Second Quarter 2011 Newsletter

US Economy-

The US Economy continues to chug along, rising for seventh consecutive quarter, fueled by strong corporate earnings, a long awaited drop in unemployment, renewed consumer confidence and earnest attempts to focus on our out of control budget deficits – all of which caused the stock market to post its best first quarter since 1998 (after a 6.4% pull back, which fit neatly into our last quarter newsletter’s 5-7% pull back forecast). However, the news has not been all good. The CPI rose almost 2% (8% annualized) over the quarter as the dollar continued to fall and commodities, led by oil, rose swiftly. Inflation is heating up around the world and foreign central bankers are starting to raise interest rates. It is only a matter of time before our zero interest rate policy comes to an end.

Second Quarter 2011 Newsletter

 

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