Gold moves significantly higher 2nd day in a row

Gold futures prices have risen dramatically for the 2nd trading day in a row, nearly $30 in the past 4 trading sessions. This increases the inflation bias that the Fed must deal with.

As you can see from my previous blog posts, a major inflection point was anticipated, and this may be the beginning of another leg in the gold bull market. Here is a link to an article on Bloomberg:

Gold Rises in Asia as Crude Oil Gain Boosts Inflation Hedge

Needless to say, the price of crude oil has also risen, once again to well over $96 per barrel. This is very bullish for oil prices, and bearish for the U.S. economy and the U.S. dollar.

Stock prices are down marginally this morning due to disappointing retail sales during the Christmas season, being reported by Mastercard at the low end of its downwardly-revised forecast. Also, in a related news story, housing prices are down more than expected. It seems hard to believe that softer home prices was unexpected. What world were those surveyed economists living on? It certainly wasn't earth!