Philadelphia Fed Survey, Leading Indicators decline. Jobless Claims rise. Dollar rises in Fx Trading. | CountingPips Forex Blog

November 20, 2008 - Forex Economic News

Philadelphia Fed Survey, Leading Indicators decline. Jobless Claims rise. Dollar rises in Fx Trading.

The Philadelphia Manufacturing Index released today by the Philadelphia Fed showed a decline for November in its business outlook survey. The Philly general business diffusion index fell to -39.3 in November after October's score of -37.5. November's -39.3 level marked the lowest level for the index in over 18 years. A negative score is considered a contraction in that area or sector while a positive score signals growth. The score for November fell more than US Dollar gains in Currency Trading predicted as economic forecasts were expecting a -35.0 score for the month.

Demand for new orders fell to -31.4 in November and marked its lowest level since 1980 while the employment index marked its lowest level since 1990 at a -25.2 score. The indexes for shipments, unfilled orders and delivery times all remained steady for the month. The prices paid index fell 38 points in November while the prices received index also saw a delcine of 21 points. The future outlook of the manufacturing growth also declined in June. The general activity index outlook on 6 months from now registered -10.4, a drop of 6.2 points from October's -4.2 score.

U.S. Leading Indicators fall.

The U.S. Leading Indicators Index published by the Conference Board today showed a decline in the month of October. The Leading Indicator Index, which measures future economic activity, registered a 0.8 percent decline in October following an increase of 0.1 percent in September. October's decrease surpassed market forecasts that were predicting a decline of 0.6 percent for the month.

Building permits, supplier deliveries, consumer expectations, weekly jobless claims, stock prices and manufacturers' orders for nondefense capital goods were all negative sectors impacting the leading index. Real money supply, interest rate spread and manufacturers' new orders for consumer goods and materials helped positively contribute to the leading index.

The coincident index, which is viewed as a measure of the current economic activity, increased by 0.2 percent in October while the lagging index increased by 0.1 percent.

Weekly Jobless Claims rise to 16-year high.

Weekly U.S. initial jobless claims grew in the week that ended on November 15th according to the U.S. Labor Department today. Jobless claims totaled 542,000 unemployed workers, an rise of 27,000 from the week prior and marked the highest initial claims level in 16 years. A 4-week moving average of unemployed workers rose by 15,750 from the prior week to 506,500 and marked its highest level since 1983.

Workers seeking continued claims for unemployment benefits for the week ending November 8th grew by 109,000 workers to total 4,012,000 workers and marked its highest level since December of 1982. A four week moving average of continuing claims grew by 71,250 workers from last week to 3,867,000. The prior week's moving average had registered 3,795,750.

Dollar gains today in Forex Trading despite news releases.

The dollar has made gains in fx trading today despite the dismal economic news releases today as the U.S. currency has gained against the pound, yen, loonie, aussie, kiwi and Swiss franc while declining verses the euro.

The euro has been stronger verses the dollar today as the EUR/USD has advanced from its 1.2488 opening(00:00 GMT) to trading at 1.2565 in the afternoon of the U.S. trading session at 1:10pm ET. The British pound has fallen today as the GBP/USD has shed approximately 130 pips from its 1.4929 opening exchange rate to trading at 1.4794 usd per gbp. The dollar has advanced verses the Japanese yen and trading at 95.77 after opening at 95.17.

The dollar has advanced today verses the Canadian loonie as the USD/CAD trades at the exchange rate of 1.2804. The USD/CAD has gained almost 250 pips from its 1.2562 opening. The dollar has gained against the Swiss franc as the USD/CHF trades at 1.2202 after opening at 1.2120 today while the dollar has also been stronger against the Australian dollar and New Zealand dollar. The AUD/USD trades at 0.6218 after an 0.350 opening while the NZD/USD trades at 0.5334 today after opening at the exchange rate of 0.5393.

USD/CAD Chart - The U.S. Dollar advancing today against the Canadian Loonie and surpassing the 1.2800 level(Daily Chart).

Today's Forex & Currency Trading Chart

tags: philadelphia fed, leading indicators, jobless claims, forex trading, fx

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