A WEEKLY ECONOMIC UPDATE FROM CONGRESSMAN GREGORY W. MEEKS

June 14, 2010

ECONOMIC ACTIVITY

Economic Growth

• The consensus forecast for economic growth in 2010 was revised up slightly. The Blue Chip panel now projects higher real GDP growth in second and third quarters. For the full year, the panel currently forecasts 3.3% growth. [Blue Chip]

Consumers

• Consumer sentiment rose in early June to its highest level in more than two years. The preliminary June reading on the Reuters/University of Michigan index of consumer sentiment reached 75.5 at the end of May. [Reuters/Michigan]

• Spending in core retail sales edged up 0.1% last month. Sales data for April and May suggest second-quarter consumer spending is on a moderate growth track. [Census]

Trade

• Nominal exports rose 3.8% in March, new revisions show – the largest monthly percent increase in three years. While exports fell 0.7%in April, they now stand 20% above their low a year ago. [Commerce]

Employment

• Initial claims for unemployment insurance fell by 3,000 to 456,000 for the week ended June 5. [Labor]

For the week ended May 29, the number of people continuing to receive unemployment insurance benefits plunged by 255,000 to 4.462 million. While this is the fifth largest weekly decline on record, it may have resulted from added volatility around Memorial Day. [Labor]