Posted on 11/08/2007 7:34:46 AM PST by Hydroshock
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress Thursday that the central bank is keeping a close eye on the subprime mortgage crisis as well as the recent spike in oil prices.
Bernanke, testifying before Congress' Joint Economic Committee, said that since the Fed last met on Oct. 30-31 and decided to cut interest rates, "financial market volatility and strains have persisted."
Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress Thursday that the central bank is worried about both the mortgage meltdown and inflation as oil prices approach $100.
"Incoming information on the performance of mortgage-related assets has intensified investors' concerns about credit market developments and the implications of the downturn in the housing market for economic growth," Bernanke said in his prepared remarks.
He also expressed concern that the rise in energy prices - oil is now trading at about $97 a barrel - could lead to both higher inflation and weaker levels of economic growth.
(Excerpt) Read more at money.cnn.com ...
Economy/Credit/Housing Issues Ping List
If you want on or off this list let me know.
I’m in, if you’ll have me.
Done
We are about to be so screwed.
No we already are.
Thanks.
Nah.
Since the price of oil is going so high, why do we export about 75% of Alaska oil out of this country? Why do we export oil from the Gulf? Sounds to me like there are some that want high priced oil. Develop the oil fields inside of our country for our use. Stop supporting the Saudi’s.
Starting in 1973, it was mandated by law that all North Slope oil be used domestically. It was also mandated the the producers could only use US tankers ... which added a shipping cost of somewhere around $5 per barrel. This caused artificially low prices on the west coast and discouraged addition exploration. The same oil, without the US tankers only requirement, cost $.50 per barrel to ship to Asia.
The ban on exports was lifted in 1995 but was limited to a maximum of 7% of the total output. Even though it is still legal to export this 7%, none has been exported since in 2000.
While I am reasonably certain that your 75% figure was pulled out of your posterior region, if I am mistaken, please cite your source.
Hydroshock No we already are.
Hillary's people at CNN are telling us that Bernanke's warning congress that we're in a "crisis" where "financial market volatility and strains have persisted." We're doomed? Bernanke's own words are posted at the Fed's website:
|
"Since I last appeared before this Committee in March, the U.S. economy has performed reasonably well. On preliminary estimates, real gross domestic product (GDP) grew at an average pace of nearly 4 percent over the second and third quarters despite the ongoing correction in the housing market." |
We're not doomed.
Has anyone ever noticed how all of the “bad” news bubbles up on the dawn of the presidential election cycle and the most bleak scenarios are supposed to be caused by republican presidents?
I don’t trust the news anymore. It is all so politicized.
Gas prices up. Dollar value down. Mortgage foreclosures at all time high.
Give me a break. This stuff is so contrived for political purposes.
Currency market reacted with a further weakening of the dollar. Not quite to new lows as I write this, but the day is young.
100% of Alaskan North Slope oil is kept in America. This has been the case for all but 4 years of the nearly 3 decades of Alaskan oil production. Between 1996-1999 5.5% of North Slope oil was exported to Asian countries. These exports were overwhelmingly supported by the US Congress and by the Clinton Administration to offset an oil glut in California at the time. In June 2000 Alaskan North Slope oil again ceased to be exported, and 100% of Alaskan production has stayed in America.
Lots of supporting links available at:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1690451/posts?page=33#33
This has been discussed at FreeRepublic several times.
People forget that unemployment is at an all time low and that standard of living is at an all time high.
The only people that are screwed are the ones who become demoralized by this stuff and so don’t go out and vote republican in ‘08, and of course all of us who end up enduring another era of having the Clinton mafia in the White House.
It's easy to think the doom'n'gloom people are in the majority, but maybe it's just that those clowns are so loud that it seems that way.
Another question is whether they actually believe their negativity or are they just trying to get Hillary elected. My vote is that they're pathologically convinced that the world is ending. The above CNN report is not the only source that's twisting Bernanke's testimony upside down -- on this other thread a guy was trying to "prove" we're doomed buy showing me the AP blub on Yahoo.
Has anyone noticed how this type of news is cyclical? Just like the “September surprise”. It is so contrived for political purposes, and folks like World Net Daily play right into the left’s game plan.
Unemployment is low ... if you believe government numbers.
I don’t. Look into their basis and you won’t either.
Basically, when it comes to economics, I'm vastly ignorant. What's the story here? What the hell is going on with the stock market? Why is it that when the market goes down, my stocks take a beating but when the market goes back up, my stocks remain stagnent?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.