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If Raoul Pal was some doomsday spouting windbag, writing in all caps, arbitrarily pasting together disparate charts to create 200 page slideshows, it would be easy to ignore him. He isn't. The founder of Global Macro Investor "previously co-managed the GLG Global Macro Fund in London for GLG Partners, one of the largest hedge fund groups in the world. Raoul came to GLG from Goldman Sachs where he co-managed the hedge fund sales business in Equities and Equity Derivatives in Europe... Raoul Pal retired from managing client money in 2004 at the age of 36 and now lives on the...

Stocks were jumping Thursday as bulls looked to revive the momentum that waned at the end of an otherwise blowout November. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was climbing 124 points, or 1.1%, to 10,929, and is now just 11 points below its four-year closing high of 10,940 -- a level that's been approached but proven tough to breach in recent sessions. The S&P 500 was up 14 points, or 1.2%, at 1264. The Nasdaq Composite was adding 33 points, or 1.5%, to 2265. Of the Dow's components, 27 out of 30 were posting gains. McDonald's (MCD:NYSE - news - research...

Fact and CommentSteve Forbes, 09.02.02, 12:00 AM ET   Bull Market? Buoyant Economy? Here's How Here are key factors to watch out for in the fate of our struggling economy and wobbling equity markets: • Tight money. Just as a car won't run well without sufficient fuel, an economy won't run well without sufficient credit. The Federal Reserve's deflation between 1997 and 2001 was a prime cause of our slowdown and of much of the economic turmoil around the world. A good barometer of liquidity is the price of gold: If gold falls below $300, watch out: We'll be following...