Question about possible record DOW today...

[cynatnite]

Just on MSNBC.

They said it's because of the dropping gas prices.

I don't know much about the complexities of Wallstreet and such things. But does low gas prices and a high dow like this give the impression that the economy is good when it's really not?

[MadMaddie]

1. Smoke and mirrors my friend.....

The shit is going to hit the fan early 2007 and no matter how much smoke and mirrors they put up.....there is nothing they can do to hide the truth!!

[Matariki]

8. Don't take this as an argument - buy why?

what makes you say that? speculation or specific facts?

[Hubert Flottz]

2. Baiting the folks for the big social security scam/rip off...

Once the GOP gets our social security funds invested in the stock market, what will then follow, will make the market crash of 1929, will look like good times.

[BattyDem]

3. Honestly, I don't think impressions matter at this point

The average American doesn't care how high the DOW is - they look at their paychecks, their bills and their overall cost of living. If a man lost his job because the company downsized and was forced to take a job that pays significantly less, he doesn't care if the "experts" say the economy is good, because it's not good for him.

It's all smoke and mirrors. :mad:

[Make7]

4. The Republicans will try to use it to say that the economy is good, but...

... the fact is inflation has risen slightly faster than the DJIA since Bush has been in office.

The average for gas prices so far this year is 18% higher than for 2005, 46% higher than for 2004, and 74% higher than for 2003. Looking at it another way, current gas prices are about 40% higher than they were at the beginning of the Iraq War.

I'd have to say that for the average citizen the economic record has not been very impressive during the Bush Administration.

- Make7

[Ignacio Upton]

11. Isn't there a "real Dow" chart that shows that?

If we use the "real Dow" chart, the actual value of the DJIA isn't as high as it was six years ago when it was at the same range.

[Make7]

15. I don't recall ever seeing an inflation adjusted Dow index, but....

... here is a chart I put together that compares the Consumer Price Index, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, and the S&P 500 index from January 2001 through August 2006. (The CPI data is only available through August.)

I think that illustrates the same thing that a "real Dow" chart would.

- Make7

[Union Thug]

5. What's good for Wall Street is usually not good for Main Street. n/t

[tridim]

6. The stock market is a scam..

..for the benefit of rich people with inside information.

I pulled out after Enron and will not return unless and until the SEC decides to enforce the laws that make the market fair.

[keta11]

7. To the uninformed these may be considered "excellent"

indicators of a good economy especially when you are being reminded of that by attractive Fox News babes
every five seconds.

There are other more realistic indicators like decline in real income, budget and trade deficits, inflation in the housing sector etc that the news babes dont talk about as much.

Speaking of the Dow Jones Average, it is about time Wall Street and the media begin to de-emphasize its relevance. Thousands of companies trade on the stock exchanges, and the DJIA tracks price changes in only 30 stocks of those thousands of companies. Very, very misleading.

[Ignacio Upton]

9. Isn't the S&P 500 a better indicator of the economy?

It has the 500 largest companies instead of just the 30 largest. Also, in theory Bush should have sky-high job approval (low unemployment rate, new record for DJIA, and lower oil prices) but he's still stuck in the upper 30's to low 40's because oil prices haven't fallen far enough yet, people are making less in real wages and have to work longer hours, and because we're in Iraq. Foley-gate has alos put the damper on any chance of the Republicans making gains this week on the economy.

[keta11]

13. The S&P 500 and the Wilshire 5000 Total Market Index

are the more comprehensive indices. I personally trade only small-cap stocks and so follow the Russell 2000 Index. Unfortunately these are not discussed in the media as much as the Dow.

[Warpy]

10. Dropping real estate prices the likelier force

Real estate no longer looks like fast, easy money and prices are starting to roll down slightly. There are few reasonably secure places for small to moderate investors to stash the cash.

It's going to the stock market right now.

[catmandu57]

12. The market is not the economy and the economy is not the market

Too many people confuse that, what goes on in the stock market does not reflect reality, bad things happen, plants shut down, lay offs, etc.. Wall street goes crazy, The market is a casino nothing more, people bet on the rise and fall, it's all paper.

[Ignacio Upton]

14. Often they are

There is a correlation between stock market performance and the overall economy. However, they can diverge at certain points. For example, the Dow was reaching new highs again in the early '90s after the recession had bottomed out, but the overall economy stayed like crap until about 1994-1995.