Cooling Economy Leaves Investors Perplexed, Says Independence Investment Associates Market Analyst John Forelli.Business/Financial Editors BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 6, 2000 By John Forelli Senior Vice President Independence Investment Associates "The markets had a mixed day, which I think reflects a mixed outlook overall. After getting off to a decent start this morning, the markets couldn't hold gains for the day. I think investors are bracing themselves for potential earnings shortfalls as six Fed rate hikes do their work and slow the economy. The economy's cooling appeared to be weighing on financials and on retail stocks, which took an additional hit from a negative outlook from Circuit City. This skittishness skit·tish adj. 1. Moving quickly and lightly; lively. 2. Restlessly active or nervous; restive. 3. Undependably variable; mercurial or fickle. 4. Shy; bashful. spread to the rest of the market. Tech stocks have been everybody's darling, but the giddiness is waning. Despite optimism from the dismal scientists, I'm not convinced we are past the threat of additional rate increases. Maybe not in June, but perhaps in August. I think inflationary pressures and labor shortages A Labor shortage is an economic condition in which there are insufficient qualified candidates (employees) to fill the market-place demands for employment at any price. This condition is sometimes referred to by Economists as "an insufficiency in the labor force. persist. Even with the today's good news on productivity, I'm waiting on the PPI (1) (Pixels Per Inch) The measurement of the resolution of a monitor or scanner. For example, a monitor that is 16 inches wide and displays 1600 pixels across its width would have a resolution of 100 ppi (1600 divided by 16). on Friday and the CPI (1) (Characters Per Inch) The measurement of the density of characters per inch on tape or paper. A printer's CPI button switches character pitch. (2) (Counts Per I next week. Then we'll have a better sense of whether the Fed will take the rest of the summer off." (John Forelli can be reached for additional comment at 617-228-8734 or at jforelli@independence.com) (Independence Investment Associates is an investment management affiliate of John Hancock Financial Services The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please [ improve this article] or discuss the issue on the talk page. , Inc.--NYSE:JHF JHF John Henry Foster Co. (St. Louis, MO) JHF Jewish Healthcare Foundation JHF Juvenile Hyaline Fibromatosis ) |
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