keeps the Fed tightening engine humming along and does raise the possibility that a more aggressive posture could be adopted somewhere down the line if the inflation indicators continue to surprise to the upside. |
Last weekend, I filled up my tank and I spent $80, ... And that was just my lawn mower. |
Lower energy prices will cushion the blow to the economy from the higher prices so far. Psychologically, it helps the consumer and that means the hit to the economy will not be as great as feared earlier. |
Many economists will end up eating humble pie this weekend because, while the relationship between the weekly initial unemployment claims and non-farm payrolls is fairly robust, we should also realize that it is not always a stable relationship from month to month. |
More and more firms are sticking their toes in the water. The recovery's begun, but it will be fragile. |
More globalization means there's more pressure to increase productivity, not to reduce it. No pricing power means there's more pressure to increase productivity, not less, ... There's so much pressure to push it higher, it will be difficult for cyclical factors to push it lower. |
More people are entering the labor force, so there is more competition. More competition means there's less leverage for employees. |
More rate cuts may not be forthcoming, but the Fed is also not likely to start raising rates as quickly as financial markets expect. |
Mortgage rates will put a little bit of a brake on housing activity, ... but it may come precisely as other sectors start to turn around. |
Moving by just [a quarter percentage point] or perhaps leaving rates unchanged has been made a lot more palatable by the events that have transpired in the past 24 hours. |
Moving forward, the Fed will be focused on what they can do to get us out of recession. |
My suspicion is that the dollar will remain relatively strong because, even if the ECB starts lowering rates, they've got a lot of catching up to do, ... The prognosis for the dollar remains cautiously optimistic. |
My suspicion is that the dollar will remain relatively strong because, even if the ECB starts lowering rates, they've got a lot of catching up to do. The prognosis for the dollar remains cautiously optimistic. |
My suspicion is that they are really leaving the door open, at least a crack, to an inter-meeting move. |
My suspicion is the value of the dollar has to continue to weaken. Until we see further reduction in the value of the dollar, we won't be turning the ship around. |