DEBT VOTE HAPPENING TODAY
Speaker of the House John Boehner’s revised plan for deficit-cutting has been submitted for approval. The vote is set to occur sometime between 5:45 & 6:15 p.m. EDT. If the bill passes the House, the feeling is there could be some type of bipartisan agreement on a resolution. The issue facing the plan is not every one is on board with the plan even in its current iteration. A fellow Republican Representative Phil Gingery said, "We will never get a balanced budget amendment unless we take advantage of this chokepoint ... I'm going to stand strong on this. I'm going to vote no." Boehner himself readily admits this is a “big test.” A number of CEOs from the largest U.S. financial firms submitted a letter to the President and heads of Congress that stated, "The consequences of inaction -- for our economy, the already struggling job market, the financial circumstances of American businesses and families, and for America's global economic leadership -- would be very grave."
In a bit of good news applications for unemployment benefits fell more than expected. The other interesting piece of news was contracts to buy previously owned homes also rose, quite unexpectedly. According to James O’Sullivan, Global Chief Economist at MF Global Inc. in New York, “The figures are encouraging, though we need to see a sustained decline in claims…The direction in claims invariably sends the right signal for growth in employment.”
At 12:21 pm (CT) the APMEX precious metals spot prices were:
- Gold - $1,613.30 – Up $3.00.
- Silver - $39.87 – Down $0.76.
- Platinum - $1,791.00 – Down $17.00.
- Palladium - $830.10 – Down $5.10.