- Jack Kleinhenz NABE President , Chief Economist at the National Retail Federation
The latest fundamental data from the world's largest economy was mixed, as inflation and retail sales picked up more than expected, while figures from the labour market disappointed markets. Moreover, Janet Yellen seems to be lost in her own projections, citing the ongoing economic recovery, and, at the same time, warning that harsh winter had stronger-than-expected effect on the economy. Keeping it all in mind it is difficult to predict the future performance of the greenback, however, this week the buck is likely to receive a strong bullish bias from durable goods orders that will be released on Thursday. Economists, however, are still confident about the future prospects of the U.S. economy.
The latest poll conducted by the National Association for Business Economics showed that American companies will pick up again in the nearest future, while the worst of the harsh weather is over now. A majority of companies, however, mentioned that winter's brutal weather took a toll on domestic demand, resulting in a disappointing first quarter's growth. Businesses are still confident about strong demand, saying sales will grow, with the growth outlook being less widespread than three months ago. In contrast, the number of companies reporting on higher profit margins declined slightly as well. Despite mixed figures, more than 80% of respondents believe the real growth will stand around 2% this year, while 72% believe the growth will hover between 2% and 3%.
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