Succinct Summation of Week’s Events 5.27.16 (plus the Future of Money)

They call it M-Pessa and it has been used quite successfully for years in Kenya as a new form of electronic currency, considerably easier, cheaper, and more efficient than other forms of exchange used throughout the world.  They're calling it "The Future of Money" and 60 Minutes has the story.  It's not a new story (though it did run in repeat last night) but one that's well worth another look.  Meanwhile, it's time for the succinct summary again including an upward revision of more than 50% for Q1 GDP. (Don't get too excited.  It's still under 1% total.)   Hope everyone had a great holiday.

Succinct Summation of Week’s Events 5.27.16

May 27, 2016 4:30pm by Barry Ritholtz

Succinct Summations for the week ending May 27th 2016

Positives:

1.Fed Chair Janet Yellen makes it clear the FOMC will continue what was started in December, and begin to “normalize” rates.
2. S&P 500 had its best week since February.
3. Q1 GDP was revised up to 0.8%, up from 0.5% previously.
4. Headline durable goods rose 3.4% m/o/m. The core rose 0.8%.
5. Consumer sentiment remains strong at 94.7.
6. Jobless claims fell to 268k, down from 278k previously.
7. Pending home sales rose 5.1% m/o/m, well above the 1.4% previous increase.
8. New home sales came in at an SAAR of 69k, the highest reading since January 2008.
9. FHFA house pricing index rose 0.7%, above the 0.5% expected rise.

Negatives:

1. PMI services flash came in at 51.2, down from 52.1 previously.
2. April Durable Goods report non defense capital goods orders ex aircraft fell 0.8% on a monthly basis. Year over year, core capital spending is down by 6.7%.
3. Manufacturing and services composite index for Europe fell to 52.9 from 53 in April and that was a touch below the estimate of 53.2.

60 Minutes: The Future of Money - The Big Picture