In the poll results, it is seen that 45% think the economic system is “fair” while 49% think it is “unfair,” with 6% having “no opinion.”

The poll also asks “Do you think the U.S. economic system is fair or unfair to you, personally?”

This issue of whether the economic system is “fair” is very important.  I believe that “fairness” of an economic system – especially that of one considered “capitalist” in nature – is a very complex issue.

While I have many thoughts on the issue, I will defer commenting on the issue of fairness of the economic system primarily because my comments would be exceedingly lengthy and complex.

However, for now, I will say that any discussion of fairness would include the concept of Moral Hazard, which I have previously commented upon.

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The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 1342.57 as this post is written

Strains in global financial markets continue to pose significant downside risks to the economic outlook.

-an excerpt from the FOMC Statement of January 25, 2012

On October 17 I wrote a post titled “Danger Signs In The Stock Market, Financial System And Economy.”  This post is a brief fifth update to that post.

My overall analysis indicates a continuing elevated and growing level of danger.

My views of this danger, and its implications regarding the financial markets and economy as a whole, were last discussed in the post of January 11, 2012, titled “Building Financial Danger – January 11, 2012 Update.”

In that post, I said :

…my analyses indicate that the danger inherent in the financial system has reached a level at which a stock market crash – that would also involve (as seen in 2008) various other markets as well – has reached a level at which a near-term crash is (at least) a significant concern.

Additionally, since that January 11 update, several new factors have been added to a rather long list of problematical fundamental, technical analysis, and other considerations.

Currently, the overall situation is somewhat reminiscent of the days leading to the “Flash Crash” of May 6, 2010.   I wrote of that situation on April 19, 2010, in “S&P500 at Extremes – Technically and Fundamentally.”  While now and then share certain similarities, my analysis indicates that our current economic and financial situation is of far greater peril.

As reference, below is a 1-year daily chart of the S&P500, indicating both the 50dma and 200dma:

(click on chart to enlarge image)(chart courtesy of StockCharts.com; chart creation and annotation by the author)

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The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 1324.07 as this post is written

The following three charts illustrate various technical analysis aspects of the U.S. Dollar, as depicted by the U.S. Dollar Index.

First, a look at the monthly U.S. Dollar from 1983.  This clearly shows a long-term weakness, with the blue line showing technical support (until 2007):

(charts courtesy of StockCharts.com; annotations by the author)

(click on charts to enlarge images)

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Next, another chart, this one focused on the daily U.S. Dollar since 2000 on a LOG scale.  The red line represents both a trendline as well as a relatively good visual “best-fit” line.  The gray dotted line is the 200-day M.A. (moving average).  As seen on this chart, the U.S. Dollar looks vulnerable to continuing its downward trend that has been interrupted since early 2008:

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Lastly, a chart of the Dollar on a weekly LOG scale.  There are some clearly marked  channels here, with a potential large, prominent triangle featured (shown with two potential lower trendlines, one red and one dashed blue line):

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I will be providing updates on this U.S. Dollar situation regularly as it deserves very close monitoring…

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The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 1324.09 as this post is written

Two recent articles highlight the current state of what appears to be known and unknown concerning the situation, including the potential of customers to “get their money back.”

These two articles are the January 30 Wall Street Journal article titled “Money From MF Global Feared Gone” as well as the January 31 New York Times article titled “After a Delay, MF Global’s Missing Money Is Traced.”

Overall, I find the events that have transpired at MF Global to be highly disconcerting, and they raise many questions about broader issues concerning financial institution and financial system integrity.

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The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 1325.81 as this post is written

For reference, here are a few charts depicting this measure.

First, from the St. Louis Fed site (FRED), a chart through December, last updated on January 26.  This December value is 214,522 ($ Millions) :

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Here is the chart depicting the measure on a Percentage Change from a Year Ago basis:

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Lastly, a chart from Doug Short’s post of January 26 titled “Durable Goods Orders Up 3%, Beating Expectations” showing the Durable Goods New Orders vs. the S&P500:

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The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 1313.01 as this post is written

There are two aspects of asset bubbles that are of great importance.  The first is the impact such bubbles have on investors.  The second is what impact these bubbles have on the overall economy.

It should be noted that asset bubbles are often widely seen as attractive and/or beneficial during their expansion phase.  For instance, during the housing bubble, few people were wary of the “bubble” trend; in fact, the vast majority – including professional economists and policy makers – thought such price appreciation was “great” (i.e. highly beneficial), and such appreciation was “natural” as opposed to constituting a “bubble.”  The vast majority also believed such house price appreciation would last indefinitely, with few risks posed.  Exceedingly few (especially on a percentage basis) predicted the “top” of the bubble or the economic ramifications of its aftermath.

