Investing to Wealth

And now for a smidgen of good news.Consumer confidence improved significantly in April jumping to 39.2 from 26.9 in March according to The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index. The government also reported that consumer spending rose 2.2% in the first quarter of 2009.After the reports were released shares of  Wal-Mart (WMT) jumped 5.3%; Jones Apparel  (JNY) was up 17%. Of course such news could also give companies from Target (TGT) to Nordstrom (JWN) a boost.But put in historical context these glimmers of hope aren’t so shiny after all. Consumer spending declined disastrously (by 4.3%) in the fourth quarter. And ...