Presents:

WEEKLY ECONOMIC UPDATE

April 13, 2015

WEEKLY QUOTE
Beware of the man
who wont be
bothered with
details.
- William Feather

WEEKLY TIP
If you are marrying,
take a moment to see
how your new marital
status will affect your
federal and state
taxes, and whether it
would be best to file
jointly or separately.

WEEKLY RIDDLE
A 400-yard long
promenade has an
ornate brass bench
every 100 yards on
both sides, including
ones at its beginning
and end. So in total,
how many benches
are there along this
promenade?
Last weeks riddle:
How do you spell hard
water using only three
letters?
Last weeks answer:
Use the letters I-C-E.

SERVICE SECTOR CONTINUES TO EXPAND

At 56.5, the Institute for Supply Managements March non-manufacturing index

came in 0.4 points beneath its February reading but still indicated healthy expansion
for the service industry. While business activity fell by 1.9%, new orders improved
1.1% and new export orders 6.0%. Americas service sector grew for a 62nd straight
month.1
COULD THE FED TIGHTEN LATE IN Q2?

Minutes from the Federal Open Market Committees March policy meeting stated
that several participants felt economic data was strong enough to prompt an
interest rate increase at its June meeting. (Federal Reserve board officials and
regional presidents are all defined by the Fed as participants.) Richmond Fed
president Jeffrey Lacker reiterated his support for a hike to reporters last week,
noting that rates could be reduced again if economic conditions warranted.2
OIL PRICES CLIMB 5.1% IN A WEEK

That advance took light sweet crude to a NYMEX close of $51.64 a barrel Friday, and
that rise came even with a 6% descent last Wednesday. Gold had a relatively flat
week, gaining 0.3% on the COMEX to settle Friday at $1,204.60; silver futures
moved south 1.9%, ending the week at $16.38.3,4
STOCKS PUSH HIGHER

Intriguing M&A activity helped the market rally last week. The Nasdaq advanced
2.23% in five days to close at 4,995.98 Friday. The Dow moved north 1.66% to
18,057.65 while the S&P 500 rose 1.70% to 2,102.06.5
THIS WEEK: Nothing major is scheduled for Monday. Tuesday brings earnings
from JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Fastenal, Intel, CSX and Johnson & Johnson,
plus the March PPI and data on March retail sales and euro area industrial output.
Wednesday offers data on industrial production in the U.S. and China, a GDP
reading from China, a new Fed Beige Book and earnings from Bank of America,
Charles Schwab, Delta Air Lines, Kinder Morgan, Netflix, PNC, Progressive, SanDisk
and U.S. Bancorp. On Thursday, housing starts numbers for March arrive, G-20
finance ministers meet in Washington D.C. and earnings from American Express,
AMD, Blackstone Group, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Mattel, Philip Morris and
Sherwin-Williams appear. The University of Michigans preliminary March
consumer sentiment index comes out Friday, and so do the March CPI and the latest
CPI for the euro area; on the earnings front, GE, Comerica, Seagate Technology and
Honeywell all issue announcements.
% CHANGE

Y-T-D

1-YR CHG

5-YR AVG

10-YR AVG

DJIA

+1.32

+11.67

+12.84

+7.28

NASDAQ

+5.49

+23.23

+20.72

+15.08

S&P 500

+2.10

+14.67

+15.20

+7.80

REAL YIELD

4/10 RATE

1 YR AGO

5 YRS AGO

10 YRS AGO

10 YR TIPS

0.14%

0.51%

1.56%

1.82%

Sources: online.wsj.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov - 4/10/15 6,7,8,9

Indices are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into directly. These returns do
not include dividends. 10-year TIPS real yield = projected return at maturity given expected inflation.

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Securities and advisory services offered through National Planning Corporation(NPC), Member FINRA/SIPC,
Registered Investment Advisor. FlagStone Retirement Consultants, LLC and NPC are separate and unrelated
companies. FlagStone Retirement Consultants, and NPC are neither endorsed by, retained by, nor affiliated with the
companies here within.
This material was prepared by MarketingPro, Inc., and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their
affiliates. This information has been derived from sources believed to be accurate. Please note - investing involves risk, and past
performance is no guarantee of future results. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services.
If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional. This information should not be
construed as investment, tax or legal advice and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty. This is neither
a solicitation nor recommendation to purchase or sell any investment or insurance product or service, and should not be relied upon as
such. All indices are unmanaged and are not illustrative of any particular investment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a priceweighted index of 30 actively traded blue-chip stocks. The NASDAQ Composite Index is an unmanaged, market-weighted index of all
over-the-counter common stocks traded on the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System. The Standard
& Poor's 500 (S&P 500) is an unmanaged group of securities considered to be representative of the stock market in general. It is not
possible to invest directly in an index. NYSE Group, Inc. (NYSE:NYX) operates two securities exchanges: the New York Stock Exchange
(the NYSE) and NYSE Arca (formerly known as the Archipelago Exchange, or ArcaEx, and the Pacific Exchange). NYSE Group is a
leading provider of securities listing, trading and market data products and services. The New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc. (NYMEX)
is the world's largest physical commodity futures exchange and the preeminent trading forum for energy and precious metals, with
trading conducted through two divisions the NYMEX Division, home to the energy, platinum, and palladium markets, and the
COMEX Division, on which all other metals trade. Additional risks are associated with international investing, such as currency
fluctuations, political and economic instability and differences in accounting standards. This material represents an assessment of the
market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results. Past
performance is no guarantee of future results. Investments will fluctuate and when redeemed may be worth more or less than when
originally invested. All economic and performance data is historical and not indicative of future results. Market indices discussed are
unmanaged. Investors cannot invest in unmanaged indices. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other
professional services. If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.
Citations.
1 - ism.ws/ismreport/nonmfgrob.cfm [4/6/15]
2 - tinyurl.com/oyqdoyl [4/10/15]
3 - marketwatch.com/story/oil-futures-stable-after-volatile-week-wti-above-50-a-barrel-mark-2015-04-10 [4/10/15]
4 - marketwatch.com/story/gold-struggles-to-hold-weekly-winning-streak-alive-2015-04-10 [4/10/15]
5 - markets.on.nytimes.com/research/markets/usmarkets/usmarkets.asp [4/10/15]
6 - markets.wsj.com/us [4/10/15]
7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=4%2F3%10F14&x=0&y=0 [4/10/15]
7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=4%2F10%2F14&x=0&y=0 [4/10/15]
7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=4%2F10%2F14&x=0&y=0 [4/10/15]
7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=4%2F9%2F10&x=0&y=0 [4/10/15]
7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=4%2F9%2F10&x=0&y=0 [4/10/15]
7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=4%2F9%2F10&x=0&y=0 [4/10/15]
7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=4%2F11%2F05&x=0&y=0 [4/10/15]
7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=4%2F11%2F05&x=0&y=0 [4/10/15]
7 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=4%2F11%2F05&x=0&y=0 [4/10/15]
8 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield [4/10/15]
9 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll [4/10/15]

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