A Definition of Fundamentals From Investopedia

[ellacott]

Maybe someone can let McCain know about this since he did say he doesn't really understand the economy.
************
The qualitative and quantitative information that contributes to the economic well-being and the subsequent financial valuation of a company, security or currency. Analysts and investors analyze these fundamentals to develop an estimate as to whether the underlying asset is considered a worthwhile investment.

For businesses, information such as revenue, earnings, assets, liabilities and growth are considered some of the fundamentals.



By looking at the economics of a business, the balance sheet, the income statement, management and cash flow, investors are looking at a company's fundamentals, which help determine a company's health as well as its growth prospects. A company with little debt and a lot of cash is considered to have strong fundamentals.

While fundamentals are most often considered factors that relate to businesses, securities and currencies also have fundamentals. For example, interest rates, GDP growth, trade balance surplus/deficits and inflation levels are some macroeconomic factors that are considered to be fundamentals of a currency's value.

http://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/fundamentals.asp