High Trust BNI

2012-12-06T08:31:00.001-08:00

Arbonne Made the List

Look -- High Trust's Beth Bingham Georges made the holiday pick list for Spirited Women.

The Spirited Woman

The Holidays are gifts, love, family, food, stress and fun. A time to live in joyfulness and inspiration. Our holiday Top 12 Pick List is chock full of spirited experts and products that will make your holidays great! We urge you to support these spirited women. Save these lists all year round, too! A great resource tool for you.

LINDSAY DUFF INTUITIVE MULTIMEDIA ARTIST, ENERGY INTUITIVE - Whatever Lindsay decides to focus on, you can be sure it will be beautiful. She channels her intuitive energy, and intentions into everything she does. Her latest project is Hand Painted Crow Bags. Lindsay's art is infused with a high vibration that supports peoples hopes and dreams. www.lindsayduff.com

STAR ESSENCE FLOWER AND GEMSTONE ESSENCES - Vibrationally-infused remedies made from living, organic, wild crafted flowers and specially selected precious and semiprecious gemstones. Made in powerful places like Machu Picchu, Peru, these high frequency essences make a wonderful adjunct to any healing modality. They are also fun to use and make stellar gifts! Learn more and see holiday specials:www.staressence.com.

INSPIRATIONAL RADIANT CREATIONS FROM JOY ON YOUR SHOULDERS TM. Choose these soulful, ephemeral treasures to add beauty and joy to the lives of your friends and family this December or anytime! These USA handmade Batik sweeties in breath - taking patterns of imported cotton with positive words and messages make unique, beloved gifts your recipients will wear, share, or drape anywhere. www.joyonyourshoulders.com

ARBONNE. Vegan, botanically based skin care/cosmetics - never tested on animals. For 33 years, Arbonne has made premium skin care products without harmful chemicals while also committed to being green. No parabens, no mineral oil, no PABA, no gluten and no GMOs. The best part is Arbonne's products really WORK! Contact Beth for 50% off on your first order at bethbingham50@yahoo.com.www.bethbingham.myarbonne.com.

CHALLENGE TO CHA-CHING! Would you love a holiday season free from money guilt, gift giving worry and the agony of over-spending? It's time to CELEBRATE and claim your divine feminine inheritance to wealth and abundance. Debbie Dobbins transforms women's Money Challenges to Money Cha-Ching. Start this holiday season in abundance with this holiday gift. www.rescuemydreams.com/chaching

GIVE THE GIFT OF INTUITION! Color Wisdom Card Mastery Package includes 51 cards, a 350-page book - plus 17 Hour MP3 on How to read the cards and more. Click HERE to save 50% this holiday offer. This revolutionary divination system, created by psychic Tori Hartman is designed to set intentions and teach multi-generational healing. Fables make it easy to learn cards. Try Cards Free atwww.ColorWisdomCards.com.

BRACELET READINGS BY CHERYL WAGNER: One of a kind - has NEVER been done by anyone before. Makes a great gift for someone that has everything...you included!!! It is a healing bracelet made especially for you and you alone with a typed out reading of the beads and charms used. You wear on your left wrist closest to your heart and watch Miracles happen. Questions? cherwagner@yahoo.com www.angelsaremyguide.com

HEALING THROUGH MUSIC, NATURE & SPIRITUALITY! Marianna Mujica, therapist, healer, inspirational singer, motivational speaker creates space for women to connect deeply with their heart's song through coaching, Spiritual Journeys In Nature, personalized song mantras & interactive presentations and workshops. Facebook pages include Spiritual Journeys In Nature and From Frightened to Fearless. Contact:mariannamujica@yahoo.com or 443-791-8319.

BLUE DRAGONFLY CRYSTAL CREATIONS by LINDA HAHN - Natural elements in your environment will increase it's life-force energy. The crystals, copper, antler and wood bring their own amazing energy and add their own special beauty and magic. It is my intention by creating these one-of-a-kind pieces to bring light, love and harmony to your spaces.www.bluedragonflycrystalcreations.com

MAGI ORIAH NOCK, MA - ANIMAL INTUITIVE + PUBLIC SPEAKER. Magi weaves her love of animals, intuitive abilities, and expertise in co-creating with different perspectives into her unique practice of animal communication. She hosts interspecies conversations which support her clients in spiraling up to new levels of joy. A session with Magi is a great holiday gift for your animal and human friends. www.SpiralingUpConversations.com

FLO SCHELL EdM, is Founder of No. 1 Mentoring Agency: a gentle virtual learning space for women of all ages. An emerging artist, her work expresses the wish that we live "In the spirit of being enough." Join upcoming Tele-Gatherings. Gain acceptance of all parts of yourself. Learn to manage your 'less than enough' thoughts. Feel full just as you are.www.FloSchell.com.

