2009 Monthly Market Review January 2010: The U.S. economy expanded at an estimated annual rate of 5.7% in the fourth quarter of 2009, exceeding analyst expectations and marking the second consecutive quarter of positive growth and the highest quarterly growth rate since the third quarter of 2003. Despite this encouraging news, high unemployment, tight lending conditions, and excess capacity persist. Fourth quarter growth was reportedly driven by increased personal consumption, rising exports, and accelerating private inventory investment. Federal government expenditures were relatively flat during the quarter, after increasing significantly during the second and third quarters. Consumer sentiment rose modestly for the second consecutive month in January and the Reuters/University of Michigan Index reached its highest level since January 2008. Read More »