Stocks were higher throughout Asia. The Nikkei gained 1.5%, Shanghai added 1.25%, the Hang Seng was up more than one percent and Australia closed 0.8% higher. European indexes are currently little changed on the day, with both the Dax and Footsie currently flat. US stock futures are essentially unchanged as I write.

*The July reading of Australia’s Balance of Trade showed a surplus of A$1.89 billion, well short of the estimate for a surplus of A$3.1 billion. The shortfall is being blamed on lower prices for commodity exports and weaker demand from Asia.

*The Q2 reading of Switzerland’s GDP came in a tenth better than forecast at +0.9% on a quarter on quarter basis; almost matching the Q1 growth of +1.0%.

*The July reading of Switzerland’s Retail Sales was the best in more than a year with a year on year gain of 4.8%. The seasonally adjusted real sales were up 0.7% from the month before.

*In August UK house prices fell 0.9% from July, according to Nationwide; that was the biggest one month drop in half a year and three times the expected decline. On a year over year basis UK house prices gained 3.9%, one percent below the forecast.

*The ECB left policy unchanged including their benchmark rate at 1.00%. Bank President Trichet will tell us all about it at his press conference beginning at 7:30am CDT.

*US chain stores are announcing their August same store sales results this morning. Some of the early reports include: Stein Mart +8.5% versus last year, The Limited Brands +10%, The Buckle -3.5% and Bon-Ton Stores -4.6%.

*The weekly report on Initial Jobless Claims is due out at 7:30am CDT, it is expected to be 475k. Also due out at 7:30am is the final revision of Q2 Non-farm Productivity; this is forecast to be -1.9%, down from the initial result of -0.9% and the estimate for Unit Labor Costs is +1.2%, up from the initial report of +0.2%. The July reading of Factory Orders is due to be announced at 9:00am CDT, it is expected to be +0.2%. Also due out at 9:00am is the July reading of Pending Home Sales, which is forecast to be -1.0% on a month on month basis.

*Fed boss Bernanke is scheduled to testify before the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission at 8:00am CDT; among other things they will discuss the chairman’s actions and thought process during the crisis in regards to Bear Stearns, Lehman, etc. Boston Fed’s Rosengren and Cleveland Fedster Pianalto will give welcome remarks at a Fed conference on housing at 8:00am CDT.

*The weekly report on inventories of Natural Gas is due out at 9:30am CDT, it is expected to show an increase of 55 bcf.

*The Treasury is expected to announce at 10:00am CDT the detail of next week’s auctions of 3 Year Notes, 10 Year Notes and 30 Year Bonds.

*The Treasury plans to sell $10 billion re-opened 10 Year TIPS today; the results will be announced just after noon CDT.

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*Stocks were generally weak in Asian trade. The Nikkei in particular had a bad day as it fell almost 3.6% on the session; the biggest daily decline in about three months. Australia and the Hang Seng were each down by about one percent and Shanghai lost a half percent. European indexes were also broadly lower with both the Footsie and Dax off by one percent. US stock futures are trading down a half percent.

*The Q2 reading of Australia’s Current Account Balance was a deficit of AD$5.6 billion, about one billion less than forecast. Their Net Exports as a percent of GDP rose 0.4% in the quarter.

*The July reading of Australia’s Retail Sales were +0.7% on a month on month basis, beating the estimate of +0.4%.

*The preliminary July reading of Japan’s Industrial Production is +0.3% on a month on month basis, better than the forecast for a decline of 0.2%.

*The July reading of Japan’s Retail Trade was up 0.7% from the month before; it had been forecast to gain 0.5%.

*The August reading of Germany’s Unemployment Rate was steady at 7.6%, as expected. The net change in the number of Unemployed was -17k, just missing the -20k estimate.

*In July there were 48.7k Mortgage Approvals in the UK, according to the Bank of England; a couple thousand more than expected.

*The weekly report on chain store sales from ICSC shows an increase of 0.1% on a week to week basis for the week ended August 28. The Johnson Redbook report of the same thing is due out at 7:55am CDT.

*The June reading of the Case/Shiller Home Price Index is due out at 8:00am CDT, it is expected to be +3.50% on a year over year basis. The August reading of the Chicago Purchasing Managers Index is due out at 8:45am CDT, three minutes earlier for subscribers. The Chicago PMI is expected to be 57.0, which would be down from 62.3 the month before. The August reading of Consumer Confidence is set to be released at 9:00am CDT, it is forecast to improve three tenths on the month to 50.7.

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Stocks had mixed results in Asia overnight. The Nikkei was up almost one percent, while Australia and Shanghai were higher by about 0.3%, but the Hang Seng lost a small fraction. European indexes are generally little changed at the moment, with both the Footsie and the Dax up a fraction. US stock futures are up by about one third of a percent.

*The July reading of Japan’s Jobless Rate was down one tenth on the month to 5.2%, a steady reading was the forecast. Overall Household Spending was +1.1% on a year over year basis, up from June but below the estimate of +1.5%.

*The July reading of Japan’s Consumer Price Index, ex-fresh food, is -1.1% on a year over year basis, matching the forecast. The August reading of that same inflation measure for Tokyo is also -1.1% year over year, less deflationary than the expected -1.2%.

*The July reading of Germany’s Import Price Index -0.2% on a month on month basis, a decline of -0.4% was the forecast.

*German states have been releasing the August reading of their Consumer Price Index this morning, some of the results include: Saxony 0.0% month on month and +1.1% year on year, Hesse +0.1% and +0.7%, Bavaria +0.1% and +1.1% and North Rhine Westphalia +0.2% and +1.0%. The national CPI is due out later this morning, it is expected to be +0.1% on a month over month basis and the estimate for the annualized rate is +1.1%.

