Terrible News?

It was one more piece of bad news that set the stock market downward. But listening to the press and the talking heads these past 10 days, I believed it was the terrible unemployment figure that was sending us straight into a recession.

I visited the US Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics to discover than the average unemployment of 4.6% for 2007 was not terrible.

The average rate of 2006 was 4.6%. It was 5.6% in 2000 when George W. took office, 6.9% in 1993 and 7.5% in 1992. So, 4.6% isn't that outstandingly terrible.

Unemployment in Europe averages just under 9%.

Granted, this number (4.6% annual average and 5% for December 2007 alone) is not good news but just part of the picture that Wall Street is responding to.

Two financial gurus I have listened to have proclaimed little or no growth the first half of 2008. Another respected talking head expects the Fed to cut interest rates at least .5% later this month and that will turn things around.

I'll stay tuned, won't you?

'til later