Euro Touches 1.45 After FOMC

The Fed acknowledged that growth has picked up in the third quarter and warned that the recent increases in energy and commodity prices could put renewed upward pressure on inflation. However at the same time, they said that the upside risks to inflation roughly balance the downside risks to growth. The price action in the markets today suggests that traders do not believe today’s rate cut will be the Fed’s last. In fact, PIMCO’s Bill Gross told CNBC shortly after the rate decision that further cuts are needed for growth. According to the tone of the FOMC statement, the Fed is in no rush to cut rates, but they do leave the door open for further easing should it be needed. Interestingly enough, the most profound US dollar weakness has been against the commodity currencies. Gold broke $800 and oil futures hit $95 a barrel in after hours trading. Against the Euro, British pound and Japanese Yen, the dollar ended the US trading session only slightly lower than its pre-FOMC levels. With non-farm payrolls due in less than 48 hours, further dollar weakness could be limited. Private sector payrolls increased 106,000 last month according to ADP. This was much stronger than expected and suggests that non-farm payrolls could be as high as 125k in the month of October.

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Gold prices shine once again — but investors are advised to limit exposure

FOR WEDDING RINGS and crowns, gold reigns supreme.

But as an investment, its superiority depends on which side of the fence you sit on.

Traditionally, financial experts and those on Wall Street shy away from the precious metal.

"Good luck trying to out-guess a gold market that is purely speculative," some say.

Gold dealers say hogwash.

"If you feel the economy is headed for the pits, then you should assume gold is headed to the heavens," is their counter.

For now, the pro-gold side has the numbers to back its claim. At the start of 2000, an ounce of gold was $282.05. At the beginning of 2007 it was $639.75. And just two months into 2008, gold has reached record highs. On Friday, it closed at a record-high of $973.50.

"Wall Street has to start changing its opinion with the way gold prices are going up," said Michael Kosares, author of "The ABCs of Gold Investing." "I feel there's always a market for gold."

Not to be mistaken with gold stocks or commodities, the purchase of gold coins or bars is seen by those who own them as comforting during a time when the U.S. economy is filled with uncertainty.

The feeling among numismatists is that gold is worldwide tender and is "good as cash." If the U.S. dollar goes sour, you can liquidate your gold regardless.

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Only Gold Can Beat the Credit Crunch

Of course - to any Wall Street power broker, economist, or US policy maker, this headline means the equivalent of "Only Space Aliens Can Halt Teenage Pregnancies". In other words, it's a total non-sequitur to them.

So what? Who cares about Wall Street, economists, or politicians? Individual investors, business owners, workers, fathers, mothers, and college students, they are the ones who must survive if the United States is to survive the mounting credit collapse more or less intact. Why worry about those who caused the mess?

The point is that Wall Street or US politicians cannot and will not save investors. They are not concerned with investors, only with themselves. Investors must save their own little selves - and the only way to do that is by jettisoning the world of contracts, paper, and electronic currency blips.

In other words: in this mounting flood, better not wait to get bailed out. Start swimming, find something that still floats - and hang on to it for dear life!

Gold investors, on the other hand - or what usually goes under that name - are having their own problems. Their favorite paper plays - gold stocks and mutual funds - are under siege as well. Big time.

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Gold Nanoparticles Shine Brightly in Tumors

Solid gold nanoparticles have long been used to treat rheumatoid arthritis and more recently have shown promise in treating various types of cancer. Now, thanks to work by Shuming Nie, Ph.D., and his colleagues at the Emory-Georgia Tech Nanotechnology Center for Personalized and Predictive Oncology, these same nanoparticles could serve as a powerful tumor-homing beacon for detecting microscopic tumors or even individual malignant cells. The researchers report their findings in the journal Nature Biotechnology.

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