The KUIK Morning Market Report for Friday, April 14:
Markets are closed in honor of Good Friday, but here are some of the stories we’re following:
The University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment survey for April rose to a preliminary reading of 98 compared with March’s final 96. Economists expected 96. Consumers’ views on current conditions jumped to 115.2 up from March’s 113.2. That’s the highest level since 2000. Consumers’ expectations improved only slightly in April to 86.9 from 86.5 in March. The report said the gap between Republicans and Democrats remained “an astonishing 50.5 points.”
The Commerce Department reports sales at U.S. retailers fell 0.2% in March. That was the second drop in a row, for the worst two-month stretch in two years. But it was actually better than the 0.3% drop expected by economists. February was downgraded to a 0.3% drop instead of the originally reported 0.1% increase. Those soft sales have been concentrated among auto dealers, gas stations, and department stores. Electronics stores had a strong month, as wellas clothing stores switching over to spring apparel. and Internet retailers.
Commerce Department also reports. The consumer-price index fell by a seasonally adjusted 0.3% in March. Economists expected a a 0.1% decline. The annual rate of inflation fell to 2.4% in March down from February’s five-year high of 2.7%.
Serving the West Side first, I am Bill Roller of BR Capital for 1360 KUIK.
