Economics Update

CNN is reporting that Consumer spending was flat relative to inflation, which really is not true, since the CPI is crap, and because consumer spending includes food and energy, which are going through the roof, so everything else was down.

It looks like there will be more downward pressure on the dollar, as Euro-zone inflation is at 3.6%, which means that the ECB will definitely not cut rates, and might raise them, though the dollar strengthened slightly today.

BTW, the report of the improved growth in the intermediate report on US GDP? It's really a contraction, as Barry Righoltz notes, the gains weredefense spending, inventory builds, and exports, with the rest of the economy at -0.4%.

Go to his site for the chart pr0n.

In energy, oil rebounded a bit from yesterday's fall to $127.35/bbl, and retail gasoline hit a record yet again.