As 2009 fades away, it’s time to step up to the plate and make my predictions for 2010. While my predictions for 2009 had a few misses, like the one that had the US dollar reaching parity with the Euro, some of my calls were actually spot on. My call on where the S&P 500 would close is within 1% of where it is!

Okay, enough backpatting, let’s get to the predictions:

1- Faced with unprecedented low popularity due to their reckless spending and softness on national defense, the Democrats lose control of congress, as a new Republican revolution sweeps the US.

2- The S&P 500 has another volatile year, but ends up registering a gain to close at 1291

3- The Planet continues to cool

4-After announcing that he will stay in school, University of Washington QB sensation Jake Locker has a great season and wins the Heisman Trophy.

5- A small scale sub-prime crisis hits Israeli real estate. As interest rates move up, and linked mortgages are reset, many recent buyers are unable to make monthly payments and are forced to sell their homes for 10-15% lower than they were purchased for.

6- Speaking of interest rates, the US government 20 year bond hits a 5.1% yield.

7- Zack Miller’s investing book, ” Tradestream Your Way to Profits” (coming out in the spring)becomes a business best seller.

8- The traditional secular stance of the Turkish army is lost as the country moves towards fundamentalism. This creates even more chaos in the Middle East, and Israel and India become very close allies.

9- Gold euphoria ends as common sense enters the market,  sending the price down to $750 an ounce.

10- Prez. Obama actually calls an Islamic terrorist, an Islamic terrorist. Well maybe that should be for 2011!

Happy New Year,

Aaron

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The richest women in Israel, Shari Arison came out swinging today, blasting the Bank of Israel and accusing them of trying to nationalize her bank. Fresh off news that she is in divorce proceedings from her felon-husband Ofer Glazer, Arison is taking out her frustration at the BOI and she may be justified.

After all, the government doesn’t own the bank so why should they have a say in who she hires and fires as CEO of Bank Hapoalim?

According to Globes: “Arison said, “This isn’t control. This is a raid. It is creeping nationalization, and rapid creep. I won’t lie to myself, and I won’t do something that I don’t believe in just to placate a demand that I consider utterly unjustifiable. I feel very hurt. An arrow was fired and the target was drawn around it. There’s a feeling of McCarthyism - no law, no justice. This is simply a frame-up just because someone doesn’t like somebody else.”

Maybe the Bank of Israel should stick to payinmg attention to the economy, and worry less about non-government companies. Go get ‘em Shari!

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I guess the celebration of Israel’s 61st birthday last week was superfluous. After all according to BOI head Stanley Fischer,  Israel came into existence when he took his position a few years ago. How else do you explain his bizarre statement in the Knesset today, when speaking about the Bank Hapoalim situation.

According to Globes: “Fischer told the committee, “It’s a mistake to discuss this matter. We’re still in the middle of the measures. I can assure you that we would not have embarked on this path without considering everything, every repercussion, in the middle of the greatest financial crisis this country has every known.”

The ‘greatest financial crisis the country has every known’. Huh?

What drivel. What is he talking about? Israel was about to go bankrupt 7 years ago…remember? Remember the days of hyperinflation????

Give me a break. The fact that Fischer was talking up the economy, as it was entering a slowdown is bad enough. To now say this is a great crisis, is both admitting that you have failed, and that you know nothing of Israeli history. Either way it doesn’t look good.

Much like Prez. Obama, who is trying to recreate the country in his own image without any respect to history, Fischer as well has used the same strategy. unforuneately, those that don’t learn from history are the ones that are doomed to repeat it.

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The Bank of Israel just announced that interest rates will remain unchanged this month at 0.5%.

This move had been expected as we have started to see inflation pick up, and the BOI was gun shy about cutting rates even more in the face of inflation.

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