Wholesale inventories in March 2009 declined 1.6% from February and decreased 3.5% from March 2008, to $411.7 billion.  Sales declined 2.4% from the prior month and decrased 18.1% from the prior year, to $310.9 billion.

Productivity rebounded in the first three months of this year while wage pressures eased, both outcomes reflecting the country’s deep recession.

The Labor Department reported today that productivity, the key ingredient to rising living standards, grew at a 0.8 percent annual rate in the January-March quarter, slightly better than the 0.6 percent increase that economists had expected.

Wage pressures, as measured by unit labor costs, increased at a 3.3 percent rate, higher than the 2.8 percent rise that economists had expected but lower than the 5.7 percent spike in the final three months of last year.

The 0.8 percent rise in productivity in the first quarter was a significant rebound from the final three months of last year, when productivity actually fell by 0.6 percent. Read the rest of this entry »

Community Bancorp (NASDAQ:CBON – News), the holding company for Community Bank of Nevada and Community Bank of Arizona, today announced that Community Bank of Nevada filed amended Reports of Condition and Income (“Call Reports”) with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) for the third and fourth quarters of 2008. Community Bank of Arizona filed an amended Call Report for the fourth quarter of 2008. The first quarter 2009 reports were also filed.

At the request of its primary regulator, Community Bank of Nevada increased its allowance for loan losses at September 30, 2008 by $54.1 million, of which $40.0 million had previously been reported in its December 31, 2008 Call Report. Additionally, Community Bank of Nevada amended its year end Call Report to reflect a $17.4 million increase in its provision for loan losses. Community Bank of Arizona amended its December 31, 2008 Call Report to reflect a $10 million write-down of remaining goodwill. Substantially all tax benefits associated with these additional expenses were offset by the establishment of a deferred tax asset valuation allowance.

“We are in the process of completing our 2008 financial statements and will file our Form 10-K for 2008 which will reflect the information in the aforementioned Call Reports and our Form 10-Q for the first quarter of 2009 with the SEC as soon as possible. Management expects to discuss these financial statements in a press release within the next few weeks,” said Patrick Hartman, Community Bancorp’s Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

New orders for manufactured goods in March, down seven of the last eight months, decreased $3.2 billion or 0.9 percent to $345.3 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today. This followed a 0.7 percent February increase. Excluding transportation, new orders also decreased 0.9 percent.

Shipments, down eight consecutive months, decreased $4.5 billion or 1.2 percent to $360.0 billion. This was the longest streak of consecutive monthly decreases since the series was first published on a NAICS basis in 1992 and followed a 0.5 percent February decrease.

Unfilled orders, down six consecutive months, decreased $11.9 billion or 1.5 percent to $759.0 billion. This was the longest streak of consecutive monthly decreases since November 2001-July 2002. This followed a 1.7 percent February decrease. The unfilled orders-to-shipments ratio was 5.96, down from 5.98 in February. Read the rest of this entry »