My analysis continues to indicate that the peril presented by the current asset bubbles can’t be overstated.

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The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 1314.53 as this post is written

Here are Ben Bernanke’s comments I found most notable, although I don’t necessarily agree with them.  These comments are excerpted from the “Transcript of Chairman Bernanke’s Press Conference“(preliminary)(pdf) of January 25, 2012, with accompanying economic projections (pdf).

Bernanke’s responses as indicated to the various questions:

Opening Remarks:

from page 5 :

The longer-run projections shown…represent participants’ assessments of the rate to which each variable converge over time under appropriate monetary policy, and in the absence of further shocks to the economy.

from page 7 (with regard to the initial increase in Fed Funds target rate) : 

Six participants anticipate that policy firming is likely to commence in 2015 or 2016 while five others depict policy firming to commence in 2014. The remaining six participants judged that policy lift-off would be
appropriate in 2012 or 2013.

from page 8:

In particular, the Committee recognizes that hardships imposed by high and persistent unemployment in an underperforming economy and it is prepared to provide further monetary accommodation if employment is not making sufficient progress towards our assessment of its maximum level or if inflation show signs and moving further below its mandate consistent rate.

Q&A:

from page 8:

Steve Liesman: Thank you. Steve Liesman, CNBC. Mr. Chairman, we’ve had several months of economic data that’s been stronger than most forecasters expected. Employment was over 200,000, unemployment rates come down 8 1/2 percent. But there seems to be very little mention of this recent strength in the statement. Do you and the Committee, Mr. Chairman, harbored doubts about the recent strength in the economy? And are you and the Committee baking in additional quantitative easing in order to achieve the growth rates that you’ve even forecast here? Thank you.

Chairman Bernanke: Steve, there have certainly been some encouraging news recently. We’ve seen slightly better performance in the labor market. Consumer sentiment has improved. Industrial production has been relatively strong. So there are some positive signs, no doubt. At the same time, we’ve had mixed results in some other areas, such as retail sales and we continue to see headwinds emanating from Europe coming from the slowing global economy and some other factors as well.  So, you know, we are obviously hoping that the strength we saw on the fourth quarter and in recent data will continue into 2012 but we’re going to continue to monitor that situation. I don’t think we are ready to declare that we’ve entered a new stronger phase at this point and we’ll continue to look at the data. We will, as I’ve said in my statement, and as we have in fact in the FOMC statement, you know, we continued to review our holdings, our portfolio holdings, securities, and we are prepared to take further steps in that direction if we see that the recovery’s faltering or if inflation is not moving towards target. So, that’s something as an option that’s certainly on the table. I think it would be premature to say definitively one way or the other, but we continue to look at that option and if conditions warrant, we will certainly consider using it.

from page 24:

Darren Gersh: Darren Gersh, Nightly Business Report. Let me kind of follow up on Peter’s question, why shouldn’t somebody looking at these numbers from the outside say, “look, as aggressive as you say you’ve been, as aggressive as you have been, it doesn’t look like you’re meeting any of your goals the next three years on the economy, so, why isn’t the Fed doing more now?”

Chairman Bernanke: Well, again, as I said earlier, the Fed has been doing a great deal. Just since August we have put a date on our expected period of low interest rates. We undertook the maturity extension program which is still continuing. Today, we announced a further extension of the expected period of low rates by issuing these expected policy rate information, we hope to convey to the market the extent to which there is support on the Committee for maintaining rates at a low level for a significant time. So, you know, I don’t accept the premise that we’ve been passive, we’ve been actually quite active in our policy and in one respect, the low level inflation is a validation in the following sense that there were some who are very concerned that our balance sheet policies and the like would lead to high inflation. There is certainly no sign of that yet and it hasn’t shown up either in financial markets or in outside forecasters’expectations. Now that being said, as I mentioned earlier, if the situation continues with inflation below target and unemployment declining at a rate which is very, very slow, then more, our framework, the logic of our framework says we should be looking for ways to do more, it’s not completely straightforward because, of course, we’re now dealing with a variety of nonstandard policy tools, we can’t just lower the federal funds rate 25 basis points like in the good old days but your basic point is right that, you know, we need to adopt policies that will both achieve our inflation objectives and help the economy recover as quickly as is feasible and I would say that your question, actually and earlier question, shows a benefit of explaining this framework because the framework makes very clear that we need to be thinking about ways in which we can provide further stimulus if we don’t get some improvement in the pace of recovery and normalization of inflation.