THE SPIRITED WOMAN PRAYER SCARF is a symbol of spirit, empowerment and beauty for women. Our new holiday scarf is PEACE. We invite you to join the Sisterhood of the Sacred Scarves, where we honor the women of the world through scarf ceremony. A portion of all proceeds is donated to the Spirited Woman Foundation. To find out more and to purchase a scarf: www.thespiritedwoman.com/prayer_scarf.

Would you like your services/products/yourself to be "showcased" in our New Year Top 12 Pick List? This is a great list to start the year off with a bang! Fab way to get recognition for your products and what you do. Call Nancy NOW to insure a spot at 805-698-3555 or via e-mail: NancyMills@TheSpiritedWoman.com.

Arbonne's Black Friday Sale

2012-11-20T08:27:00.001-08:00

I am hosting my Annual "Black Friday" Email Sale!

Here's how it works:
Email your order to me on Black Friday, November 23th starting at 5:00am Pacific Standard Time for special discounts that start at 60% and drop throughout the day. I will discount the order based on the time stamp on the email. Discounts apply to the RETAIL cost of the product. Tax and shipping still apply.

Any size order! No Minimum - No Maximum!

Check out my website for a complete list of all Arbonne products: www.bethbingham.myarbonne.com. And here is the all important email address: bethbingham50@yahoo.com.

Email Me Between These Hours (PST)	And Receive This Discount
5:00am and 5:59am	60%
6:00am and 6:59am	55%
7:00am and 7:59am	50%
8:00am and 8:59am	45%
9:00am and 11:59am	40%
Noon and 2:59pm	35%
3:00pm and Midnight	25%

Some of my favorites for the holidays: Mandarin/Pomegranate Hair Care Set and Candle, Shea Butter Hand Cream Trio and the Special Edition Angel Fragrance.

Some of my favorites for all year: RE9 Eye Crème, FC5 Ultra-Hydrating Hand Crème, Sheer Glow Highlighter, Remineralizing Body Lotion 24H and Aromassentials Sea Salt Scrub in Awaken.

2012-10-31T11:59:00.001-07:00

Ghosts and Goblins aren't the only scary things out there

Check out this scary article posted on Cultivate Health:

Cosmetics and Animal Rendering

Rendered animals are used in the manufacture of personal care products. To vegans and people concerned with animal creulty legislation this may be of particular interest. What is Animal Rendering and what products are made from this process? The food processing industry calls it recycling; Animal Rendering is the process of cooking raw animal material, transforming it from waste into a profitable product. Lard is a common derivative of rendering the soft caul fat surrounding digestive organs and small intestines of the pig.
Raw animal material used in cosmetics, soaps, lubricants, and detergents, soap and candles are by-products of animal origin that are not intended for human consumption. Raw animal materials not fit for human consumption include but are not limited to; discarded fat, bone trimmings, meat scraps, blood, feathers, and offal from slaughterhouses, poultry processors, farms, feedlots, butcher shops and ranches. Rendering plants may also use restaurant grease, spoiled grocery meat from supermarkets and fast-food chains as well as animal carcasses from road kill, deceased zoo animals, euthanized or otherwise dead animals from city animal shelters and horses. The rendering process is completed by the bleaching, deodorizing and hydrogenation stage which alters the finished quality of the rendered products to artificially increase its value and quality.
Sodium Laurel Sulphate is a derivative of Lauric acid, Lauric acid is a derivative of rendered animal parts. Sodium Laurel Sulphate is a common foaming agent in personal care products. A variation of SLS is Sodium Laureth Sulfate (Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulfate- SLES), is a higher-foaming variation of SLS. These derivatives are known irritants, readily absorbed by the body, retained in the eyes, brain, heart, liver and tissues. Recent studies are showing these are damaging peoples health. Sodium Lauryl Sulfate and Sodium Laureth Sulfate clean by corrosion, drying the skin by stripping the protective lipids from the surface so it can’t effectively regulate moisture. It may cause hair loss by attacking the follicle. In bubble baths it is classified as a drug because it can eat away the skins protection, causing rashes and infection to occur.
The rendering industry is essentially a recycling industry, made possible by the development of a large-scale food industry. Commodifying waste, using potential polutants to make fuels, soaps, solvants, ceramics, cosmetics, rubber, plastics and floor wax. Rendering works to solve what would otherwise be a major disposal problem. Despite saving the cost of incineration and lowering the burden on landfills there are some serious impacts to economics and health.
If you want to avoid animal by-products in your personal care products these are some ingredients to look for Non-edible tallow, Oleic acid, Glycerine, Stearic acid, Linoleic acid, Lauric acid, Sodium Laurel Sulfate and Sodium Laureth Sulfate. Cruelty-free options are available. Vegan-sourced gummie candy, crayons and cosmetics are not hard to find. The international symbol for cruelty-free products, the leaping bunny logo, denotes products which are free of animal sources. Visit the Leaping Bunny website to learn more. Cruelty-free alternatives can be found at your local natural foods co-op, on the Internet (use a search engine such as Google or Yahoo for “cruelty free”).
There is a balance in all things. When people rejected beef and it’s products due to BSE the demand for plant based oils rose (Oleochemicals). It feels strange, but faced with the issue of waste disposal, it makes sense to turn animal waste into fuel, ceramics, rubber and plastic. That said, I’m not convinced we should be immersed in these products day after day, showering then slathering on lotions, creams and powders. Constant exposure to chemicals that stay in our tissues does not seem like a healthy choice.

