Traders were really preparing for the worst. I think the reading is very much a cause for relief. |
We continue to expect that the Fed will keep its hawkish tone and hike on Sept. 20, in response to inflation pressures, |
We do think you're going to see a drop off in consumer spending in coming months. Part of the reason is workers are experiencing pain in their take-home pay. You're still seeing other areas of the economy kicking in. These will offset some of the negatives from lower consumer spending. |
We feel that such a possibility is still a long way off, but it is a development that bears watching. |
When you look at the details on the positive revision, it's a fairly robust figure. The consumer is continuing to drive a lot of the growth that we're expecting in the first quarter. |
While we still expect the housing market to cool gradually -- and the data over the past couple of quarters has been consistent with that view -- the February existing home sales number shows the considerable strength that is still in the residential sector. |