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The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 1316.33 as this post is written

The January Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI)(pdf) updated as of January 26, 2012:

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The USA TODAY/IHS Global Insight Economic Outlook Index:

An excerpt from the January 3 update titled “Index forecasts weaker growth” :

The December update of the USA TODAY/IHS Global Insight Economic Outlook Index shows real GDP growth, at a six-month annualized growth rate, increasing to 2.5% in January and then slowing to 1.8% in May. While employment, housing (mostly the multifamily sector) and consumer spending are slowly recovering, concerns about the Eurozone and world growth continue.

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The ECRI WLI (Weekly Leading Index):

As of 1/13/12 the WLI was at 123.4 and the WLI, Gr. was at -7.5%.

A chart of the WLI Growth since 2000, from Doug Short’s blog of January 20 titled “ECRI Recession Call:  Growth Index Contraction Eases” :

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The Dow Jones ESI (Economic Sentiment Indicator):

The Indicator as of January 9 was at 41.9, as seen below:

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The Aruoba-Diebold-Scotti Business Conditions (ADS) Index:

Here is the latest chart, depicting 1-21-10 to 1-21-12:

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The Conference Board Leading (LEI) and Coincident (CEI) Economic Indexes:

As per the January 26 release, the LEI was at 94.3 and the CEI was at 103.4 in December.

An excerpt from the January 26 release:

Added Ken Goldstein, economist at The Conference Board: “The CEI and other recent data reflect an economy that ended 2011 on a positive note and the LEI provides some reason for cautious optimism in the­ first half of 2012. This somewhat positive outlook for a strengthening domestic economy would seem to be at odds with a global economy that is losing some steam. Looking ahead, the big question remains whether cooling conditions elsewhere will limit domestic growth or, conversely, growth in the U.S. will lend some economic support to the rest of the globe.”

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I post various indicators and indices because I believe they should be carefully monitored.  However, as those familiar with this blog are aware, I do not necessarily agree with what they depict or imply.

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The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 1318.43 as this post is written

Notable excerpts from this January 10 Press Release include:

Says Lynn Franco, Director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center: “The bounce back in CEO Confidence in the final months of 2011 was due primarily to an improved short-term outlook. Overall, however, CEO confidence remains rather subdued. On the inflation front, CEOs anticipate price increases of about 1.8 percent for 2012, down from last year’s estimate of 3.3 percent.”

also:

CEOs’ assessment of current economic conditions was less pessimistic, with 17 percent saying conditions have improved compared to six months ago, up from just 11 percent last quarter.

Other recent surveys of business executives include the December 14 Business Roundtable’s CEO Economic Outlook Survey (pdf) and the December 15 Duke/CFO Magazine Global Business Outlook Survey (pdf).

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I post various economic forecasts because I believe they should be carefully monitored.  However, as those familiar with this blog are aware, I do not agree with many of the consensus estimates and much of the commentary in these forecast surveys.

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The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 1326.06 as this post is written

Here are the excerpts I found most relevant, in the order they occurred in the speech:

Think about the America within our reach:  A country that leads the world in educating its people.  An America that attracts a new generation of high-tech manufacturing and high-paying jobs.  A future where we’re in control of our own energy, and our security and prosperity aren’t so tied to unstable parts of the world.  An economy built to last, where hard work pays off, and responsibility is rewarded.

We can do this.  I know we can, because we’ve done it before.

also:

…the basic American promise that if you worked hard, you could do well enough to raise a family, own a home, send your kids to college, and put a little away for retirement.

The defining issue of our time is how to keep that promise alive.  No challenge is more urgent.  No debate is more important.  We can either settle for a country where a shrinking number of people do really well while a growing number of Americans barely get by, or we can restore an economy where everyone gets a fair shot, and everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same set of rules.  (Applause.)  What’s at stake aren’t Democratic values or Republican values, but American values.  And we have to reclaim them.

also:

Tonight, I want to speak about how we move forward, and lay out a blueprint for an economy that’s built to last -– an economy built on American manufacturing, American energy, skills for American workers, and a renewal of American values.

also:

On the day I took office, our auto industry was on the verge of collapse.  Some even said we should let it die.  With a million jobs at stake, I refused to let that happen.  In exchange for help, we demanded responsibility.  We got workers and automakers to settle their differences.  We got the industry to retool and restructure.  Today, General Motors is back on top as the world’s number-one automaker.  (Applause.)  Chrysler has grown faster in the U.S. than any major car company.  Ford is investing billions in U.S. plants and factories.  And together, the entire industry added nearly 160,000 jobs.

We bet on American workers.  We bet on American ingenuity.  And tonight, the American auto industry is back.

also:

Third, if you’re an American manufacturer, you should get a bigger tax cut.  If you’re a high-tech manufacturer, we should double the tax deduction you get for making your products here.  And if you want to relocate in a community that was hit hard when a factory left town, you should get help financing a new plant, equipment, or training for new workers.  (Applause.)

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The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 1314.65 as this post is written