FROM THE CONSUMER NOW REPORT COMES:

IT Spending in Europe
TOTAL YEAR END IT SPENDING BY WESTERN EUROPEAN UTILITIES IS EXPECTED TO BE $10.4B IN 2013
62.9% OF ALL IT SPENDING WILL BE IN IT SERVICES IT SERVICES FORECASTED TO GROW AT AN AVERAGE 4.9%

SOFTWARE SPENDING WILL SEE THE MOST SIGNIFICANT BOOM, GROWING AT A 2013-2017 OF 7.4%
REACHING $3.2B BY 2017

HARDWARE SECTOR WILL SEE THE SMALLEST GROWTH OF 0.7% A MAJORITY OF THIS GROWTH IS DUE TO A COMPANYS NEED TO COMPLY WITH ENERGY POLICIES AND
REGULATIONS THAT ARE FOREVER DEVELOPING IN EUROPE
Since this time last year, GDP is up 1.4% Profits after taxes increased by $67.9B in the 2nd quarter

Commodities Now reporting from Energy Insights 5 August 2013

FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN ANALYSIS COMES:

Banks
SYSTEMS

SINCE THE ECONOMIC DOWNTURN IN EUROPE BANKS HAVE ATTEMPTED TO CUT COSTS BY PATCHING UP THEIR IT HOWEVER, THIS PATCHING UP IS COMING TO A SCREECHING HALT, AND BANKS WILL FACE BIG INCREASES IN IT
SPENDING TO MODERNIZE THEIR OPERATIONS FOR THE DIGITAL AGE, KEEPING UP WITH INCREASING TRANSACTION VOLUME, AND REGULATORY CHANGES.

BANKS ARE JUSTIFYING THESE EXPENDITURES BY CUTTING ROUGHLY 25% OF THEIR EMPLOYEES, AND STOPPING
EXPENDITURES ON NEW BRANCHES.

IT COSTS FOR BANKS WILL RISE BY 10% OVER THE NEXT 10 YEARS
LAST YEAR.

TO COPE BANKS HAVE SHUT ABOUT 20,000 BRANCHES ACROSS EUROPE IN THE LAST FOUR YEARS, INCLUDING 5,500
London Reuters 9 September 2013

THIS WEEK

Coming Up
THURSDAY: IMPORTS/EXPORTS FRIDAY: PPI, BUSINESS INVENTORIES, MICHIGAN CONSUMER SENTIMENT

MEANS CONSUMER CONFIDENCE SHOULD RISE IN ACCORDANCE AS INTERESTS RATES REMAIN LOW.

PRICES WILL STABILIZE