Beth Bingham Georges
Arbonne International
Area Manager
www.bethbingham.myarbonne.com
bethbingham50@yahoo.com
(Arbonne is completely vegan and never tested on animals.)

2012-10-23T18:25:00.000-07:00

Dan Arteritano of High Trust BNI chapter will be the special guest on The Social Sandbox.Net on Tuesday Oct 30th at 8:30 AM PST.

Co-hosts Kevin McGrew (The Strategist), Kathleen Ray (The Hands On) and JC (The average Joe) interact bringing you the latest happenings in social media including expert interviews, discussions related to social media platforms, the what’s new in apps and tools, and most importantly, how to apply them to your Social Media efforts, all within a one-hour entertaining, and educational socially interactive environment. Each week there will be great applicable information on what’s happening in the world of social media. We’ll interview industry rock stars and they’ll share their ideas and views about Facebook, Google+, Twitter, LinkedIn and other platforms that are revolutionizing the way we interact and communicate with each other. Share this: Please listen on Tuesday Oct 30th at 8:30 AM PST

Learn more about the services Dan offers at LongBoardIntSvc.com

Learn about Trusts and Estate Planning

2012-10-18T09:51:00.000-07:00

We hear a lot today about needing a trust or having an estate plan. There are so many places to get one done; a financial planner, the internet and attorneys. So, what makes me different from the thousands of choices out there. Come to the High Trust BNI meeting on October 23, 2012 at 7:00 a.m. at the Grand in Long Beach and find out. Jill Brousard will be telling us about our options.

Scary Things Might Be Lurking in Your Cosmetics

2012-10-17T13:37:00.001-07:00

They say beauty is only skin deep. But the cosmetic products many women use to look their best every day could actually be causing damage far beyond that. Research suggests that many trusted makeup and personal care products may contain potentially harmful chemicals.

"The average woman uses 10 beauty products a day, exposing her to 126 chemical ingredients, many of which are linked to health risks such as diabetes, cancer, or reproductive harm," says Lisa Archer, director of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.

Unlike the guidelines for foods, beverages, and medications put in place by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the safety rules governing cosmetic products aren’t nearly as strict. "Right now, the Federal Trade Commission is the body responsible for monitoring the safety of cosmetic and cosmeceutical products, and their only authority is to recommend that a product be pulled off the market after enough complaints have been logged," explains Jessica J. Krant, MD, MPH, an assistant clinical professor of dermatology at SUNY Downstate Medical Center in New York City.

This means it’s up to consumers to become label readers and to be aware of the ingredients in makeup and other beauty products that pose potentially significant health risks. Here are some of the most common and controversial chemicals:

Phthalates

"Phthalates are used to make products more pliable and are found in toys, food, and some cosmetic products, such as nail polish and soap," says Adam Friedman, MD, an assistant professor of dermatology at Montefiore-Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City.

