Zeev's Turnips Patch-No Politics (ZEEV)

[pstuartb]

Zeev - I'm wondering about your rate hike comments. With capacity utilization so low, and corporate debt loads so high, why would businesses rush forward with capex plans if faced with a rate hike? An argument could be made that there is relatively little pent up demand for new cap expenditures, and that many companies can not afford it. And with consumer debt levels so high, wouldn't a hike discourage additional consumer spending? Since consumer spending is nearly double that of business, wouldn't a reduction in housing refies and increase in consumer interest rates potentially offset any business spending? You know more than I do about these issues, but it seems to me that at this point rate movements are less likely to cure the economy's ills than the reduction of debt and the passage of time.