In the past two weeks, the Bush Administration announced it would not seek the second $350 billion of the $700 billion “bailout” package approved by Congress. Also, Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson said there would be no new initiatives to deal with the credit crisis. So much for that promise to do “whatever necessary” to stem the crisis. Sensing increased uncertainty amid this lack of leadership,…
If the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, this weekend was probably a good first one. Albeit reluctantly, the U.S. convened a special meeting of the 20 most economically important nations in D.C. this weekend, which was described as the “Platitude Summit.” The nine-page closing press release contained a pledge of closer cooperation, to meet again, and . . . “never…
Long time veterans of Wall Street believe it is not safe to say the bottom has been reached until the market touches closing price on the worst day a second time and bounces back up. Today, the market did that and ended with a huge 552 bull run. Does that mean the bottom is here and that it is finally safe to invest some of…
If you are a supply-side economist, you believe personal behavior and economic performance can be controlled by tax rates. If you are a Keynesian economist, you believe economic performance can be controlled by fiscal policy, i.e., taxes and spending levels. If you are a monetarist, you are terrified by this chart, because an historic, astronomical increase in money supply like this is certain to create…
The S&P fell 3.9% last week. One of the primary reasons was the latest ISM Report by the Institute of Supply Management. A score of 50 indicates no growth. A score of 40 indicates a serious recession. This week, it was 38.9, which is the lowest since September 1982. Look at this graph. The rapid fall is certainly stunning! But, notice the pattern of quick…
