| Curtains 2007 – A view of the market from TraderThoughts.com
Housing data slump worsens; 2007 was the year of the sub-prime mess.. Very little has changed this week on the price front in the week prior to the end of 2007. The front line indexes were largely unchanged for the week, barring Thursday's fierce sell-off partly fueled by events in Pakistan. In this relative quiet of the holiday season, investors and analysts alike are likely to be unsure of what to make of any news flow. Click here for full sized chart The week also saw the release of a flurry of housing data... and to put it mildly, they were ugly. Sales of new homes dropped 9% in November to a 12-year monthly low of 647,000, far below the consensus estimate of 720,000. On a year over year basis, sales were down 34%, the largest annual drop since the 35.3% free fall in January 1991.
Fed auctions $30B to dull credit crisis
WASHINGTON—The Federal Reserve, working to combat the effects of a serious credit crisis, said Tuesday it had auctioned $30 billion in funds to commercial banks at an interest rate of 3.95 percent. It marked the third in a series of innovative auctions the Fed began last month as a way to provide cash-strapped banks with the reserves they need. The hope is that the increase in resources will keep banks lending to consumers and businesses and prevent the credit turmoil that hit in August from pushing the country into a recession. There are indications the Fed's efforts are having an impact. The 3.95 percent interest rate was the lowest of any of the three auctions it has held. The other two auctions saw rates of 4.65 percent and 4.67 percent. Analysts said the significant drop in rates reflected in part the view of markets that the Fed will cut a key interest rate by a half-point at the end of the month and keep reducing rates as needed to try to keep the country out of a recession.
Jeff Thelen's Blog
Thought you'd like this one. At church a few weeks back, a couple renewed their wedding vows to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. The preacher asked them where they were married. The groom replied "Saint So-and-sos. And a short time after our wedding the church burned down and the priest died." Without missing a beat my preacher said "Would you mind if we did this outside?" I had the luck of being at the Packer game last Sunday. What a game and what a day! After spotting the Seahawks 14-points, the Packers looked like an absolutely unstoppable team. And when that snow fell down, it was like being inside a snow globe, you couldn't see the people who were sitting in the stands on the other side of the stadium. But it wasn't cold! In fact, I kept my gloves off for most of the game.
California gets a chance to make a difference
We're no longer an afterthought, no longer a June wedding or a June graduation," he said. "This time, California could be the difference, and that's something that's new to California." The leading Democratic presidential candidates - New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama and former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards - are all keenly aware of the Golden State's potential power, and have put Democratic-leaning California on the front burner as they aim for the White House. And the Republicans - Arizona Sen. John McCain, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and Texas Rep. Ron Paul - have also set their sights on the delegate-rich state. Former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson dropped out of the race last week.
A St. Louis rivalry isn’t new, but here’s the South Side remix
The next chapter of the Chicago–Wash U saga gets added tomorrow when the basketball squads open league play at the Bear's lair. Before we add any more to the narrative, though, now seems like a good time to look back and see how the two schools became mortal enemies, on the field at least. At first glance, it seems like a matter of pure convenience. St. Louis is the only other Midwest city in the UAA, a good road trip distance for hardcore fans to make the drive south for the big showdowns. Proximity alone, however, doesn't explain the intensity when the Maroons and the Bears square off. “I'm not sure how the hype all started, but with us, I think it's a rivalry that has been built up by years of great competition and tight, exciting games," third-year midfielder Siggy Nachtergaele said.
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