*The August reading of the KOF Swiss Leading Indicator is 2.18, that is down from 2.22 in July and the second small decline in a row.

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Stocks were mixed in Asian trade. Australia was among the best with a gain of 0.8%, the Nikkei added 0.7% and Shanghai was up a quarter percent, but the Hang Seng fell a fraction on the session. European indexes are modestly higher, with the Footsie currently up about 0.6% and the Dax higher by a quarter percent. US stock futures are fractionally higher.

*In the second quarter Australian business investment unexpectedly fell 4.0%, this had been forecast to expand by 2.3%. Additionally the previous quarter was revised down to -1.0% from -0.2%.

*The Q2 reading of Switzerland’s Employment level was up 0.6% to 3.968 million; both results were a touch shy of the forecast.

*The weekly report on Initial Jobless Claims is due out at 7:30am CDT, it is expected to be 490k.

*The Mortgage Bankers Association is scheduled to release some data on Q2 mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures at 9:00am CDT.

*The Fed is expected to buy Treasuries again today, maturities ranging from February 15, 2021 to August 15, 2040; the results should be out just after 10:00am CDT.

*The weekly report on inventories of Natural Gas is due to be released at 9:30am CDT, it is expected to show an increase of 38 bcf.

*The August reading of the Kansas City Fed Production Index is due out at 10:00am CDT. Usually nobody pays attention to this report but because of the recent weakness in these regional Fed reports it might get more notice than it normally does.

*The Treasury plans to sell $29 billion 7 Year Notes today, the results will be announced just after noon CDT.

*FedHeads begin gathering in Jackson Hole today for the annual weekend long fest. Bernanke is scheduled to speak at 9:00am CDT on Friday.

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Stocks were bid throughout Asia overnight. The Nikkei was up 1.3%, Shanghai added 0.8%, the Hang Seng gained a quarter percent and Australia was up a fraction. European indexes are also generally higher, with the Dax currently up a half percent and the Footsie a fraction better. US stock futures are up about a third of a percent.

*Nationwide department store sales in Japan were down 1.4% on a year over year basis in July; that is the smallest annualized decline since March 2008.

*The July reading of the German Producer Price Index was up 0.5% on a monthly basis; it was expected to rise only 0.1%. On a year over year basis the PPI was +3.7%, a few tenths more than forecast.

*The July reading of Switzerland’s Trade Balance was a record surplus of SF2.89 billion, mainly the result of falling imports.

*The August reading of Switzerland’s ZEW Index of Economic Growth Expectations bounced up to 9.1 from 2.2 the month before; this index had fallen sharply from the mid-fifties in the previous three months.

*The July reading of UK Retail Sales was up 1.1% on a month on month basis, that was up almost four times the forecast.

*GM has filed papers for its upcoming IPO; listing several banks as underwriters.

*The weekly report on Initial Jobless Claims is due out at 7:30am CDT, it is expected to be 478k. The August reading of the Philly Fed Business Activity Index is due out at 9:00am CDT, it is forecast to increase two points on the month to 7.0. Also due out at 9:00am is the July reading of the Leading Economic Indicators, a reading of +0.1% is the estimate.

*The Fed is expected to buy Treasuries this morning, the operation is set to begin around 9:15am CDT; they will target paper maturing between August 2016 and May 2020.

*The weekly report on inventories of Natural Gas is due out at 9:30am CDT, it is expected to show a gain of 30 bcf.

*The Treasury is expected to announce at 10:00am CDT the details of next week’s auctions of 30 Year TIPS, 2 Year Notes, 5 Year Notes and 7 Year Notes.

*St. Louis Fed boss Bullard is scheduled to speak on the economy at 11:30am CDT.

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Stocks fluctuated in early trading Friday after the latest consumer spending readings disappointed investors. The Commerce Department said that retail sales rose 0.4 percent in July. That was an improvement after two months of sales declines. But the number was just below economists’ forecast of a gain of 0.5 percent. The report did show strength in auto sales, but it also showed that consumers are shying away from other purchases. The report came out shortly after retailer JCPenney Co. lowered its earnings forecast for the year, citing expectations that consumer spending will be slow. On Thursday, competitor Kohl’s Corp. lowered its earnings outlook. Consumer spending has remained weak along with the labor market. And there are no signs that employers are ready to start hiring at a pace to help lift the economy. On Thursday, the Labor Department said the number of people filing for unemployment benefits for the first time rose last week. Stocks have been falling as investors’ take on the economic recovery grows more pessimistic. The Dow Jones industrial average has lost 380 points over the past three days. Analysts say many traders are on vacation or just not willing to make any big moves on stocks. That has led to lower trading volume and some skewing of price changes. The big drop may also have lured some buyers back into the market Friday. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 3.03, or 0.03 percent, at 10,325.25. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 0.18, or 0.02 percent, to 1,083.79. The Nasdaq composite index fell 4.41, or 0.2 percent, to 2,185.86. The yield on the Treasury’s 10-year note, which is used to set rates on consumer loans including mortgages, was 2.72 percent, down from late Wednesday’s 2.75 percent. Yields fall as prices rise. Treasury prices have risen sharply this week as investors — worried about the economy and watching stocks fall — sought a safer place for their money. Overseas markets were down. London’s FTSE-100 index was up 0.1 percent, while Germany’s DAX fell 0.1 percent and the CAC-40 index in Paris fell 0.2 percent. Investors in Europe were more concerned with signs of slowing growth in the U.S. than in their own economies. News that the European economy had grown 1 percent during the second quarter gave some support to stocks, but it was not enough to lift them across the board.

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