Portfolio Performance : +14.98%

Headline News

1. US oil demand during the first half of 2008 fell by an average 800 000 barrels a day compared to the same period a year ago, the biggest volume decline in 26 years
2. Chairman of the "Wisemen" that advise the German government on economic issues, Bert Ruerup noted in an interview on the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, a preview of an article in tomorrow's paper, that " I can't rule out a recession, but I certainly don't see one; but I do see noticeable weakness"
3. The US Treasury budget deficit grew to $102.22 billion in July, a 182% hike from the $36.45 billion a year ago
4. US ABC/Washington Post Consumer Comfort Index -50 vs -49 the previous week
5. Japan Q2 Real GDP fell by 0.6% from Q1.
6. Japan June Current Account Surplus 493.9 billion Yen vs 1.52 Trillion Yen
7. The Westpac Melbourne Institute consumer sentiment index climbed 9.1% to 86.2 in August
8. China July Retail Sales Higher by 23.3% year on year
9. Spain final July Core Inflation 3.5% year on year vs 3.3% year on year
10. UK July Claimant Count higher by 20 100 biggest rise since Dec 1992
11. Euro Zone June Industrial Output unchanged vs May
12. China End July M2 Money Supply higher by 16.35% year on year
13. Indonesia Current Account Surplus unexpectedly narrowed slightly in the second quarter of 2008, providing support for the rupiah and underlining the importance of commodities exports to the economy
14. US July retail sales fell in July for the first time in five months as falling sales at auto dealers offset in most other major retail sectors
15. Thought struggling automakers managed to reduce their inventories in June, total business inventories rose more than expected and at their fastest annual pace in more than a year.

My expectations for the US crosses

1. EUR : Midly Positive
2. AUD : Midly Positive
3. GBP : Neutral
4. CAD : Positive
5. JPY : Midly Positive
6. CHF : Neutral

Bottomline : The commodity market is back to its feet once again, causing a depreciation of the US dollar. I feel the equity market might in for a spin soon