business newsConsumer Spending May Not Be So Bad After All
Today's financial recap and tomorrow's financial outlook.
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There were two interesting items to note today on the consumer front. Last month, Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) noted that consumer sales had begun to sharply deteriorate, likely due to the increase in taxes. However, Wal-Mart made a complete 180 today and stated that after the two-week delay in tax returns, February sales normalized. On the other side of that coin was a statement from Mastercard's (NYSE:MA) US markets president, who said that the company saw "some consumer deceleration" in February.
On the earnings front, Costco (NYSE:COST) reporting earnings in the morning and its EPS beat at $1.10 versus $1.06 estimates, but revenues missed at $24.87 billion versus $24.95 billion estimates.
In the commodity space, gold rose nearly 1% and copper began to turn up after three straight weeks of declines.
In non-financial news, black smoke was seen coming from the chimney over the Sistine Chapel, signaling that the first day's papal elections were inconclusive and would continue into a second day.
Tomorrow's Financial Outlook
Tomorrow, there will be a host of economic data released, starting with the MBA Mortgage Index at 7:00 a.m. EDT. At 8:30 a.m. EDT, we will see the February retail sales report, along with import and export prices, which will be followed by January business inventories at 10:00 a.m. EDT. That will be followed by the crude oil inventory report at 10:30 a.m. EDT and the Treasury budget at 2:00 p.m. EDT.
We'll also see some earnings reports. Notable names include TravelCenters of America (NYSE:TA) and Kronos (NYSE:KRO) before the open and Guess? (NYSE:GES) and Men's Wearhouse (NYSE:MW) after the close.
In terms of news, investors should watch for a potential announcement out of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL); investors have been anticipating news regarding a special dividend and/or repurchase program, as well as new products.
Twitter: @Minyanville
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