Quotes by Kurt Karl

“This is a very positive, strong report and encouraging because it included Katrina and a spike in oil prices and we still just seem to have a lot of momentum going into the fourth quarter.”

“It doesnt look like a very bad report to me.”

“We had expected a rebound. Gasoline prices are down a lot, so that is good news, but they are still very high and that may be what is weighing on peoples minds at this point.”

“We improved in May, but it looked too good, so we may have some payback and that could move the market. The possibility of a record deficit would be a shock. Its a negative risk for the equity market.”

“The key number for the Fed was actually the unemployment rate and it went down and has been declining steadily. Wages continue to rise and the Fed has to continue to raise interest rates. This isnt weak enough to stop them.”

“We dont know the exact cause or reason, but its certainly clear when you look at the worst-ever catastrophic event, which it looks like Katrina will be, were in a different world, and its a much more risky world for catastrophic events.”

“The year-on-year was (up) 2.2 percent. That is a change and that is worrisome for the Fed. You would expect a bit of a sell-off in the bond market.”

“My view on inflation is well continue to get reports like this, and the biggest numbers well get are 0.1s and 0.2s, ... U.S. consumers just turn it off when they see the prices go up, as happened last month with cars, so its going to be hard for retailers to sustain any major price increases.”

“This is O.K. news on inflation, ... There is no major worry here. No components are rising rapidly.”

“We have a housing valuation issue. The time is now for raising interest rates and defusing these problems potentially by slowing down the economy a bit and avoiding a big necessary increase later and a consequential recession.”