On the same day Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said there were “tentative signs” that the US economy was regenerating, bad retail sales numbers sprayed a hefty dose of defoliant over arguments that the worst is behind us. But why were markets so surprised that sales wilted by 9.4 per cent year on year in March? After all, households are deleveraging and, notwithstanding a blip-up in activity recently, the days of homes-as-ATMs are over.
美聯(lián)儲(Fed)主席本?伯南克(Ben Bernanke)周二表示,有“初步跡象顯示”,美國經(jīng)濟正在恢復(fù)。但就在同一天,糟糕的零售數(shù)據(jù)給“最艱難時期已經(jīng)過去”的論點潑了一大盆冷水。不過,為何市場會對3月份零售額同比下降9.4%感到如此意外?畢竟,美國家庭正在去杠桿化,盡管這一過程最近出現(xiàn)了短暫的停歇,但把家當(dāng)成提款機的日子已經(jīng)成為過去。