A slew of economic reports came out today in the US, conveying mostly positive news

A slew of economic reports came out today in the US, conveying mostly positive news. On the good side, jobless claims dropped to 316,000, down 10,000 from last week. This continues a strong downward trend in the category. Keep in mind, jobless claims are a leading indicator, so it's a good sign the overall job market is improving. Furthermore, the Chicago Fed National Activity Index climbed to +0.06, a level slightly above historical trend and the highest it's been in 8 months. On the flip side, durable goods orders dropped 2% in October, mostly due to a plunge in commercial aircraft orders. However, it's generally believed big orders were put on hold last month due to the government shutdown. As such, we can assume the data will change significantly for November. Generally, the economy appears to be moving in the right direction.