In fact, phthalates are so common that most Americans tested by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for the "Fourth National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals" had evidence of phthalate metabolites in their bodies. The health effects of this level of phthalate exposure are still unconfirmed, but research is ongoing. One recent study published in Environmental Health Perspectives found that women with high levels of phthalates in their urine were at an elevated risk for diabetes.

Phthalates may come with other health risks, too, including low hormone levels and small genital size in men whose mothers were exposed to the chemicals during pregnancy. "The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) added eight phthalate ingredients to their ‘Chemicals of Concern’ list, meaning the agency will keep a close watch on the chemicals with stricter limitations in the future," Dr. Friedman says.

If you are concerned about phthalates, Friedman recommends you look for phthalate-free cosmetics and beauty products. "Or check the ingredients list for the terms dibutylphthalate, dimethylphthalate,diethylphthalate, butyl ester, or plasticizer," he says.

Parabens

"Parabens are preservatives used as ingredients in many cosmetic products, including deodorant, shampoo, makeup, lotions, and oral care products," says Glenn Kolansky, MD, a dermatologist in Red Bank, N.J. "They protect against bacteria growth."

Sounds good, right? But a recent study published in the Journal of Applied Toxicology revealed that the protection parabens offer against bacteria may come with a price: an increased risk for breast cancer. Researchers found that 99 percent of the tissue samples collected from women with breast cancer contained at least one paraben, and 60 percent of the samples contained no fewer than five parabens. Researchers suspect that the estrogen-like effects of parabens in the body may be partially to blame for the health risks they cause.

To avoid parabens, Dr. Kolansky recommends you look for products labeled "paraben-free" or "organic." Beware of ingredients that include the word paraben, such as propyl- or methylparaben.

Triclosan

"Triclosan — an ingredient in a lot of antibacterial hand soaps, deodorant, and toothpaste — has been linked to antibiotic resistance and is a hormone-disruptor," Archer explains. This means that it interferes with the production or regulation of natural hormones in the body.

Triclosan is classified by the EPA as a pesticide, but it’s used commonly as a preservative and as an antimicrobial agent. However, "the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says regular soap and water are just as effective as antibacterial soaps, so the health risks of triclosan seem to outweigh the benefits, " Archer says.

Nanomaterials

Nanomaterials are tiny, engineered particles measured in billionths of a meter that can change the way many products, including cosmetics, operate. "Skin care products incorporating nanoparticles can change the way cosmetic ingredients interact with the skin," Friedman says. For example, nanoparticle ingredients can help give makeup a more natural look and give moisturizers and sunscreens a smoother feel.

No obvious health risks have been associated with nanoparticles, but the FDA is keeping a close eye on them. Because of their tiny size, nanomaterials may be able to get into cells they wouldn’t normally have access to.

"The greatest concern is that nanoparticles have the potential to generate free radicals [molecules that can cause damage to human cells or DNA] when exposed to ultraviolet radiation,” Friedman explains. “More research is needed to fully understand the health risk associated with nanoproducts.”

If you would feel more comfortable avoiding these ingredients in the meantime, check out the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies’ online database of products that contain nanoparticle ingredients.

The ‘Toxic Trio’

"Many nail polishes contain what is referred to as the ‘toxic trio’ — toluene, a neurotoxin; formaldehyde, a known carcinogen; and dibutyl phthalate (DBP), a reproductive toxin and hormone disruptor, " Archer says. To avoid these ingredients, she recommends that you look for nail polishes that do not contain them or that are water-based instead, particularly if you are pregnant. "Look for labels that say ‘three-free,’ " she says. "OPI is one brand that does not contain these ingredients."

A Smart Consumer Is a Beautiful Thing

So what’s a woman who loves her lotions and potions to do? Her homework. Being a safe consumer takes some research, Archer says. To keep the health risks from cosmetics ingredients as low as possible for yourself and your family, try these tips:

Ask an expert. "The American Academy of Dermatology recommends that anyone concerned about health risks associated with cosmetics brings their actual product packages to their dermatologist and has a specific discussion about the ingredients, their own personal health risks, and the risk/benefit ratio of the cosmetic products they are using," Dr. Krant says.
Forego fragrance. "Under law, companies are required to disclose all ingredients in cosmetic products, except what is in the fragrance," says Archer. "Instead, they are allowed to simply list the word ‘fragrance’ or the phrase ‘synthetic fragrance.’ These scents often contain hundreds of harmful chemicals, including phthalates." To protect yourself, she recommends choosing cosmetic products that disclose all ingredients on the label and do not list "fragrance" ambiguously.
Simplify your beauty routine. The fewer makeup products and lotions you use, the lower your health risk from cosmetic ingredients. "Use fewer products — and know what is in the cosmetics you do use," Archer says.

