Craig Igl's (craigigl) Blog

The continuance of human and economic tragedy in Japan has set off another round of volatile trading. Just a few hours ago, a 6.2 earthquake hit Japan, the most powerful aftershock since Friday's devastating earthquake. Buildings were shaking but as of now, no risk of another tsunami is present. ...

"Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these secondary guys from the swift completion of their appointed trades". Not exactly what Herodotus had in mind (500 B.C.) but for today, it will do. Markets and the weather in Dallas have allot in common. Both are wacky. Construction Spe...

GDP, our country's gross domestic product, grew 3.2% in the 4th quarter 2010, a touch below expectations of 3.6%.  Consumer spending gave the number its biggest kick, up 3.0%.  That component had the biggest gain in more than four years.  The Employment Cost Index, another component of GDP, rose ...

Thursday, January 27, 2011 Market Update - 01-27-2011 - 7 Year Note Auction   As we suspected, the early morning trade was being sat on by traders looking to buy the auction cheap.  It's one of the things money managers try to do, talk or sell the market down so they can buy auction paper at the ...

Market Update - 01-26-2011 - FOMC Decision   The FOMC kept interest rates at 0% to .25%, unchanged from the prior period. The policy statement had only modest changes, generally confirming improving economic conditions albeit insufficient to bring down unemployment in a still struggling employmen...

This morning's major releases include CPI and Retail Sales. The Consumer Price Index rose 0.5% and Core CPI (ex food and energy) rose 0.1%. Headline CPI rose 1.5% in December year over year, which is the largest rate of increase since December 2009. However, core CPI increased only 0.8% year over...

For the week of January 10, 2011 - Vol. 9, Issue 2 >> Market Update  INFO THAT HITS US WHERE WE LIVE  Last week's housing market news featured forecasts for the year. With the factors affecting home affordability at their best levels in years, many expect increased home sales in 2011, spurred on...