serves as a good barometer of how much consumers have left over after holiday spending and also gives indications of what type of buying may lie ahead. Costco reported a 4% rise in U.S. same-store sales minus gasoline, compared with the 3.6% increase that was expected. On a regional basis, Costco saw strength in Texas, the Southeast, the Midwest and the Northwest. | |||||||
| Serving the West Side first, I am Bill Roller of BR Capital for AM 1360 KUIK. | |||||||
| http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-jobless-claims-edge-down-to-366000-2013-02-07 | |||||||
| http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-productivity-sinks-2-in-fourth-quarter-2013-02-07 | |||||||
| http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-retailers-january-sales-showing-strength-2013-02-07 | |||||||
| For today’s Morning Market Report click to listen-> | https://beaconrwa.com/audio/Morning-Market-Report.mp3 | ||||||