Article written by Elizabeth Shimer Bowers. Medically reviewed by Farrokh Sohrabi, MD

www.bethbingham.myarbonne.com

Staying Healthy this Fall with Arbonne

2012-10-14T16:48:00.002-07:00

Please feel free to share my newsletter on your facebook page. I would appreciate it.

To view this email as a web page, click here.

Beth Bingham Georges

Area Manager

Independent Consultant

Arbonne International

bethbingham50@yahoo.com

www.bethbingham.myarbonne.com

714-501-9221

This ezine was designed and created specifically for Arbonne Independent Consultant Beth Bingham Georges and team. It is not official material prepared or provided by Arbonne. Arbonne makes no promises or guarantees regarding the information provided herein. This ezine is the property of the Arbonne Independent Consultant mentioned above.

View last month's edition | Print a pdf version | YourTeamNews

If you no longer wish to receive this ezine, please email me at bethbingham50@yahoo.com.

Playing DEFENSE!

2012-10-10T15:06:00.004-07:00

On Tuesday, October 16, 2012, I will be speaking to the members and guests of High Trust BNI about what it truly means to provide Criminal Defense representation.

Often times I am asked: "How can you defend the guilty?" That is a very intelligent question for which there is a very simple answer: I don't. I don't represent the guilty, I represent the accused; I don't defend their conduct, I defend their rights.

The very notion of presumed innocence until proven guilty is uniquely American and is among the core values for which so many have fought and died.

Come visit High Trust BNI on Tuesday, October 16, 2012 at 7:00AM and let me share with you why what I do is so important to you and why I am the only one you should trust to refer your friends and family.

Keeping up to speed with CA's PACE Program

2012-10-10T11:32:00.000-07:00

Following up on my keynote presentation yesterday, I wanted to share an article that was published in a regional property management magazine that is also their featured blog of the month regarding the PACE program in California.

Currently, the program is live in West Riverside County and LA County (for commercial properties only).

Please read on to get more details about how this program is helping homeowners throughout California invest in solar and make their electricity costs controllable and predictable:

Arbonne's Best Holiday Gift

2012-10-07T17:06:00.000-07:00

Buyer Beware

So, the old saying goes that each of us needs to be informed when we are buying something. And that certainly is true when it comes to something as simple as buying personal care products.

Most of us pick up a face lotion or a deodorant with little thought about being informed about what is in the products. But we should.

Arbonne's gift to every customer is the fact that we never put anything in our formulations that comes from animals. (Try googling "rendering plants"... and you'll see some horrible stuff that gets boiled and added to make cosmetics creamy.)

Arbonne makes products for personal care, including skin care for men, women, teens and babies. We formulate cosmetics without animal yuck and without testing on animals. We never contain parabens, petroleum products or formaldehyde-donating preservatives. Yep! That's the same formaldehyde used in embalming. Our nutrition products are gluten-free, and never contain artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners, cholesterol, trans fats or saturated fats.

Did you realize that the European Union has banned personal care products that contain parabens? Research suggests there may be a link between parabens and breast cancer. Well, that's enough for me to say no to parabens. Yet, many products at the department store and drug stores in the United States still contain parabens.

Many people don't realize that what they put on their skin is in their bloodstream in less than a minute. So, if you care what you eat and drink, then why not be informed about what you put on your skin.

The best gift you just might give yourself and your loved ones this holiday season is beautiful personal care products that smell yummy, work marvelously and are healthy!!!

Happy Holidays to you and yours.

Beth Bingham Georges

Regional Vice President, Arbonne International

bethbingham50@yahoo.com

www.bethbingham.myarbonne.com

2012-08-09T23:00:00.001-07:00

MONTHLY ECONOMIC UPDATE

MONTHLY QUOTE

"The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery."

- Mark Van Doren

MONTHLY TIP

Arranging a student loan? Make sure that your child is fully committed to getting a degree. Dropping out or intermittently attending college can mean carrying debt for years without the economic power to pay it off.

MONTHLY RIDDLE

You enter a college classroom where there are 13 22-year-olds, 10 21-year-olds and 14 20-year-olds. How many people are in the room?

