Rising oil prices continue to drain optimism from the equity markets and from corporate managers. Over 80% ofU.S.companies have reported their earnings now and on average they are up 40% over last year, according to the Wall Street Journal. Advanced Industrial Equipment (1,974%), Coal (1,532%), Internet Services (946%), and Communications Technology (588%) are the leaders so far. But while the latest earnings reports are generally good, managers such as Cisco’s John Chambers appear less certain about the future. They say that their customers seem less enthused than they were earlier in the year. The so-called energy tax appears to be having some degree of economic impact.
