all

Philly Fed Better Than Expected


Thursday, February 18th, 2010

In any kind of market, it is imperative to look at what the overall long term trends of the different economic indicators are: showing about economic growth. In some cases, those indicators that are looking forward can tell investors if the economy is recovering or declining (which is useful in helping investors plan their investment strategy). One such number that has been often used to gauge the health of the nation's factories has been: the Philadelphia Fed Survey. This is an indicator, that will tell you how strong or weak the economy is on the Eastern seaboard of the United States. What it is currently showing, is a confirmation of a trend that began six months ago, where the index began to slowly improve after having sharp declines in 2008 and 2009. With, the index reporting a reading of 17.2, this is above the previous number of 15.2. It also confirms a trend that the economy in the region, is starting to experience modest economic growth (for a reading above zero indicates economic growth).

What this shows, is that the economy is making a gradual recovery. This will continue to unfold in 2010, as a period of stabilization will more than likely occur. The consistent improvement; in the numbers are: evidence that the worst could be behind the economy. However, any kind of full effects will have to follow a period of stabilization. This will establish the right conditions for a full recovery to take shape in the economy.

 



Article by Chris Seabury

The views expressed are the subjective opinion of the article's author and not of FinancialAdvisory.com