FYI
Staff -- Casual Living, 9/1/2007 12:00:00 AM
Briefly.....
Outdoor living is firmly entrenched as a lifestyle, with outdoor living spaces an ever-more important part of the home.
According to Casual Living's Exclusive 2007 Consumer Buying Trends Survey of affluent consumers (those with household incomes of $75,000 or more), the three most popular uses of outdoor spaces are for grilling out, reading and relaxing, and entertaining friends. About two-thirds use their outdoor spaces once a week or more for cooking out on the grill. About 60% of consumers use their outdoor spaces for reading/relaxing and nearly three out of 10 consumers use their outdoor spaces for entertaining friends.
When marketers provide the means for doing all three comfortably and practically, they'll fill a consumer need that's bound to lead to higher sales.
Source: Casual Living's Exclusive Consumer Buying Trends, 2007
Unemployment
Seasonally adjusted annual rate
| National | 2007 | |
| July | 4.6% | |
| June | 4.5% |
Consumer credit outstanding
Percent change at annual rate
Seasonally adjusted
| 2006 | 2007 | ||||||
| Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Q1r | Q2p | Mayr | Junep | |
| r = revised; p = preliminary Covers most short- and intermediate-term credit extended to individuals, excluding loans secured by real estate. Nonrevolving credit includes automobile loans and all other loans not included in revolving credit, such as loans for mobile homes, education, boats, trailers or vacations. These loans may be secured or unsecured. Source: Federal Reserve |
|||||||
| Total | 6.1% | 5.4% | 4.1% | 4.7% | 5.6% | 7.9% | 6.5% |
| Revolving | 9.5 | 7.1 | 8.4 | 4.0 | 7.4 | 12.2 | 8.4 |
| Nonrevolving | 4.1 | 4.4 | 1.7 | 5.1 | 4.5 | 5.3 | 5.3 |
Housing Unit numbers in thousands
Seasonally adjusted annual rate
| Permits | United States | Northeast | Midwest | South | West |
|
June '07 numbers are preliminary
Source: Bureau of the Census and National Assn. of Realtors |
|||||
| June '07 | 1,406 | 152 | 228 | 689 | 337 |
| Change from June '06 | -25.2% | -11.6% | -21.9% | -26.3% | -29.8% |
| Starts | |||||
| June '07 | 1,467 | 161 | 233 | 721 | 352 |
| Change from June '06 | -19.4% | -3.6% | -20.2% | -20.4% | -22.5% |
| New home sales | |||||
| June '07 | 834 | 62 | 121 | 493 | 158 |
| Change from June '06 | -22.3% | 0.0% | -28.4% | -12.9% | -42.8% |
| Existing home sales | |||||
| June '07 | 5,750 | 1,010 | 1,370 | 2,260 | 1,100 |
| Change from June '06 | -11.4% | -7.3% | -8.1% | -11.4% | -19.1% |
Stocks Snapshot
| Last year | ||
| 8/16/2007 | 8/17/2006 | |
| Dow | 12845.78 | 11334.96 |
| NASDAQ | 2130.71 | 1862.49 |
Since last year
| Source: Data Network, Huntington, N.Y. Information and data herein, though believed accurate, is not guaranteed. Data Network is not liable for any inaccuracies. |
|
| Dow | 13.33% |
| NASDAW | 14.40% |
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