Economic Terms

Diversification : Diversification = the combining of investments with others whose returns are independent of one another. Tends to increase the probability that the EV for the portfolio is close to the sum of the EVs of the…
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Construction Spending: An economic indicator that measures the amount of spending towards new construction. Released monthly by the U.S. Department of Commerce's Census Bureau, it looks at residential and non-residential construction in the…
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Reuters/Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index: The Reuters/Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index released by the Reuters/University of Michigan is a survey of personal consumer confidence in economic activity. It shows a picture of whether…
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Housing Starts and Building Permits: Housing Starts are a measure of the number of residential units on which construction is begun each month. A start in construction is defined as the beginning of excavation of the foundation for the…
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Markit Manufacturing PMI: Purchasing Managers' Index series compiled by Markit are key benchmark indicators for measuring the business and economic conditions in any given economy. You can now benefit from LDN company's services through…
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Conference Board Consumer Confidence: The Conference Board conducts a monthly survey of 5000 households to ascertain the level of consumer confidence. The report can occasionally be helpful in predicting sudden shifts in consumption…
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Existing Home Sale: The name speaks for itself - this report provides a measure of the level of sales of existing home sales. The report is considered a decent indicator of activity in the housing sector. Housing starts preceding this…
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Factory Orders: The orders data show how busy factories will be in coming months as manufacturers work to fill those orders. This report provides insight to the demand for not only hard goods such as refrigerators and cars, but nondurable’s…
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ISM Index: The ISM manufacturing data give a detailed look at the manufacturing sector, how busy it is and where things are headed. Since the manufacturing sector is a major source of cyclical variability in the economy, this report has a…
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Trade Balance: The trade report is most widely watched for trends in the overall trade balance. But trends in both exports and imports of goods and services bear watching as well. The export data in particular are important to watch for…
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