With revisions, the retail sales report was only slightly weaker than expectations but the trend was lower and that’s important for the Fed.
Does it mean the Fed won’t taper? No, a taper is close to a done deal. What’s up for debate is how large it will be. The questions was $10 billion or $15 billion. Most market watchers had settled on $10B but $15B was an option. Now, $15B is probably off the table now and that’s weighing on the dollar.
The Summers news isn’t much (but it’s irritating for the White House to wait until business hours to deny it) but it tells us how the market will react when he’s appointed.
