High Trust BNI

Kim Spucces Presents:

WEEKLY ECONOMIC UPDATE

WEEKLY QUOTE

“When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on.”

– Franklin Delano Roosevelt

WEEKLY TIP

Consolidating your banking and money management accounts at one institution could mean fewer or lower banking fees, and maybe some perks as well.

WEEKLY RIDDLE

You have 9 seemingly identical cubes before you. You are told that one is heavier than the other eight. Using a two-pan balance scale only twice, how can you pick out the heaviest cube?

Last week’s riddle:
Two in every corner, one in every room, none in a house. What is it?

Last week’s answer:

The letter R.

September 19, 2011

CPI, PPI TELL DIFFERENT STORIES
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Consumer Price Index rose 0.4% in August – and annualized inflation came in at 3.8%, the highest rate in nearly three years. Annualized core inflation was +2.0% given a 0.2% rise in core CPI last month. On the other hand, producer prices showed the smallest annual gain since March: in August, they were up 6.5% year-over-year, compared to a 7.3% differential in May. The overall Producer Price Index was flat last month; core PPI went +0.1%.^1,2

RETAIL SALES UNCHANGED FOR AUGUST
U.S. retail sales were flat last month, and that news from the Commerce Department wasn’t surprising in light of the recent pressures on household spending. This comes after (revised) gains of 0.2% in June and 0.3% in July.³

CONSUMERS FEEL A BIT MORE OPTIMISTIC
The University of Michigan’s initial September consumer sentiment survey showed some improvement: it came in at 57.8, up from the troublingly low 55.7 final August reading. Economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires had expected a rise to 57.0.⁴

GOLD DROPS, OIL ADVANCES
Gold futures went -2.39% last week, part of a 3.29% two-week decline. The precious metal settled at $1,812.1o an ounce on the COMEX Friday. NYMEX crude closed at $87.96 a barrel Friday, going +0.83% last week and +6.93% in the last four weeks.⁵

CENTRAL BANK PLEDGE GIVES STOCKS A LIFT
Thursday, the Federal Reserve and four other central banks stated they would offer 3-month dollar loans to European commercial lenders to help them address any 4Q dollar liquidity problems. This aided a rally: U.S. stocks rose each day last week. The S&P 500 had its best week since late June (+5.35%), settling at 1,216.01 Friday. The NASDAQ (+6.25% to 2,622.31) and the Dow (+4.70% to 11,509.09) also climbed.^6,7

THIS WEEK: Monday, markets will be poised to respond to the weekend efforts of Eurozone finance ministers (and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner) to craft possible solutions to the EU’s sovereign debt problems; also, Lennar issues earnings. Tuesday, we get data on August housing starts and results from Adobe, ConAgra and Oracle. Wednesday, the Fed’s September policy meeting wraps up, and August existing home sales figures and earnings from General Mills arrive. On Thursday, Nike, FedEx, Discover, Cintas and CarMax issue results; new initial claims figures come in along with September’s Conference Board LEI index. KB Home announces earnings on Friday.

% CHANGE	Y-T-D	1-YR CHG	5-YR AVG	10-YR AVG
DJIA	-0.59	+8.63	-0.09	+2.91
NASDAQ	-1.15	+13.85	+3.46	+6.60
S&P 500	-3.31	+8.12	-1.57	+1.71
REAL YIELD	9/16 RATE	1 YR AGO	5 YRS AGO	10 YRS AGO
10 YR TIPS	0.13%	1.00%	2.38%	3.50%

Sources: online.wsj.com, usatoday.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov, treasurydirect.gov - 9/16/11^8,9,10,11

Indices are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into directly.

These returns do not include dividends.

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Kim Spucces Investment Advisor Representative
Investment Advisors International™ l An SEC Registered Investment Advisor
World Group Securities, Inc. l Member FINRA & SIPC

( Direct Line: 714/673-0383 765 The City Drive, Suite 100-C l Orange, California 92868

Investment Advisors International (IAI) l World Financial Group, Inc. (WFG) l World Group Securities, Inc. (WGS) l WFG Insurance Agency, Inc. (WFGIA) CA0679300
WFG, WGS, WFGIA and IAI are affiliated companies. Headquarters: 11315 Johns Creek Pkwy l Duluth, GA 30097 l 770.453.9300 l Orange Branch Office: 714.740.9090

This material was prepared by MarketingLibrary.Net Inc., and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their affiliates. This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a price-weighted index of 30 actively traded blue-chip stocks. The NASDAQ Composite Index is an unmanaged, market-weighted index of all over-the-counter common stocks traded on the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System. The Standard & Poor's 500 (S&P 500) is an unmanaged group of securities considered to be representative of the stock market in general. It is not possible to invest directly in an index. NYSE Group, Inc. (NYSE:NYX) operates two securities exchanges: the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”) and NYSE Arca (formerly known as the Archipelago Exchange, or ArcaEx®, and the Pacific Exchange). NYSE Group is a leading provider of securities listing, trading and market data products and services. The New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc. (NYMEX) is the world's largest physical commodity futures exchange and the preeminent trading forum for energy and precious metals, with trading conducted through two divisions – the NYMEX Division, home to the energy, platinum, and palladium markets, and the COMEX Division, on which all other metals trade. Additional risks are associated with international investing, such as currency fluctuations, political and economic instability and differences in accounting standards. All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however we make no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. All economic and performance data is historical and not indicative of future results. Market indices discussed are unmanaged. Investors cannot invest in unmanaged indices. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services. If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.

Citations.

1 - latimesblogs.latimes.com/money_co/2011/09/inflation-cpi-food-energy-core-fed-economy-stimulus-qe-bond-yields-.html [9/15/11]

2 - news.briefing.com/investor/analysis/story-stocks/ppi--august-2011.htm [9/14/11]

3 - nytimes.com/2011/09/15/business/economy/retail-sales-and-producer-prices-unchanged-in-august.html [9/14/11]

4 - news.morningstar.com/all/dow-jones/us-markets/201109161035/000389/us-consumer-sentiment-improves-slightly.aspx[9/16/11]

5 - blogs.wsj.com/marketbeat/2011/09/16/data-points-energy-metals-520/ [9/16/11]

6 - blogs.wsj.com/marketbeat/2011/09/16/data-points-u-s-markets-51/ [9/16/11]

7 - cnbc.com/id/44532917/ [9/15/11]

8 - usatoday.com/money/index [9/16/11]

9 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=9%2F16%2F10&x=0&y=0 [9/16/11]

9 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=9%2F16F2%2F10&x=10&y=18 [9/16/11]

9 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=9%2F16%2F10&x=0&y=0 [9/16/11]