08 Apr 2005

Posted at 15:20h in The Friday Brief by
The buzz continues about the potential for increasing oil prices to ruin the economic expansion.  Indeed when oil prices fall, stocks go up and vice versa.  With crude just under $54.00 economists have had to revise their opinions of what price would trigger recession.  According to the Wall Street Journal, last summer, one-third of economists who participated in their survey said a recession would follow if crude-oil stuck between $50 and $59 a barrel, the range traded since late February.  In the latest forecasting survey, none of the economists feel that $50 oil will trigger a recession. About 31% said oil would have to be sustained at $80-$89 a barrel to snuff out growth, while 48% believe crude would have to top $90.  In inflation-adjusted dollars that is the level oil reached back in the 70’s during the oil embargo. 

01 Apr 2005

Posted at 15:23h in The Friday Brief by
The market’s bounce in February was not enough to overcome the declines in January and March sending all of the major equity indices down for the quarter.  The Dow Jones Industrials and the S&P 500 each declined 2.1% while the NASDAQ fell almost 8%.  Bond indices didn’t fare much better as the Lehman 1-3 Year, the 7-10 Year, and the 20 Plus Year indices declined by .3%, .9%, and 1.6%, respectively.  Our models performed in line with their respective benchmarks for the quarter. 

29 Oct 2004

Posted at 16:00h in The Friday Brief by
Take the most contentious and bitterly fought election in modern history and blast it ubiquitously over satellite radio, regular radio, internet news and chat forums, your home phone, television with their endless supply of ‘spin-meisters,’ interlaced with ads uglier than yesterday’s, and you wind up pretty sour.  Try to take a break from it and you will be reminded once again by yard signs, public banners, and conversations in churches, clubs, barber shops, salons, coffee shops, delis, bars, and sporting events.  The election by its nature has reminded us of the country’s problems, the information age, but its nature, has made it virtually impossible for us to reflect without distraction. 

22 Oct 2004

Posted at 16:18h in The Friday Brief by
Aside from the ugliest political climate in recent American history, inflation worries of are beginning to rival those of oil concerns among those who are paid to prognosticate and pontificate.  The Consumer Price Index with volatile food and energy removed from the calculations was three times higher in September than in August.  The year-over-year measure was up 2.0%.  Record high oil prices are working their way into the prices of more goods and services.  The longer they remain high the more damage they can do.  Higher gasoline prices are almost a given at this point.