Certainly I think the lower-income consumer is feeling pinched. |
If you are Mrs. Smith watching TV, seeing images of the hurricane, seeing (former House majority leader) Tom DeLay get indicted, watching the president's approval ratings sink, you say to yourself: 'What's going on here?' Are you going to feel confident? No. Are you going to put money to work? No. |
Overall the earnings have been very solid. It gives the market confidence to go higher. |
The market gets used to certain prices. But if we get to $80 oil, that is new to the market and something that attracts attention. |
The market was relieved about the earnings coming out and mildly surprised about GM. |
There is competition for customers, and banks are sweetening the yields. |
We may now see a pullback in spending. This winter and this Christmas shopping season are going to be the test case and we're going to see if this is the tipping point for the consumer. |
You can't ask for 100 percent seamless transition, but this was as close as you get. |