[h=3]President, Vice President: NAM Survey Shows “Historic” Manufacturer Optimism.[/h]During
remarks to business executives on Tuesday broadcasted by
CNBC’s Squawk On The Street (4/4), Vice President Pence said that businesses and consumers “haven’t been this optimistic in decades.” He said, “We just learned from the National Association of Manufacturers that, in their historic quarterly report, 93 percent of manufacturers are optimistic about the future.” He added, “That represented almost a 40-point increase in optimism since the last report.” Pence said the NAM’s survey “is evidence of a vote of confidence in our new President, and in his vision to get this economy moving again by putting common-sense principles into practice.”
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Also: Construction spending increased 0.8% in February despite a 0.3% decline in private nonresidential construction, according to the Commerce Department. Overall, construction spending was up 3% year over year
and hasn't been at this level since April 2006.
[h=3]Trade Deficit Fell By 9.6% In February To Four-Month Low, Beating Forecast.[/h]
Bloomberg News (4/4, Jamrisko) reports the Commerce Department announced this morning that the trade deficit fell in February by 9.6 percent to $43.6 billion, “a four-month low as imports declined and exports improved amid a brighter outlook for global manufacturing.” The economists surveyed by Bloomberg had predicted a $44.6 billion deficit. Bloomberg adds, “Exports of goods and services reached the highest level since the end of 2014. The narrowing of the deficit may mean trade will be less of a drag on growth in the first quarter,” while a weakening dollar “and a pickup in manufacturing sentiment could be a further boon to trade in the months ahead.”
Change we can (really) believe in ....
