by Edward Hugh: Barcelonabr /br /The global manufacturing recession continued in April, with rates of contraction for output, new orders and employment all showing what are effectively sharp contractions by historical standards. The rates of contraction however moderated almost universally, and this is now the fourth month where this moderation has been evident. Thus, while the contraction is far from over, it is reasonable to say the it has stabilised, and the big issue is at what rate it will hold in the months to come. The initial shock has now been absorbed, but that is a far cry from saying that we already have the worst behind us. The general deterioration in employment conditions raises the concern that as the impact of the government stimulus "shocks" in their turn wane, and as national banking systems come under the impact of the additional loan defaults the growing unemployment and falling ...

The news is saturated with Hank Paulson’s $700 bailout plan. This is diverting attention away from the increasingly bleak outlook for the wider economy.

Rick Pendergraft says no bailout can immediately solve the problems in the housing market. And all indicators suggest these will run well into 2009 at least.

Rick says your portfolio should be all about playing safe for now. He recommends eight inverse ETF plays to hedge against this downside risk.

This from Investor’s Daily Edge:

I can understand the fixation on the bailout, but other economic reports are getting lost as a result.

Last Thursday was a day that the mass distraction was working to its full capabilities. Investors chose to ignore all economic data in order to focus on the progress of Congress.

In case you missed it, durable goods orders for August were down 4.5 percent from July (I guess the stimulus checks ran out), initial jobless claims jumped to …

Impressive bounce off that 1260 level on the S&P. Like a magnet the market bounced to S&P 1275…. (thanks PPT) and away we go to 1280s. Reader Shax is happy and smug somewhere in Asia with his 100% long exposure. I just cannot see a break through that 1260 on the first attempt with all the King’s Horses and all the King’s Men here to socialize the market, all over again. They have charts too and realize how important this level is. It’s going to take repeated attempts I believe, to break through their purchasing power.Frankly at this point we have 2 outcomes (a) crash i.e. a 10% drop in the markets (June) followed by even more rampant selling layered on top or (b) an oversold bounce.I wrote last week I was done for now with Ultrashort Financial (SKF) as …

Just when you think the Banks, Brokers and Money Centers cannot go any lower the Proshares Ultrashort Financials ETF (SKF) hits a new high. New 52 Week High Currently trading up 5% as the market has taken a steep decline on news of further trouble with automobile makers General Motors and Ford, SKF has reached a new ...