09 Jun 2006

Posted at 16:18h in The Friday Brief by
The Federal Reserve has increased rates by a quarter of a percent 16 times including their May increase without a major market drop, but one would think that the likely quarter point increase at the end of this month will be the straw that breaks the veritable camel’s (err bull’s) back.  Since that May 10th meeting the Federal Open Market Committee has become a ‘federal open mouth committee, as termed by one of our favorite economists, Ed Yardeni.  The mixed signals have rattled markets of all stripes, from stocks, to bonds, to commodities. 

02 Jun 2006

Posted at 16:20h in The Friday Brief by
May was very unkind to investors.  The S&P 500 declined 3.1% making it the worst monthly decline since 2004.  The Dow Jones 30 fared a little better, declining by 1.6%.  The NASDAQ has been on its longest decline since 1994.  With inflation fears running high, uncertainty about how close the Fed will come to ruining the economy, high energy and commodity prices, and fears of what will happen in Iran, Iraqall piled on after the Fed’s May 10th meeting to send many to the exits.  The biggest losers were the emerging markets as investors feared that investors’ capital would leave these risky markets as interest rates rise. 

19 May 2006

Posted at 12:23h in The Friday Brief by
Last week we discussed the abundance of global economic growth and how, so far, it had not been accompanied by excessive inflation.  Even in the face of commodity prices rising straight up, record oil prices, rising wages, and tight supplies in almost all raw material category.  The pressure relief valve is productivity.  It has been rising steadily all over the world, keeping a lid on inflation. 

21 Apr 2006

Posted at 12:36h in The Friday Brief by
The Fed may be near the end of its long-term tightening process according to minutes released from their last Open Market Committee meeting.  Since the release the equity and commodity markets have soared. The CRB index of commodities was up 5% in the following two days, led by petroleum, gold, copper, and platinum.  The stock market gains were boosted by materials, energy, and industrials.  Extra lift came from some superb earnings reports from individual companies in the groups just mentioned, as well as from some leading technology companies, banks, brokers, and pharmaceuticals. Is the return of “irrational exuberance” in our future?  One could argue that it already exists in the commodities and metals markets as well as the related company stock prices.  They are up huge this year following a two-year bull market.