Enough palaver.
DEFLATION
I'll say it again DEFLATION. BB scratched his head and said his inflation targets are far from being hit at 2%. See here
http://inflationdata.com/Inflation/Inflation_Rate/CurrentInflation.asp
All the CB's have expanded their balance sheet to unprecedented levels in an effort to stop deflation and yet here we are on the cusp. The economy was teetering on slumping back toward deflation then on May 21st interest rates began their biggest climb ever in 50 years, equities and metals sold off hard and the real estate freshly mending its horrendous beating went thud.
A liquidity trap has materialized. With interest rates rising investors will shun bonds. In a deflationary environment prices fall so money flows to cash. The strong dollar results in fewer exports as the cost for importers increase.
If we simply have disinflation and the FED can tip toe out of their QE and avoid a liquidity trap then equities will do well but the possibility of another round of deflation is real.
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From ECRI
Jun 21 2013
Assessing Deflation Risks for the U.S. Economy
Despite multiple rounds of quantitative easing (QE), the U.S. inflation rate has been plunging, with growth in the headline PCE deflator having dropped to a reading never seen outside a recessionary context. It is now at just 0.7%, well below the Fed's official 2% target announced in January 2012. Earlier, the Fed's unofficial focus was on core PCE inflation, which has now dropped to the lowest reading on record.
Meanwhile, inflation expectations have also declined, falling back to levels last seen well before the launch of âQEternity.â Even though Fed Chairman Bernanke suggested âtaperingâ could begin by year-end, for now QE is continuing unabated. What does this mean for U.S. inflation?
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One would think that BB and the FED understand the dilemma so my bet is unchanged 1450-1470 on the SP500 for the low and sans a deflationary rout which I doubt due to CB meddling and a constrained economy a sideways market bracketed by the low for the year and 1715 on the high side.