Rosier-colored glasses: U.S. businesses expect their sales will rebound in the next three months after a sluggish first quarter, and they also plan to boost hiring and pay, according to a survey released this morning by the National Association for Business Economics. As The Associated Press reports, just 49% of companies said their sales increased in the first three months of the year from last year’s fourth quarter. That’s down from 54% that reported higher sales in the last survey, in January. However, companies are way more bullish about the April-through-June quarter. Nearly three-quarters of companies forecast higher sales over the next three months, up from 68% in January and just 54% in October. Read the full story.
Slow descent: After years of steadily rising airfare, travelers this summer can expect a tiny bit of relief—$2.01 per ticket in savings to be exact. As The Associated Press reports, the average roundtrip domestic ticket this summer, including taxes, now stands at $454, down less than 1% from last summer. Vacationers to Europe will fare better with the average ticket down 3% to $1,619, about $50 less than last summer. However, not all travelers will get to save. While flights to Hawaii, Florida and New Orleans are cheaper, travelers heading to New York, Denver and San Francisco can expect to pay more. Even in Europe, the savings depend on the destination. Read the full story.
In a contango: Oil bulls may be better off buying stocks and currencies, according to Paris-based multinational banking and financial services firm Societe Generale SA. While U.S. crude has jumped 29% from a six-year low in March, returns are eroded by a market structure called contango, whereby contracts for delivery in coming weeks are lower than later ones. Investors who want to bet on prices rising need to sell the cheaper, expiring contracts at the end of each month and buy more expensive futures, reducing gains because of what’s known as a negative roll yield. “When the curve switches into contango, you get out of oil,” Mark Keenan, the Singapore-based head of commodities research for Asia at SocGen, tells Bloomberg. “It’s very difficult to make any money.” Read the full story.
