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The big story today is the drop in consumer confidence. However, it didn’t merely drop, it plunged. The University of Michigan index fell from 89.1 in August to 76.9 for September. That’s larger than the drop after 9/11. The index is now at its lowest level since 1992. Nevertheless, I’m not too concerned. Katrina is still on everyone’s mind and I think it’s having a disproportionate impact. The real story, and the one that fewer people are talking about, is that the cleanup is moving along very well, and there’s even talk of Mardi Grad going off on time.

At the UN today, Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez, said that oil could rise to $100. BA! Even for Chavez, that’s pitiful. First off, Venezuela can’t even produce enough to meet its own quota. Venezuela must be the only country that lies about its production on the high side. On top of that, OPEC, of which Venezuela is a member, just lowered its demand forecast. Apparently, the OPEC boys didn’t “cc” Hugo.

The good news is that oil is moving lower, so gasoline prices should follow. The market had a nice late rally today on very heavy volume. Who’s opinion do you want to take? The market’s or Hugo’s.

Posted by edelfenbein at September 16, 2005 3:33 PM