Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Been an Bit Quiet Recently!
Stocks closed with mixed results following Fed comments Tuesday. The Dow ended the session with a loss of 30.49 points to 13,090.86. The SPX added 1.57 points to close on 1,447.12. We are still yet to get a play on.
A meeting between Fed Chairman Bernanke, Treasury Secretary Paulson and Senator Dodd sparked a lot of talk yesterday. Senator Dodd stated that he believes the Fed will do anything necessary to keep the economy moving along. Traders hope this means a Fed rate cut. However, Richmond Fed President Lacker tempered this by stating that market volatility is not a strong enough reason to cut rates.
Senator Dodd is mostly concerned with the high foreclosure rate, which could get worse before it gets better. The worry is that a large amount of housing foreclosures could lead to problems with sentiment and ultimately result in low consumer spending in the US. Secretary Paulson stated that the economy is still in good shape and though problems in the credit department are a concern, he feels the economy will be able to work through these problems with the help of the Fed...but he would of course say this!
Oil prices also fell as Hurricane Dean seems to have avoided all oil refineries etc in the Gulf of Mexico.
Before we jump back in we’ll have to see if traders start to gain faith in the Fed and their ability to fix current problems. So far, volatility has been the norm with traders unsure of what to expect with the problems in the credit markets. Today looks like it could be a good day for the Bulls...lets see.
Until next time.
A meeting between Fed Chairman Bernanke, Treasury Secretary Paulson and Senator Dodd sparked a lot of talk yesterday. Senator Dodd stated that he believes the Fed will do anything necessary to keep the economy moving along. Traders hope this means a Fed rate cut. However, Richmond Fed President Lacker tempered this by stating that market volatility is not a strong enough reason to cut rates.
Senator Dodd is mostly concerned with the high foreclosure rate, which could get worse before it gets better. The worry is that a large amount of housing foreclosures could lead to problems with sentiment and ultimately result in low consumer spending in the US. Secretary Paulson stated that the economy is still in good shape and though problems in the credit department are a concern, he feels the economy will be able to work through these problems with the help of the Fed...but he would of course say this!
Oil prices also fell as Hurricane Dean seems to have avoided all oil refineries etc in the Gulf of Mexico.
Before we jump back in we’ll have to see if traders start to gain faith in the Fed and their ability to fix current problems. So far, volatility has been the norm with traders unsure of what to expect with the problems in the credit markets. Today looks like it could be a good day for the Bulls...lets see.
Until next time.
# posted by Paul @ 7:48 AM 
