Jackson Jambalaya

I have posted a few articles from The Market Ticker, Karl Denninger's website, this year as I find his analysis to be penetrating, candid, and more expert than most of what I read in the media. Here are his end of 2007 review and predictions for 2008 column from earlier this year. Warning: it's a verrry long read but well worth it. If you are trying to understand what is going on right now, this column is a good place to start. Most of his predictions have been fulfilled so far this year. Mr. Denninger wrote:
"There are many who argue that The Bear Market, however, not only did not arrive but that we will rocket to new highs, and have a solid market in 2008.
It is my view that they are sorely mistaken, and soon are to be not only dead wrong but dead broke..........

Here’s my view on what you can expect in 2008:
The US will enter a recession, if it has not already done so. It will be consumer spending driven, with its genesis found in the Housing market. The slowdown will become evident once the “real” holiday sales data is posted, and accelerate into the first quarter.
Unemployment will increase significantly, rising to north of 5% by the middle of next year. This will of course cascade back into consumer default rates (mortgages, credit cards, auto loans, etc) and cause yet more layoffs. The “virtuous cycle” will turn vicious.
Housing will not turn in 2008. The total damage to prices will exceed a cumulative 15% from 2005-2008, and it will not be over. At least one, and probably several, national home builders will be cut to the single digits on their stock price or go bankrupt and be reorganized. Residential Real Estate will NOT be a buy in 2008; you’re still at least one and probably two years too early. The story in the housing space in ’08 will be the defaults on “prime” mortgages – which in reality were nothing of the kind (e.g. “Option ARMs”), and on the piggyback seconds and HELOCs behind them.........
The “big story” in the financial markets for 2008, and the likely trigger for major turmoil, will be the implosion of the CDS marketplace and how Buffett profited from it. This will stabilize the municipal bond marketplace which has been positively hammered.
Equity prices will be choppy in the first couple of months and will experience a peak to trough swing of at least 20% during the year in total. I expect the S&P 500 to at least touch 1220 in 2008 and my current downside target is 1070. Note that should we get a “parabolic” sort of move in the first quarter, which is possible, the potential for an even louder “boom” (collapse) goes up dramatically; in that case I would not be surprised to see a three-digit handle on the S&P 500 sometime during the 2008-2010 time period.....
The Dollar will bounce all over before starting to take off when it becomes apparently that the rest of the world is going to get it worse than we will.
The “market callers” who are (almost to a man!) calling for big moves northward in 2008 will be coming to the public “hat in hand” as we get into the latter part of the year. ..........."
http://market-ticker.denninger.net/archives/134-The-Year-In-Review-And-a-Look-Ahead-for-2008.html

Sit down, pour yourself a drink, and read his column in its entirety, even if it takes thirty minutes. If you've read nothing else on this website, read this article. Denninger has consistently nailed what is going on in our economy and financial markets all year. I will continue to post his columns here as we need more straight talk from experts like him. If you listened to him for awhile, your portfolio is in better shape than if you followed the advice of the goateed-motor mouth ritalin junkie on CNBC. One further point he makes which most people don't know: When the fed injects liquidity into the system it is a loan. At some point it has to be withdrawn. We are going to be dealing with this mess for a long time to come. What we need are straight talk and tough questions, not hot air and posturing. Start by educating yourself.