Brian Bethune Quotes

"Gains in employment and the stock market continue to support confidence. Household income is expected to grow at rates that will sustain growth in consumer spending."

"Further gains in employment combined with better levels for consumer confidence overall are setting the stage for very solid consumption gains in the first quarter of 2006."

"The risk to crops and farms won't be as significant if it loses force, ... When you look at the lessons from Katrina, the eventual damage to agriculture was less than feared. The department of agriculture actually revised up its estimates of production in the state after Katrina passed."

"This sets the stage for a modest [consumer] expenditure growth slowdown in the fourth quarter, providing support for the Federal Reserve's very gradual approach to adjusting rates,"

"Recoveries in Europe and Japan are gaining momentum. This should provide the underpinnings for respectable growth in exports."

"The economy is doing pretty well now in terms of momentum."

"While the record drop in the top level index spells welcome relief from the painful post-hurricane energy price spikes in September, continued pressure on the core index over the next several months will keep the Federal Reserve vigilant on the inflation watch."

"This is in line with our expectation that demand for new housing would 'cool off' towards the end of 2005 and in early 2006 as higher short-term interest rates, driven by the Fed, would ultimately translate into higher long-term borrowing rates."

"The service sector is picking up some momentum."

"Business investment is going to be one of the principal drivers of growth in 2006. The consumer will still be there ... (but) certainly won't be as ebullient as the last four years."

"In terms of economic growth, the fundamentals are clearly on the side of the U.S.. We don't think there's going to be a lot of additional momentum, but even if (the dollar) treads water, it's still going to be an attractive investment."

"There is an imbalance in terms of the demand and supply of energy which continues to be satisfied, or is increasingly satisfied, by external sources of energy products. Now we have a situation that has been every more complicated because of a domestic supply shock."

"Maybe we should all be praying for a warm winter because that might ease the pain."

"Mortgage purchase applications continue to track downwards, suggesting that most of the expected pop in housing sales in January was weather-related."

"The service sector is picking up some momentum. An excellent quarter is just baked in the cake."

"We saw a big rebound in corporate profits and that's a good signal for continued business investment. That generally leads to hiring, which will help keep consumption going."

"New auctions will satisfy an unusual coincidence of needs on the supply and demand side of the fixed-income debt markets."

"Existing sales peaked nationally back in September and have been coming down. The Northeast is following that pattern."

"Retail sales rebounded with some surprising vigor."