Joe Battipaglia, "the consumer is still looking to pay down debt, increase their savings, and curtail their consumption"
Joe Battipaglia, market strategist at Stifel Nicolaus & Co., further stated, “Investors are fairly comfortable with the notion that the Federal Reserve has accomplished what it set out to do last fall: That it’s stabilized the financial system, however, what you’re left with is the aftermath of it all.”
There remains a concern that consumer spending has become an extremely large portion of the U. S. economy and the consumer remains shellshocked from the historical declines in housing prices and financial assets in general. This is likely to impede economic recovery and challenge any rallies in equities.
Source:
http://www.sacbee.com/business/nation/story/1964673.html
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