Wednesday, July 27, 2011 11:56 AM – Durable Goods Orders & GDP

Orders for durable goods, a leading indicator for manufacturing came in a little light due to a dip in aircraft orders and slowing transportation activity. The former will be up this month but the latter is disappointing.

The bigger economic news comes Friday when GDP growth for 2nd quarter is released. Expectations are for 1.8%, down from the first quarter’s 1.9%. Don’t be surprised if growth is slower still. Friday unemployment #s are also due and that has been disappointing lately. Companies have been really slow to hire, except overseas where their labor cost and job security is much lower. More on that phenomenon in the newsletter next week.