A month ago the big story was rising interest rates. Everybody was talking about how the economy was holding up while inflation was still a problem and so, far from cutting rates later this year, the Fed’s next move might…
The big event for today turned out to be a speech given by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke to the International Monetary Congress in Cape Town, South Africa via satellite before the market open this morning. This speech somehow reaffirmed the…
“When the market is on a roll like this, it ultimately looks for excuses for profit taking, and retail sales provided that.” – Tony Dwyer, equity strategist FTN Midwest Research (subscription required) About an hour ago Barry Ritholtz at The…
I did want to follow up on my post about preliminary 1st quarter 2007 Real GDP which the Commerce Department reported as 1.3% before the open last Friday. To answer my question, “Does The Economy Matter?”, the answer, at least…
At 8:30am EST, or about 5 hours from now, the Commerce Department will make its first stab at reporting 1st quarter Real GDP. Economists are estimating a measly 1.8% growth. In his “Ahead of The Tape” column from today’s (Fri…
The three phases of a bull market: “Phase one is the rebound from the depressed conditions of the previous bear market. Here stocks return to known values. In the second and longest phase, shares advance in recognition of improving business and…
I find Morningstar’s stock and mutual fund analysis useful, which is why I am a premium subscriber, but I am constantly frustrated with their lack of an ability to integrate a macro economic perspective into their analyses. They seem to…
Barry Ritholtz had a post Friday morning, “Whither Goldilocks?”, worth reading: Every good adventure – be it an advertising campaign, religious evangelism, political battle, or even a war – requires a memorable phrase, repeated over and over again, as part…
The US consumer is holding up nicely thus far as Bed, Bath and Beyond (NASDAQ: BBBY), Circuit City (NYSE: CC) and Nike (NYSE: NKE) all reported strong quarters this past week. Bed, Bath and Beyond, owner of 762 Bed, Bath…
The Fed decided today to leave the federal funds rate at 5.25%. The interesting thing is that the bond market is pricing in rate cuts in the next year or so. Justin Lahart, author of the Wall Street Journal’s daily…