Friday, March 1, 2013

Economic Journal - Friday, 3/1/2013

(As of 7:05 am PST)
 
The market opened lower this morning after the sequester deadline was hit.  Automatic budgets cuts are now taking hold and are likely to repress the fledgling economic recovery we were seeing over the last few months.  It is surprising that the market is not down by a greater margin.  Global economic data was mixed, but slanted to the negative.  China manufacturing growth eased a bit and numbers out of Europe were generally negative.  The dollar is up strongly as investors seek safety in US Treasuries.  Commodities are slumping except for gold, which is up moderately.  Oil prices, in particular are being hit hard, with the price of a barrel off over 1% and approaching $90 per barrel.  Volatility is surging with the uncertainty that the sequester brings.  Interest rates are stable.

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