Fundamentals 5/26

GDP:
Second of three 1Q2011 GDP readings was +1.8%, the same as first reading and down from +3.1% 4Q2010 reading. Final 1Q2011 reading June 24.

Looking inside and remembering that GDP=C+I+G+(X-M) (where C=Consumer Spending, I=Investments, G=Government Spending, X=eXports, M=iMports) let’s break out the components:

C was +2.2% in the quarter contrasted with +4.0% the previous quarter
I was +3.4%
Federal G was -7.9%
State & Local G was -3.2%
X was +9.2%
M was +7.5%.

Jobs:
Weekly initial Jobless Claims up 10,000 to 424,000. This was above the consensus range and above previous. The 4-week moving average was 438,500. Continuing claims dropped 46,000 in the week ended May 14 to 3.69m, lowest in a month.

Corporate Profits:
Corporate Profits (from Bureau of Economic Analysis) were +5.8% for 1Q2011.