Only A Bit Of Volatility In Monthly US Retail Sales?

Heh, who ever said that economists are not optimistic? Look at compilation of views on latest US retail sales data by Wall Street Journal. Societe Generale has even more bulls:

Retail sales posted major upward revisions to prior months to offset the December dip. Moreover, late month spending in December could be the basis for further upward revisions.

Yea, and that inventory bounce too?

One should be also scratching the balls while looking at same-store sales over the year, where, e.g., ICSC-Goldman Sachs weekly index shows 2.5% advance from a year ago, and MBA reports that "retail vacancies rose from 12.9 percent to 18.6 percent." Geee, put increase of vacancies of some 5% over the year and 2.5% increase in same-store sales on one line ... Smells like increase in retail sales, even if one takes into account the new openings? Well, the markets will sort that out!

It does not stop risk markets from climbing higher ...

For real "realized volatility" watchers Goldman Sachs had a list of key themes yesterday:

1. 2010 should be a year of “normal” volatility, moderate correlation.
2. M&A activity is likely to pick up given cash-rich balance sheets, more attractive capital markets, and attractive valuations.
3. Financials volatility should moderate further with regulatory clarity and supply from TARP warrants.
4. We expect Defense spending events in 1Q2010 to create volatility and downside risks for the sector.
5. Key product launches in Technology such as Nexus One and AAPL’s Tablet will heighten competition and add to volatility in exposed stocks.
6. A corporate PC refresh cycle, more powerful than investors expect, should be a key driver of Technology stocks in the next two years.
7. Large-cap Pharma could see an inflection point in its new product cycle in 2010 with key data releases on major drugs ahead.
8. Australia LNG projects should be a major catalyst for E&C and select energy stocks as Australia looks to double its LNG capacity by 2018.
9. Cable/Satellite companies likely to return cash to shareholders in a more significant way in 2010, with buybacks and dividend increases.
10. Advertising spending looks poised to recover in 2010, driven by corporate profitability; national markets and online are top categories.

So watch the right things! Who wonders keeping in mind point 6 from Goldman's list and good activity in Intel options before earnings results tonight?