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DJ-BTMU U.S. Business Barometer edged down by 0.2%
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For the week ending June 8, 2013, the DJ-BTMU U.S. Business Barometer edged down by 0.2 percent following a flat reading in the prior week. Gains in consumption and decreases in production indexes virtually cancelled each other out. However Chain Store Sales dragged the barometer a bit further down, which declined by 2.7 percent and its negative contribution to the barometer was the largest since February 9. Meanwhile, Railroad Freight Carloadings increased by 1.7 percent after declining for two consecutive weeks. In production indexes, Auto and Truck Production rose by more than 8 percent, respectively, almost offsetting the weakening in the previous week while Electril Output dropped for three weeks in a row.
On a year-over-year basis, the barometer showed an increase of 0.9 percent for the ninth consecutive week, which compares to an average -3.3 percent decline over the Great Recession (determined to have ended in June 2009 according to the NBER). After flatlining in 2006, and declining from 2007 through 2009, the barometer bounced back in 2010 to rise by 3.4 percent, which was the strongest increase since 1994 (+4.0 percent), but not so impressive when compared to an -8.0 percent drop in 2009. The rate of increase for the 2012 slightly slowed to 1.4 percent following 2.2 percent in 2011.
The smoothed version of the barometer, which attempts to account for weekly volatility, continued to decrease by 0.1 percent. Its year-over-year growth rate was 0.8 percent.
Posted: June 20, 2013 Thursday 10:00 AM