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* Currencies add to their gains... * Industrial Production soars! * 2nd QTR GDP to be a one and done! * The Aden Sisters on Gold! ** It Was Central Bank Intervention! Good day... And a Tub Thumpin' Thursday to you! While I'm not out of the woods, I'm feeling more human this morning, and that's a good thing, considering where I've been earlier this week! So, I'm going to go out on a limb, and proclaim this will be a Tub Thumpin' Thursday! I've got my banana, and bottle of Gatorade at my side, so.... Let's get to the Pfennig! Front and Center this morning I have to talk about the blip that we're going to see that happened in the 2nd QTR due to the stimulus checks. It all goes back to the stimulus checks and the first sign of this came (besides Retail Sales) yesterday in the form of Industrial Production. Remember yesterday when I told you that Industrial Production is a second tier piece of data that gets ignored by the markets, but I think it's important so I talk about it? Well... Just like last week, when I described the bratty spoiled child throwing a tantrum on the floor of the grocery store as being something you can't avoid paying attention to... The growth in Industrial Production was the same......

* Strange trading days... * U.K. Retail Sales surprise.... * Norway's GDP prints strong! * A CDO lesson... ** Fannie and Freddie Back In The News... Good day... And a Tub Thumpin' Thursday to you! Don't know why... I just felt like it should be a Tub Thumpin' Thursday! I hit the wall yesterday, as I went home, and fell asleep at 3 o'clock, and didn't wake up till night time! Watched a few innings of my beloved Cardinals, wanted desperately to stay up and watch the May-Walsh beach volleyball game, but went right back to bed! So... I should be rested, eh? One would think so, but with the treatments I take, they just simply wipe me out! But... Hey! I always said that sleep was the greatest thing... I just get to enjoy more of it, right? OK... Another day of strange trading... As I signed off yesterday, the euro had given up it's previous day's gains, but found some terra firma at 1.47 and then rallied in the afternoon... If you guess right, as I have not done so this week, you can catch a great price to sell, and buy, all in the same day!...

* Dollar rally continues... * Who's buying U.S. debt? * Homeowners upside down.... * U.S. data continues to be bad! ** Hereeeeeee's Baaaaaacccckkkkk! Good day... And a Terrific Tuesday to you! I'm Baaaaaaaaaccccckkkk! Well, actually, I made it to the office yesterday morning, after flying all night from San Francisco (with a stop in Dallas)... I told the crew ahead of time I didn't want to hear anything about how I looked... And they obliged, but I could see that they were giggling inside! I'm still worn out, but Hey! I got back yesterday, to find out I get to go back out on the road all next week... Geez Louise, somebody get me a private plane! HA! Well... The joke on the desk used to be that "When Chuck was gone, the currencies rallied"... That certainly wasn't the case with this past absence! I had pre-written a large part of what I was going to say in yesterday's Pfennig, before I was not able to connect, flying in a big airliner....

* US$ saved by oil... * US Recession? (not according to Paulson)... * New Zealand worst performer in July... * Big Mac Index says buy Asia... ** US$ saved by oil... Good day...And welcome to August. The markets had a little more movement yesterday as the US GDP report came in lower than expected, and had a hidden surprise for dollar bears (more on that later). In addition to the poor GDP numbers, Personal consumption dropped and the GDP Price Index also showed a decrease. The employment cost index was flat, and the weekly jobless claims were slightly higher than expected at 448k. More Americans filed initial unemployment claims last week than at any time in more than five years. The only positive piece of data released in the US yesterday was the volatile (and somewhat unreliable) Chicago Purchasing Managers number which showed an increase back above 50. With all the bad data, the dollar sold off rather sharply and the Euro jumped a full cent to trade over 1.57 for a short while. But the dollar bears didn't celebrate for long, as the dollar sharply reversed course as crude oil prices rode to its rescue. As I explained earlier in the week, the price of crude oil and the US$ have had a very tight relationship lately, with a correlation of .9. Just after the dollar fell due to the GDP releases, crude oil began a sharp $3 drop and saved the US$ from further losses. The price of oil has continued to slide, and is now down over 11% in the past month. This has helped prop the dollar up in spite of a number of poor economic reports here in the US....

* Currency rally runs into profit taking... * Mortgage related losses continue to mount... * Taking risk... Just seems stupid right now... * Canadian Retail Sales post a gain... ** More Losses! Good day... And a Terrific Tuesday to you! It was a long day of travel for yours truly, who saw two gate changes and two plane changes along with 1.5 hours of delay... I ran into a reader on the plane, that said, Hey! Aren't you Chuck Butler? I could see all the people sitting around me thinking that they should know Chuck Butler, he must be a celebrity! HA! Little did they know, it's just little Ole me, the Pfennig writer! Well... The currencies had a good day VS the dollar, as the euro was able to gain well into the 1.59 handle... Part of my presentation to the main stage crowd tomorrow (900+) is going to ask the question... Where are all those people that claimed the weak dollar trend was over last month when the Fed stated they were going to be inflation fighters? They are no-where to be found! That's where! I recall that even a big name guy at the Royal Bank of Canada, flatly stated the weak dollar trend was over... Where have all the naysayers gone? Long time passing......

* Range bound currencies... * Stocks rebound... * So, you think Oil is expensive? * Gold prices back off... ** Losses Keep Piling On! Good day... And a Happy Friday to one and all! I'm running late today, was up most of the night with stomach problems, and overslept this morning. This is my last day on my 4-weeks treatment, so maybe by this time next week, I'll be able to feel normal again. But, it's a Friday! And... I'll be gone the next 3-weeks! First to Vancouver, where I'll still write the Pfennig each day, but then on vacation, and on to San Francisco... I'll be back in the saddle on August 11th... Well... We had a range bound day in the currencies yesterday, with a bias to buy dollars, as the markets breathed a sigh of relief at JP Morgan's 2nd QTR earnings... JP Morgan beat the estimates, but the thing I don't get is why there was dancing in the streets when those earnings were 53% below those a year ago. So, good for them for beating the estimates, but 53% below last year, I would certainly think it would have raised a few eyebrows... In fact, JP Morgan head man, Jamie Dimon said, "Our expectation is for the economic environment to continue to be weak -- and to likely get weaker -- and for the capital markets to remain under stress. We remain conscious that since substantial risks still remain on our balance sheet, these factors will likely affect our business for the remainder of the year or longer."...

* A bounce in the euro overnight... * Iran tests long range missiles... * Japan's Machine Orders soar! * Is Big Ben giving us a hint? ** Fighting Deflation Instead of Inflation? Good day... And a Wonderful Wednesday to you! Things settled down a bit yesterday, with the rumors of bailout for Fannie and Freddie Macs fading, and some awful Housing data being swept under the rug. The dollar gained back the ground it had lost to the euro the previous day, and Japan printed a very strong Machine Orders report... And now Iran tests long range missiles... All that and more as we begin our Wednesday... OK, front and center this morning... The Housing data from yesterday. Since the media decided to sweep this under the rug, I thought I would make certain that at least Pfennig Readers were aware of the rot on the Housing vine. The index of Pending Home resales fell -4.7% in April, a much larger decline than the "experts" forecast. I think what you're seeing here is simply that would be buyers are holding off as they expect further declines in prices.....