New leadership: The Baton Rouge Area Chamber today announced that Ralph Bender will serve as board chair in 2021. Bender is the chief finance officer of Manship Media. Prior to joining Manship Media, Bender spent a number of years in public accounting with both a national and a regional firm. Bender succeeds Flynn Foster, president and CEO of Guaranty Corporation and Guaranty Media, who served as BRAC board chair in 2020.
Decline: U.S. consumer spending fell 0.4% in November, the first decline since April, the Commerce Department reported this morning. The decline followed a 0.3% gain in October and even bigger increases starting in May, a period when the country was emerging from lockdowns intended to halt the spread of COVID-19. There was a massive 12.7% decline because of that in April. Read the full story.
Durable goods: Orders to U.S. factories for big-ticketed manufactured goods rose a moderate 0.9% in November with a key category that tracks business investment plans showing a gain. The November gain in orders for durable goods, items expected to last at least three years, followed stronger gains in recent months including a 3.8% rise in October, the Commerce Department said this morning. A key category that serves as a proxy for business investment spending rose a modest 0.4% in November following much stronger gains of 3.6% in October and 3.9% in September. Read the full story.
Editor’s note: Daily Report will not be published on Thursday and Friday of this week, Dec. 24-25. Daily Report will return Monday, Dec. 28. Have a safe and happy holiday.
