Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas to all the EconomyGuy readers. Enjoy this season with your loved ones.
There won’t be an economyguy tomorrow, as I will be traveling and the market trading is very light.
All markets went sideways today, and will probably continue for the rest of the week during those days when the markets are open.
Gasoline fell below $0.90/gallon today; it’s lowest in a very long time. Expect lower gasoline prices.
In the news today….
Christine and the first trading days of the new year are the best predictors of the next year’s stock market growth. These are historically the most positive market days all year. This year the markets look downright dreary, and if the proves true during the next 2 weeks, 2009 will be another bad year for stocks – statistically speaking.
Commercial developers will need to roll over $160B (that’s billion) in debt in 2009. As you know credit is tight, and banks are not lending as easily as they did before. If these developers don’t get their money there will be a lot of commercial properties – complexes, hotels, shopping centers – that will be going into default. This will continue to depress commercial real estate in 2009.
Protect Yourself if you’re buying insurance….
If you are planning on buying some life insurance or an annuity, you MUST check out the strength of the company you are purchasing it from. Go to website AMBest.com and make sure the company is rated AA+ at a minimum. This is no different from pulling a “carfax” on a car you’re thinking about purchasing. Protect yourself. In these unsafe times, you must take these extra steps.
Here are Today’s numbers:
Dow Jones 30 Industrial – 8515 (down 65 points)
10 Year Treasury Bond – 2.14% (up 0.01%)
Euro – $1.3944
Gold – $847 (up $10)
Oil – $39.91 (down $2.45)
Gasoline – $0.89 (up $0.08)