(As of 7:20 am pacific)
The market is struggling to find direction this morning
as investors weigh several economic reports with the growing anxiety
surrounding the fiscal cliff. A
preliminary reading showed that consumer sentiment jumped to its highest level
since July 2007, however the fiscal cliff continued to dominate headlines. Concerns over the fiscal cliff were
highlighted by the Congressional Budget Office yesterday who put out a report
showing the impact of automatic tax hikes and spending cuts set to go in to
effect on January 1, 2013. Growth in the
US economy would likely decline by 0.5% while unemployment would jump over 9%
according to the CBO’s figures.
President Obama is set to address the topic of the fiscal cliff in a conference
later this morning where he will likely respond to previous comments made by
House speaker John Boehner, as well as provide guidance on Congress’ efforts
moving forward on this issue. European
markets are down as growth concerns out of France and a possible delay in
bailout funding for Greece sent stocks lower for the 3rd straight
day. Some surprising reports out of
China showed industrial output on the rise and retail sales soaring 14.5% in
October. The reports weren’t enough to
lift stocks, however, as markets reflected the worries of Wall St. and what the
fiscal cliff might mean for other global economies.
***This issue will continue to dominate headlines for the
remainder of the year, and as such, we’d like to direct you to the video we put
out on the fiscal cliff back in September.
We did our best to unpack the issues at stake in way that is palatable
to the everyday consumer. Please click
on the ‘Video’ tab of this blog and scroll down to our September video on the
fiscal cliff.***
