At least, that's what the futures say.

I spent some time looking at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange's housing futures this week.  The futures are tied to the S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Indexes, and are the only liquid way to bet on where house prices are heading.

Right now, the futures all agree: home prices are going lower.

The longest-dated contract available expires November 2012. Using that contract, I looked at the most recent sale to see where the market thinks home prices will be in four years.  The data compare November 2012 vs. August 2008, because August 2008 is the last date for which we have index data available.

House Price Expectations

Nov. 2012 vs. August 2008

City

Price Change

Boston

10.29%

Chicago

0.00%

Denver

12.55%

Las Vegas

12.97%

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American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) shares are down 50% in the last 3 months and trading under $20 a share.  Why care?  First off, Berkshire Hathaway is its largest stockholder with 151 million, or 13%, of AXP shares. Barron's says "Berkshire's stake suggests the company's stock may be near a bottom". At Barron's: American Express: Nowhere Near Its Credit Limit By ANDREW BARY

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AmEx CEO Ken Chenault is considered among the best

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Basic Earth Science Systems, Inc. today reported its operating results for the 2nd Quarter ending September 30, 2008. Basic Earth is an independent oil and gas exploration company. Benefitting from higher oil and gasoline prices earlier in 2008, net income rose to $946,000. Oil and gas revenue was $2,697,000. Compared to the same period in 2007, net income was 120% higher and sales revenue was 51% higher.

Asked to comment on the company’s impressive results, Basic’s President, Ray Singleton, said the “combination of high commodity prices and the effect of our new Colorado wells coming on production have certainly supported the results of our second fiscal quarter.” According to Singleton, Basic Earth recognizes that declining oil prices will have a direct impact on future operations. However, he said Basic Earth has prepared a plan for this scenario based on prior experience.

Noting the company has faced

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U.S. stocks soar!  Currencies rally!  Consumer Confidence at an all-time low!  Getting off the bench! And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

Well… The trading theme remained in place yesterday, but this time it was reversed. For those of you new to class, or any of you who have been playing horse hooky, the trading theme that has gripped the markets since August is: The deeper, darker, and more dangerous the U.S. economy and financial meltdown, including the credit market’s locked status, the dollar gets bought… If there is any sign of light to all this mess, the dollar gets sold, for whenever the markets get their minds off the mess, they are reminded of awful fundamentals for the dollar.

So…

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By ERIC CARVIN

NEW YORK (AP) — Trillions in stock market value — gone. Trillions in retirement savings — gone. A huge chunk of the money you paid for your house, the money you’re saving for college, the money your boss needs to make payroll — gone, gone, gone.

Whether you’re a stock broker or Joe Six-pack, if you have a 401(k), a mutual fund or a college savings plan, tumbling stock markets and sagging home prices mean you’ve lost a whole lot of the money that was right there on your account statements just a few months ago.

But if you no longer have that money, who does? The fat cats on Wall Street? Some oil baron in Saudi Arabia? The government of China?

Or is it just — gone?

If you’re looking to track down your missing money — figure out who has it now, maybe ask

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It's been a bumpy ride for solar stocks recently.

The industry received a boost when clean energy tax credits were added to the $700 bailout bill to help its passage from Congress. But fears of falling demand and oversupply have weighed on solar stocks. The Claymore/MAC Global Solar Index ETF (NYSE:TAN) fell 35% in the first eight trading days of October.

William Patalon III, however, says new mapping technology and advances that have made solar power more eco-friendly will boost solar stocks in the long run.

As the financial crisis continues, investors are searching for safety anywhere they can get it. Real estate is obviously out. Equities are getting hit. The currency markets are roiling.

Throughout history, gold has acted as a safe haven in times of economic stress.

Should you be investing in it?

Investors around the world are flocking to the yellow metal. The South African Rand Refinery which manufactures the popular Krugerrand coin, is now operating its plant 7 days a week to keep up with demand for its gold coins. Similarly, the Austrian mint has added weekend production.

In Perth, Australia, the Perth Mint has hired more staff and has doubled its coin production. About 80% of its business is done outside of Australia in North America, Europe and Asia.

The U.S. Mint recently announced it was temporarily suspending all sales of the 24-karat American Buffalo gold coins

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Index isn't all negative, as rate of slowdown in home prices declines over the past three months.

The S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indexes' 10-City Composite and 20-City Composite reached new record annual declines of 17.5% and 16.3%, respectively, through the end of July, the most recent period tracked by S&P.

The 10-City Composite Index declined at a record level for the 10th consecutive month. Taken together, these declines far surpass the record decline of 6.3% in a similar market trough between 1990-1992.

The news is not all bad, however. Overall declines have actually slowed in home prices in the most recent three-month period.

Cumulative home prices fell 2.2% for the three months ended July, whereas for the previous two consecutive three-month periods, the cumulative home price fall was more than triple that level, between 6-6.5%.

While the slowdown in home price declines is notable across metro areas, it does not necessarily

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Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, Banneker, Inc. is a manufacturer and distributor of quality watches and fine jewelry. Trading on the Pink Sheets, the company bases their products on the legend of Benjamin Banneker. Benjamin Banneker made the first fully assembled clock in America, entirely out of wood. In honor of him, Banneker Inc. makes all of their timepieces featuring luxury woods. The wood types they use include ebony, Zebra, Cocobola, Padvk Red, Purple Heart and several others.

Banneker, Inc.’s Esteem Enterprises, a wholly-owned subsidiary, has teamed with Jostens, Inc. and created the first urban line of graduation jewelry and class rings. Nationally, high school students have a new and innovative way to commemorate their high-school years. Through Jostens, Inc., the team created an affordable product line for students that have a luxurious quality to them. The company keeps the prices affordable through replacing diamonds with crystals, and silver with stainless steel.

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American Oil & Gas Inc. is an independent oil and natural gas company headquartered in Denver, Colorado. Commencing operations in January of 2003, the company lists on the American Stock Exchange. They engage in the exploration, development, and production of hydrocarbon reserves, mainly in the Rocky Mountain region.

American currently owns interests in three core project areas: Douglas-Fetter, Goliath, and Krejci. Drilling is underway in all three of these areas, which represent company-acquired interests in more than 500,000 gross acres. These three projects are in areas where there is historical evidence of the existence of hydrocarbons.

The company’s Douglas acreage Fetter Prospect is in the Powder River Basin in Wyoming. The company is currently focusing on drilling three to eight additional wells in this area before 2008 ends. These wells will be within six miles of a natural gas processing plant, which means they will be wells that generate revenues quickly.

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