Would you like some good news? Well here it is and its real, not just smoke rings. First, for the first time in four months incomes rose 0.5% to $58.2 billion. The gains came mainly from lower taxes and the effects of the government stimulus packages. Secondly, the savings rate (what is left over after spending) rose from 4.5% in March to 5.7% in April to a 14-year high.
Let's keep the good news going. Next, export orders jumped in May to their highest level since the Lehman collapse. This indicates that world trade is unfreezing and that goods are moving again across the globe. Now add to this the fact that construction spending rose in April by .8% to $968.7 billion. Private construction rose 1.4%, public construction was up .6% and residential construction rose by 0.7%. However it is still down 10.7% from a year ago. So there is a glimmer of hope that the housing market may be reaching bottom.
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