Hoje os dados das vendas retail nos EUA sairam a um por cento, quando o esperado era meio ponto. Isso revitalizou as bolsas, mas é tudo menos óbvio que a recessão esteja no fim. Segundo a reuters foram distribuídos 48 biliões de dólares aos contibuintes americanos em Maio (no contexto do "stimulus act" aprovado em Fevereiro), enquanto que o aumento do consumo foi de apenas 3,9 biliões. Isso pode sugerir que este aumento do consumo pode não continuar nos próximos meses.
fonte da notícia:
http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/id ... 12?sp=true
data de distribuição dos cheques aos contribuintes:
http://www.efile.com/irs/stimulus-package-dates.asp
Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_S ... ct_of_2008
"By Joanne Morrison
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Cash from government stimulus checks helped push U.S. retail sales up at twice the rate expected in May but the strength could be fleeting as households contend with soaring prices and the worst housing slump in decades.
The full percentage point gain in retail sales in May reported by the Commerce Department surprised financial markets and bolstered bets the Federal Reserve would begin to bump up interest rates this fall to tamp down inflation.
Economists, however, did not view the data as suggesting a fundamental shift in an otherwise weak spending trend.
"Apparently, a lot of households were simply not in a position to save the rebates amid soaring costs of living, notably higher energy prices. Others enjoyed the temporary increase in their spending scope and bought electronics or clothes," said Harm Bandholz, economist at Unicredit Markets and Investment Banking in New York.
The U.S. Treasury on Wednesday announced it paid about $48 billion in tax rebates to American consumers during May, eclipsing the $3.9 billion increase in sales. Checks for up to $600 per adult and $300 per child will be sent through early July.
"It is impossible to know just how much of the sales improvement in May was due to the $50 billion in stimulus payments that had been distributed by the end of the month," said Nigel Gault, chief U.S. economist at Global Insight.
In the report, higher gasoline prices gave a lift to service station sales, but even with those stripped out, retail sales rose a strong 0.8 percent, the biggest increase in a year as consumers bought a range of goods, including clothing, sporting goods and electronics.
But even with the boost in consumer spending, which fuels roughly 70 percent of total economic output -- conditions in the labor market are deteriorating.
A separate Labor Department report showed more workers than expected signed up for unemployment aid last week. Economists expect there to be little improvement, particularly with the wave of planned auto plant shutdowns.
U.S. government debt prices tumbled on Thursday after the surprisingly robust U.S. retail sales data and a Federal Reserve official's warning about the need to control inflation accelerated bond market bets for interest rate hikes.
U.S. stocks rose after the spending data and also in response to a pullback of more than $3 a barrel in oil prices.
"I think the combination of strong retail sales and oil trading 3 dollars lower should bode well for the market today," said John O'Brien, senior vice president at MKM Partners LLC in Cleveland, Ohio.
Excluding autos, sales rose 1.2 percent, the biggest rise in six months and well beyond the 0.7 percent rise economists were expecting. Taking out autos, building materials and gasoline, sales rose a steady 0.8 percent during the month.
But even with all these increases, economists did not expect a long-term upward trend.
"In our view, the tax rebates are temporarily boosting sales," said Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at High Frequency Economics in Valhalla, New York.
JOBLESS CLAIMS RISE
New applications for state jobless benefits jumped to 384,000 last week from a revised 359,000 for the prior week, the Labor Department said.
Analysts polled by Reuters were expecting a much smaller rise.
The four-week average of new jobless claims, which is considered a better gauge of employment trends because it irons out weekly volatility, climbed to 371,500 from 369,000 the prior week.
"The key point here is that the underlying trend in claims continues to grind higher, as it should at this point in the cycle," Shepherdson said.
In a sign higher oil prices are adding some inflationary pressures to the U.S. economy, import prices rose 2.3 percent in May as expected, capping the biggest three-month increase in more than 17 years, another Labor Department report showed.
The 7.9 percent three-month rise in import prices was the largest since October 1990.
During April, business inventories rose 0.5 percent in April, more than expected, while sales were their strongest since November, a separate Commerce Department report showed.
Wall Street analysts were expecting a 0.3 percent gain in April.
In anticipation of a boost in spending from consumers with rebate checks in hand, retailers increased their stocks by 0.4 percent in April.
Even with the latest increase, inventories still remain lean. The stock-to-sales ratio, which measures how long it would take to empty inventories at the current pace, fell to 1.25 months in April, the lowest in five months.
(Additional reporting by Mark Felsenthal and Doug Palmer)
(Reporting by Joanne Morrison; Editing by Neil Stempleman)"