For the second time in a week, a government unemployment report was highly questionable for reasons that were not entirely clear upon its release. Yesterday’s “initial claims” report showed that only 339,000 people applied for unemployment benefits in the week ended October 6. The pre-report consensus had the number at 370,000-375,000, up from 369,000 the… Continue Reading
Monthly Archives: October 2012
The Tide Turns Big For Romney, At Least For Now
Mitt Romney’s decisive debate victory has changed the direction of the presidential race. The unthinkable has happened – the president lost and lost badly – and Romney has moved ahead in most polls and is closing rapidly where he needs to. Before the debate, I questioned whether President Obama really had an “A-Game” when it… Continue Reading
Investors Still Bailing on Stocks, Going For Bonds
For the last two months, I have been warning that long-term interest rates are going to surprise on the upside at some point, and when they do it will be bearish for bonds. Yet despite that risk, investors continue to flee stocks while at the same time pouring more and more money into bond funds.… Continue Reading
Can Romney Define Himself in First Debate?
Welcome to another Wednesday political edition. This week we want to take a look at the ‘sudden’ narrowing of major polls, where the battleground state polls stand and of course handicap the first of three presidential debates set to air tonight. That’s a lot to cover so let’s get to it. The RealClearPolitics average of… Continue Reading