Research >> Economics
DJ-BTMU U.S. Business Barometer Increased 0.7%
For the week ending July 5, 2009, the DJ-BTMU U.S. Business Barometer gained another +0.7 percent on top of +0.8 percent in the prior week. The business barometer is being greatly affected by vehicle production because early plant closings in May and June, prompted by the bankruptcies of Chrysler and GM, means that in the absence of further significant plant closings for the typical retooling period the seasonal adjustment factors will greatly push up production figures. This shouldn’t imply that the data is “wrong”, rather it should represent a correction for May and June when the affect of plant closings was given too much seasonal weight. We are seeing very similar data disruptions in the weekly initial claims data.
Posted: July 16, 2009 Thursday 10:00 AM