Business news with words housing+inflation+recession. 6 news.

Virtually any investor looking for an excuse to turn negative on the markets would have found it during this intraholiday week: Geopolitical instability? Check. Rocketing fuel costs? Check. Bad news on the housing market? Check. All that, of course, was piled atop a mound of worries about inflation, recession, stagflation, consumers' mood, corporate earnings, banking write-downs and (distressingly) more.

Virtually any investor looking for an excuse to turn negative on the markets would have found it during this intraholiday week: Geopolitical instability? Check. Rocketing fuel costs? Check. Bad news on the housing market? Check. All that, of course, was piled atop a mound of worries about inflation, recession, stagflation, consumers' mood, corporate earnings, banking write-downs and (distressingly) more.

WALL Street pulled back yesterday as investors, uneasy about a drop in consumer confidence, traded cautiously ahead of the Federal Reserve's impending decision on interest rates. After the Fed's half-point reduction in September, most investors expect the central bank to deliver a quarter-point cut at the conclusion of its two-day meeting today. But inflation remains a threat. Crude oil prices fell yesterday, but only after hitting a record a day earlier, and meanwhile, the dollar has been tumbling. So a rate cut, much less additional decreases in the coming months, is not a given. Some on Wall Street fear economic growth could halt if rates aren't lowered, given the troubles in housing and credit. The statement the Fed issues alongside its rate decision will be closely read for clues about future moves. "We don't think the economy's about to slip into recession. The corporate portion of the economy is still in pretty good shape," said Phil Orlando, chief equity

PRICES paid by US consumers rose more than forecast in September as food and energy costs climbed, while the core measure that excludes those items showed inflation remains contained. The 0.3-percent gain followed a 0.1-percent decline in August prompted by falling oil prices, the Labor Department said yesterday in Washington. So-called core prices rose 0.2 percent for a second month in line with forecasts. With inflation under control, Federal Reserve policy makers have leeway to consider cutting their benchmark rate again later this month to keep the economy growing in the face of a deepening housing recession. Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke this week reiterated the central bank would "act as needed" to foster sustainable growth along with price stability, Bloomberg News said. "A slower economy and additional slack in the labor market should help keep inflation under control," Ethan Harris, chief economist at Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc in New York, said

COMMODITIES had the biggest monthly gain in September in 32 years, led by wheat, crude oil and gold, as the US dollar's slump enhanced the appeal of energy, grains and precious metals as a hedge against inflation. The 19-commodity Reuters/Jefferies CRB Index was up 8.1 percent last month, the most since July 1975. Wheat climbed to a record in September amid a global grain shortfall, boosting corn and soybeans. Oil also hit a record, and gold reached a 27-year high. The Federal Reserve cut borrowing costs to bolster the American economy, sending the US dollar tumbling. "The Fed has signaled pretty clearly that (it) will answer the problem of a slowing economy with greater liquidity," said Chip Hanlon, who manages US$1 billion at Delta Global Advisors Inc in Huntington Beach, California. "We're in a bullish phase for commodities." The CRB Index rose to 333.67 from 308.76 on August 31. Wheat reached a record US$9.5125 a bushel on Friday. Crude oil climbed to US$83.90 a barrel, the highest ever, on September 20 and approached the record on Friday. Gold rose as high as US$752.80 an ounce on Friday, the highest since January 1980. The US dollar fell to a record against a weighted basket of six major currencies, including the euro, yen and pound. The Fed on September 18 cut its benchmark rate by 0.5 percentage point, more than economists forecast, to 4.75 percent in an attempt to shore up an economy threatened by a housing recession, according to Bloomberg News. The rate cut sparked inflation concerns. Some investors buy commodities to hedge against rising consumer prices, and the falling dollar makes raw materials priced in the United States currency cheaper for buyers holding other currencies. The cut in US borrowing costs will continue to weaken the dollar and lead to "skyrocketing" prices for commodities, Jim Rogers, chairman of Beeland Interests Inc, said in an interview last week. He co-founded the Quantum Hedge Fund with George Soros in the 1970s. Wheat rose on Friday after the US Department of Agriculture said US production and supplies were smaller than analysts expected. Global inventories are poised to decline to the lowest level in 26 years. Wheat futures for December delivery rose six US cents, or 0.6 percent, to US$9.39 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade. The price was up 22 percent this month and has more than doubled in the past 12 months.

After a rate-cut, fears of inflation IT SEEMS odd to be talking about it just after the Federal Reserve has cut interest rates in response to fears of an American recession, but many people (including Alan Greenspan, a former chairman of the Fed) are worried about a rise in inflation. It is important to distinguish between the short-term and the long-term. In the short-term, of course, weaker demand as a result of American housing problems and the credit crunch might result in reduced inflationary pressures. Measures of core inflation in America and Britain are now back below their targets.