Pedal to the Metal

March 26, 2012

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke reiterated this morning his stance that, in spite of recent gains in employment and economic activity, accommodative policy will remain in place for the foreseeable future. Without the threat of rate hikes, equity markets are once again off to the races after the worst week of the year last week. With the Fed out of the way, global macro incidences and domestic inflation should be the only issues facing the market in the near term.

The MF Global fiasco just got a bit more interesting as an email was found approving a $200 million transfer from a client account, and in the memo was the notation that the transfer was approved by “JC”. Now, I’m guessing the author meant Jon Corzine, not Jesus, so if this is accurate, Mr. Corzine may find himself in a bit of trouble.

The Supreme Court will begin hearing arguments today over Obamacare. Today the justices will hear arguments on whether the Anti-Injunction Act bars the court from considering the constitutionality of the law. A decision on the hearings isn’t expected until June.

A group of central bankers has issued a warning to banks and governments against relying upon low interest rates instead of resolving financing issues. “While aggressive monetary easing is definitely needed after the bursting of bubbles, its side effects and limits should also be taken into consideration” said Masaaki Shirakawa, governor of the Bank of Japan.

Hunger Games opened the weekend with the third largest box office for an opening weekend ever. The picture grossed roughly $155 million over the weekend in North America.

The Central Statistics Office is reporting that Ireland slipped back into a recession in the 2^nd half of 2011. GDP contracted 0.2% in Q4 after a 1.1% decrease in Q3.

The final four is set for New Orleans this weekend, with Kentucky the only #1 seed left. Ohio State and Kansas, both #2 seeds, are joined by #4 seed Louisville. After a successful opening round, the underdogs went down pretty quickly this year.

Have a great day

Ned