GDP Forcast Uneven : Business & Industry Holding Back

What - the economy isn't booming like Mr Obama and is supporters in the democrat party have pronounced? It seems that just having Mr Obama say the words is enough proof we are doing well. Trust me is the catch phrase from Mr Obama.


Reality and common sense are left for the Republicans and Conservatives to explain actual outcomes of failed policies and then propose solutions that require sacrifice.


And given there are millions of people that do not have a clue about anything without the progressive socialist tag attached to it to lend it plausibility, the Republicans and Conservatives are then universally attacked as out of touch and allied against the people, especially minorities, the poor, the old and women.


Words do matter, especially when millions of people are willing to accept them as the truth without reservation as they are now being used by Mr Obama and the progressives to destroy our way of life.


As Durable-Goods Orders Fall So Does the GDP
Source: Kate Davidson, "Durable-Goods Orders Fall, Raising Worries Over GDP Growth," Wall Street Journal, March 25, 2015.


March 27, 2015

Many forecasters estimate the economy downshifted in the first three months of this year in a milder version of last year's disappointing start. The latest factor pushing down expectations was a drop in business spending and investment.

• According to the Commerce Department, orders for durable goods declined a seasonally adjusted 1.4 percent in February from a month earlier. Excluding the volatile transportation sector, orders fell 0.4 percent, the fifth consecutive monthly decline.
• Orders for nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft dropped 1.4 percent from January. That marked the sixth straight monthly decline, which may have been due to lower oil prices hitting demand for oil equipment.
• U.S. retail sales fell 0.6 percent in February, the third consecutive monthly decline.

The weak performance suggests U.S. companies remain cautious about spending amid weak global demand and a strengthening dollar. Severe winter weather has also likely played a role in recent economic softness, as homebuilders pulled back on new construction and consumers spent less at retailers and restaurants.

• The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta on Wednesday put its gauge at an annualized 0.2 Percent, down from its earlier estimate of 0.3 percent.
• Morgan Stanley economists lowered their estimate for first-quarter growth to an annualized 0.9 percent from an earlier forecast of 1.2 percent, pointing to light inventories and lower exports as weighing on GDP.
• Barclays economists lowered their projection a tenth of a percentage point to 1.2 percent.
• The forecasting firm Macroeconomic Advisers trimmed its estimate down to 1.2 percent from 1.5 percent.
• J.P. Morgan Chase economists lowered their first-quarter forecast to an annualized 1.5 percent, from 2 percent.

Economists do not expect as big of a slump in output in the first quarter as in 2014, in part because the underlying health of the economy is better than it was a year ago. The fundamentals are stronger than they were last year.