TM

Global Battery Equity Index

Jack, for whatever reason JCI isn't listed under BBergs Batteries/Battery Systems classification. It could be because of their diversified product base and would probably fall under the auto parts classification.

Short Interest at Record Levels

Howard, I agree, so I calculated the SIR for the top 100 NYSE stocks, you can see it here:
fiateconomics.blogspot...

Invest Globally, Not Just Locally

Richard, I agree. I have been speaking with a lot of different investment banks and all of them seem to be significantly enlarging their presence in India. I wish there was some type of forward looking indicator to track the significance of that, but I have a feeling it is pretty high. Essentially, you are going to have a bunch of banks introducing Indian equities to .a lot of clients who would have otherwise not have had a means to invest in the country. It is definitely something to keep an eye on. I have been looking at IFN and EPI

How Will the Housing Crisis End?

Steven, I agree a lot of loans were given out that never should have been. However, right now a lot of people who should be getting loans can't... And that is a problem... Of course lower housing prices will help, but only if qualified people can borrow money to buy them, which they haven't been able to do.

Why U.S Gas Prices Will Continue to Rise Rapidly

User 168113, You are correct the ratio we used for oil barrels/gallons was 31 not 42. As you mentioned not all 42 gallons in a barrel are used to produce oil, so we calculated on average what percent of a barrel was used for fuel (this included diesel and may have been a mistake) However, if you did use 42 as the benchmark, the magnitude of the spread would be slightly less, and imply a gas price of around $3.50 vs $3.96 over the next couple of months, but since the entire barrel isn't used for gas production we did not feel this would be accurate. Important to note is that in either case there would be no change to the shape of the XOM price to GAS/WTI spread chart. Hope this helps!

The Case Against Ethanol

Ethanol production will continue putting upward pricing pressure on the world's food supply as global demand rises. On top of that, it seems it is not the most efficient means of alternative energy. There is some potential in switch grass, but it doesn't seem like it will be immediate.

I recently did a piece on food energy prices:
fiateconomics.blogspot...

Taking Stock of Oil

I think it is also interesting look at the lag of the some of crack spreads and this sectors stock price. I believe the spread of gasoline to crude prices as the lowest it has been in at least 15 years, imagine that could cut into margins.

Further explained here: fiateconomics.blogspot.../

The Fed: On the Cusp of Moral Hazard

A good old fashion moral hazard slippery slope

JPMorgan Boosts Bear Bid to $10 - NY Times

I believe the Fed instructed JPM to offer no more than 2/share to show this was not a bailout of BSC shareholders, so it will be interesting to see how this will play out. I imagine the Fed will not be happy about this but at the same time, there will be a lot of unhappy people if they don't agree.. Looks like a moral hazard slippery slope mess!

Bear Stearns Buyout: Insiders and the Merger Contract

NY Times is reporting that JPM is in talks to increase the offer to USD10/share to appease angry shareholders... Lets see what happens

3 Reasons To Be Bullish on the Investment Banks

I got into XLF right after the BSC meltdown, thus far it has proven to be rather lucrative, but given this market who knows what is going to happen this week. However, XLF is a good way to play the banks if you work at one and have trading restrictions...

-TM

Housing Weakness Spilling Over To Manufacturing

Given the weakness in a number of the manufacturing indicators, I am expecting Wed. durable goods report to probably throw more coal on the fire...

-TM
fiateconomics.blogspot.../

Global Equity Markets: Cautious Optimisim and Nagging Pessimism

I think this week has the potential for some possible downside. We have a good bit of consumer related news coming out that is likely to disappoint (spending, sentiment, home sales, etc...). The data will likely reaffirm to some investors that the current problem is not just isolated to the financial economy. I am not sure if the market will have enough upward momentum to continue last weeks gains through-out the week. Unless of course the numbers surprise to the upside, which would be very surprising, and who knows at this point what other tricks the Fed has up their sleeves!

Read more here: fiateconomics.blogspot.../

iShares Taiwan ETF: A Bet on Improved China Relations

The news is reporting the opposition party has won the elections.

Best and Worst Dow, S&P 500 Performers YTD

I see some good value in that Dow 30 worst YTD chart...