What a week to start a blog!

This is the first of what I hope to be many entries on my weekly blog...and what a week to start!

It all starts with the US Presidential elections which kick off tomorrow. It goes without saying that I am backing Obama to be first past the post...although I am weary of the deep seated discrimination of many of the US electorate. I doubt, despite the indications of all the polls, that the election has already been won. The problem with McCain is that he is too old (just think that if he were elected the US could be one heart attack away from Sarah Palin as president!) and his economic policies are no different to that of Bush's. The US economy needs new ideas and the country itself needs a new front which will accepted into the international political sphere. Obama is that front.

The BoE and ECB are expected to cut interest rates (again) on Thursday following dire economic news in recent data releases. The FTSE100 already seems to be buoyed by the expected cut...which many analysts are expecting to be 50bps.
As the FT have put it, "British and EU monetary policymakers are facing mounting pressure to slash interest rates to historic lows...amid a clamour for rate cuts unprecedented in their brief histories."

Of course the actions of the BoE, ECB, FED and other central banks around the world are a reaction to the Global Credit Crisis. I have had first hand experience of working in the industry during this difficult period which has moulded my opinions which I will document when writing my blog. In short, I believe the government actions so far have generally been poor or without foresight (for example, the US bailout plan - why try to push it through so quickly when the consequences for it failing to go through congress would be, and were, dire?! Add to that the ban on short selling, the nationalisation of Northern Rock, the "rent now, buy later" first time buyers plan aimed at reviving the housing market, the following of a Keynesian Economics policy- sure we can spend our way out of a recession...and the list goes on!), and that things are going to get worse before they get better!

Just a word on Lewis Hamilton - he's the man of the moment! 23 years old and on top of the world!! A legend in the making!

I will be posting my first full entry on Friday and every Friday from then onwards.