Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Hanging on a Headline

Today brought a revision to 3rd quarter GDP, which while disappointing, is at least in our rearview mirror. It also brought the Richmond Fed Manufacturing Survey, which was better than anticipated, but still pretty anemic (zero versus the expected negative two). At this point, we’re looking at low volume markets that are whipping all over the place, and appear to be hanging on the next headline.

Thus far, the two high impact stories of the day are the revamping of a credit line by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the (apparently early) release of the Fed minutes. Markets caught a bid on the IMF line, but quickly sold back off as the details look somewhat lackluster. The minutes were just released and markets have surged again on hopes that the Federal Reserve might jump to the rescue. Whether that will hold is another story.

As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday, I give thanks for my family, my co-workers, and our clients, who trust us to manage their precious assets. I’d also like to give thanks that Thursday I can eat some turkey in peace without worrying that the next headline might produce another round of high powered volatility.