[skiwi]

Just home from work and I check out breaking news in the local rag
Haven't checked out the Breakthrough on hydrogen fuel yet though
I'll post a seperate link after I do

Stocks push record level 
12:55 (AEDT) THE share market pushed higher into record territory at noon, supported by some of the big resources and banks. However, the market was held back by weakness among the retailers and building-product companies.

Costello warns on economic future 
12:54 (AEDT) TREASURER Peter Costello today warned government MPs that difficult economic times were looming amid high oil prices and a strong dollar.

'Breakthrough' on hydrogen fuel 
12:38 (AEDT) US scientists had made a breakthrough in their quest to make low-cost hydrogen, a technology key to finding new sources of energy to end US dependence on foreign oil, they said.

Retail spending soft in Oct 
12:35 (AEDT) RETAIL trade at current prices fell 0.7 per cent to a seasonally adjusted $16.538 billion in October from September, an Australian Bureau of Statistics report showed today.

Dollar drops on weak data 
12:25 (AEDT) THE dollar fell sharply after the release of softer-than-expected economic data to be almost one US cent weaker at midday today.

[ohanian]

Just home from work and I check out breaking news in the local rag
Haven't checked out the Breakthrough on hydrogen fuel yet though
I'll post a seperate link after I do

Stocks push record level
12:55 (AEDT) THE share market pushed higher into record territory at noon, supported by some of the big resources and banks. However, the market was held back by weakness among the retailers and building-product companies.

Costello warns on economic future
12:54 (AEDT) TREASURER Peter Costello today warned government MPs that difficult economic times were looming amid high oil prices and a strong dollar.

'Breakthrough' on hydrogen fuel
12:38 (AEDT) US scientists had made a breakthrough in their quest to make low-cost hydrogen, a technology key to finding new sources of energy to end US dependence on foreign oil, they said.

Retail spending soft in Oct
12:35 (AEDT) RETAIL trade at current prices fell 0.7 per cent to a seasonally adjusted $16.538 billion in October from September, an Australian Bureau of Statistics report showed today.

Dollar drops on weak data
12:25 (AEDT) THE dollar fell sharply after the release of softer-than-expected economic data to be almost one US cent weaker at midday today.

So? Australian dollar goes up. Australian dollar goes down. Australian dollar goes up. Australian dollar goes down. Big deal. Just look at the history of the Australian dollar since 1980. Recession comes. Boom comes. Recession comes. Boom comes. Big deal.

How about some real news like Australia will need to import 50% of its oil in 10 years time.

[k_semler]

Also, Blitz, (the day after Thanksgiving sale), at Wal*Mart 1870 this year was $22,000 short of last year's sales. We actually had 5 pallets of DVD players that cost $28.95 left over after the sale, and supposedly that was going to be a hot commodity. The $49.99 6 drawer tool boxes also had 12 left over. There were still 20 pallets of 27" TV/DVD combos that did not sell. It appears that the economy is in a recession now from just the experience at 1870, and this post to this forum seemed like more confirmation that we indeed are in a recession. The economic downturn appears to be happening much sooner than I thought it would. Oh well, I just want my profit sharing check before layoffs start to occur. Management said that those are over 2 months away, but the sad thing is that layoffs are already being considered due to lack of growth. We may already have lost the profit sharing check. It is required to have a 2% growth to allow the store to continue hiring. If profits have not increased 2%, all hiring is halted for 6 weeks, and we remain understaffed. Damn perpetual growth business model. They should just rely on profit to expense, not a growth curve. Corporatism is about to fail, I only hope I packed my parachute in time to advert impacting the ground at 120 MPH.

[Madpaddy]

K_semler,

Funny how everyones experience everywhere is of higher prices and less disposable income but the business pages keep telling us we are booming like never before.

As a slogan in postwar Britain went "you've never had it so good" and I think that was shortly before the botched Suez crisis. Correct me if I'm wrong any Brits out there.

[Madpaddy]

Motorists face 'December from hell' on clogged roads
TENS of thousands of road users, stuck yesterday in the worst gridlock ever recorded, face "the December from hell", the Automobile Association (AA) predicted last night.


Peak Oil (NOT HERE YET IN THE EMERALD ISLE)

[k_semler]

K_semler,

Funny how everyones experience everywhere is of higher prices and less disposable income but the business pages keep telling us we are booming like never before.

As a slogan in postwar Britain went "you've never had it so good" and I think that was shortly before the botched Suez crisis. Correct me if I'm wrong any Brits out there.

Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity are also emitting this corporate line too. Seems like doublethink to me. Even though you see the profit margin falling, and hiring grinding to a halt, which makes it very obvious that at least a recession is at hand. We are also producing more goods than the year before with more efficiency, we also recently had the busiest travel season since 9/11, which signifies a good economy. Since -1+1=0, does this mean that there has been no change in the economy? This would equate to stagnation, and with rising costs of consumer goods due to rising fuel costs, inflation is also occurring.

Hmm, it seems that we have a situation of both a stagnant economy, as well as inflating prices. As you know, when these two items are combined, it forms a unique economic situation known as "stagflation". It appears that the 70's are repeating themselves again. Unfortunately, this is no artificially created shortage caused by OPEC, it is a shortage created by man's greed, as well as the limits of nature. We are now presented with two choices: we can adjust our economy to compensate for the energy that is now at least at a plateau, (if not declining), or we can continue on as we were with reckless disregard to the future of our race.

At the least, we are experiencing stagflation which will soon devolve into a full blown recession. After a recession a depression is imminent, and after depression a collapse follows. It appears that we have started on this slide. There is very little time to prepare, any further delay will only lessen your personal chance for survival. Before, the worry was about the survival of industrial society, now it has become more personal. I really did not expect the recession to take hold so fast. I am not even close to ready to deal with it. Maybe 08/04/04 really was the peak, when Saudi Arabia announced that it had "no excess capacity" to extract crude oil?

[Pops]

I also read that price/earnings ratios are getting way high again in the markets - a bubble not yet explored here by the market wonk types.

True?

[smiley]

also read that price/earnings ratios are getting way high again in the markets - a bubble not yet explored here by the market wonk types.

True?

Indeed very true, especially in the tech sector. I mean look at Google. Google is now valued at twice the market cap as General Motors. Google is a nice company, but to value it higher than GM?

The average p/e ratings are at 18-19. These numbers would only be justifiable when we would be in a period of serious economic expansion. In a period where we're basically drifting sideways it should be around 10-12.

What this tells is that the investors are counting on a period of extreme strong growth. If they in any way get disappointed in that expectation the stocks will come down, either gradually or catastrophically.