Oil Now At $108 per Barrel -- Dow Jones D-O-W-N Another 153 Points To 11740

I hope you can handle the g-force. The market has been slip sliding away recently, and today is no exception. Put it this way...the Dow Jones closed at 11740 today.

Until this bond insurer crisis gets worked out, even the bullish of investors are now saying don't look for any sustained rallied.

Oil is at $108.70 per barrel as of 4:49 PM. Look for inflation to creep into everything and drive up the cost of almost all consumer goods. For example, with higher oil (and therefore gas) prices, it will cost more to raise the corn that is used to feed the cows for meat products. THEN, it will cost more to deliver the meat to your grocery store. So they will be raising the prices of food across the board.

Plastic products will also increase in production cost. And it will cost more to deliver all products to the Wal*Marts, Targets and Best Buys across the U.S.

At the same time, wages are down; jobs are down; expenses are up; foreclosures are up; credit defaults will be up; businesses will be going under meaning less jobs.

Meanwhile, property values are down; which means the City of Los Angeles will be taking in less property taxes (revenue) -- which means they will have to create new fees and taxes; and it stagflates out of control from there.

Like I said...hope you can handle the G-force.




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Fed Chairman Bernanke Addresses Senate on Slow Growth and Inflation

Fed Chairman Ben "Bertankie" Bernanke is addressing Senate with a Q& A session today. Here are some highlights (lowlights, actually) from the meeting still in progress:

* Disputes the idea that current economy is like it was in the '70's.

* Banks "risk management" practices must be examined.

* Unemployment rate expected to go higher.

* Food and energy prices represents bulk of inflation problem.

* Effectiveness of interest rate cuts depend on strength of economy.

* Weak economy and tight credit markets make each other worse.

* Some bank failures could take place.

* Greater inflation pressures coming from rising oil prices.

* Many issues are different than in 2001.

* Keeping inflation stable is key.

* Fed prefers to take action at regularly scheduled meetings.

Ben Goes To Congress (2/27/08)


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Zuma Dogg's Wall Street/Economy Blog

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