Just Remember, Economy's Fundamentals Are Strong

As I told you about before, professional clown Don Luskin has assured us that the underlying economy remains strong. And if he says it, then it must be true. Just make sure to ignore the actual numbers. Here are just today's numbers:

Initial jobless benefit claims rose 32,000 to 493,000, the highest since 2001. Meanwhile, continuing claims also rose to a new cycle high.

Durable goods orders plummeted 4.5% while shipments fell 3.5% in August. So-called "core" orders (excluding aircraft and defense orders) fell 2% and "core" shipments (the input in the GDP report for equipment and software investment) fell 1.7%,

Meanwhile, new home sales fell 11.5% in August from the previous month and by a full 34.5% from August 2008. Meaning that despite the plunge in construction activity, inventory levels rose.

And other reports in previous days have almost all given us the same grim picture. But again, since Don Luskin says the economy is strong, we shouldn't let such pesty things as fact make us think otherwise......