As we noted earlier, the Atlanta Fed waited until the market close to reveal its most dire GDP estimate yet: a paltry 0.6%, matching the 0.6% recorded during the "harsh winter" first quarter: one could be forgiven to think that during today's already chaotic selloff, the last thing traders and algos needed was news that US economic growth had ground to a virtual halt.
With less than half an hour until the close, we asked the Atlanta Fed - the most accurate predictor of GDP - which was scheduled to post an update of its Q4 GDP NowCast following today's ugly economic data, if it was was planning on releasing its latest Q4 GDP estimate before or after the close, something it usually does just before noon.
Dear @AtlantaFed will you be updating your Q4 GDP NowCast today as your schedule says you will? https://t.co/YrUvkxf5Nl
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) January 15, 2016
Some thoughts on what lies ahead while President Obama jawbones... (grab a glass of wine or bottle)
Submitted by David Haggith via The Great Recession blog,
Just before the aborted Santa Rally took off in earnest, on December 23 the famous US economic growth prognosticators at the Atlanta Fed (famous because unlike Wall Street they actually are right) slashed its Q4 GDP forecast from 1.9% to 1.3% citing weakness in real consumer spending and poor existing-home sales.
Moments ago, after the latest disappointing durable goods report, the Goldman economist team was the first to cut its Q4 GDP forecast from 2.2% to 1.9% (and down from 2.4% yesterday), saying "the durable goods report implied weaker capital spending and inventory accumulation for the quarter; details on November consumer spending were also slightly weaker than we had projected."