Last month's riddle:
A photo was taken at a picnic depicting 6 children, 4 grandchildren, 2 brothers, 2 sisters, 3 sons, 3 daughters, 2 fathers, 2 mothers, 1 grandfather, 1 grandmother, 1 daughter-in-law, 1 mother-in-law, and 1 father-in-law. What is the smallest number of people that could appear in the photo?

Last month's answer:

8: 4 young children (2 of each gender), the children's mother and father, and the children's maternal grandmother and paternal grandfather.

August 2012

THE MONTH IN BRIEF
July brought a new twist on an old story: headlines from Europe actually helped foster an overall stock market advance. The S&P 500 rose 1.26% on the month, and much of the gain was linked to European Central Bank President Mario Draghi's July 26 pledge that the ECB would do "whatever it takes" to save the euro. After that statement, Wall Street seemingly forgot about the wave of poor-to-mediocre domestic indicators that had held stocks down for most of the month.1,2

DOMESTIC ECONOMIC HEALTH
There wasn't much to cheer about in the June employment report. Unemployment remained at 8.2%, and the economy had added only 75,000 new jobs per month in Q2 2012 compared to 226,000 a month in the previous quarter. About a third of the 80,000 jobs added in June were temporary. There was one positive note: the ranks of the long-term unemployed had thinned to 5.4 million down from 6.3 million a year ago.3,4

Consumer spending was flat for June, even as consumer incomes rose 0.5%. (The economy had grown 1.5% in Q2 compared to 2.0% in Q1.) Consumer confidence polls diverged: the University of Michigan's July survey hit a 2012 low of 72.3, but the Conference Board's July survey showed 3.2% improvement to 65.9, its first gain in five months. U.S. retail sales dropped for a third straight month in June (-0.5%), a phenomenon unseen since 2008.2,5,6,7,8

There wasn't much movement in consumer or producer prices. The Consumer Price Index was flat in June while the Producer Price Index rose just 0.1%; annualized consumer inflation was running at 1.7% in June, the same as in May.9

Had growth returned to the manufacturing sector? According to the Institute for Supply Management, no. Its July manufacturing PMI came in at 49.8, after a June mark of 49.7. The service sector had fared better in June; the ISM PMI for that sector had come in at 52.1. June's durable goods orders topped forecasts, rising an impressive 1.6%.6,10,11

GLOBAL ECONOMIC HEALTH
A day after he assured the world that the ECB would pull out all the stops to preserve the eurozone, Bloomberg reported that Mario Draghi was meeting with the head of Germany's central bank to arrange a round of sovereign debt purchases. Yet even as markets waited for an ECB announcement at the start of August, a Bundesbank source commented to CNBC that "monetary policy should strictly focus on its primary mandate to preserve price stability" - a comment that dampened some enthusiasm. Still, it looked like the risk of a quick "Grexit" had passed - as July ebbed into August, Greece's government agreed to accept the austerity measures required to qualify for the next installment of its EU/IMF rescue loan.2,12,13

Across the euro area, inflation held steady at 2.4% in June, though joblessness had ticked up to 11.2%; eurozone sovereign debt had risen to 88.2% of GDP. Assorted purchasing manufacturer indices looked weak. China's official PMI hit an 8-month low of 50.1% in July as HSBC's China PMI rose slightly to 49.3. Taiwan's PMI came in under 50 in July, and manufacturing gauges in India and South Korea respectively registered their biggest monthly drops since September and December. The eurozone Markit PMI dropped to a 37-month low of 44.0 in July.14,15

WORLD MARKETS
The "Draghi rally" certainly helped indices in Europe, though its effect was less pronounced in other regions. Data from the New York Times tells the tale for July: FTSE 100, +1.15%; DAX, +5.55%; CAC 40, +2.97%; FTSEurofirst 300, +4.11%; Hang Seng, +1.83%; TSX Composite, +0.59%; Bovespa, +3.21%; S&P/ASX All Ordinaries, +3.58%; Shanghai Composite, -5.47%; Nikkei 225, -4.48%. The MSCI World Index rose 1.20% for July, while the MSCI Emerging Markets Index advanced 1.61%.16,17

COMMODITIES MARKETS

Wheat futures soared 17.30% in July while corn futures gained 26.86%. Energy futures also did well on the NYMEX last month: natural gas went +13.63%, RBOB gasoline +5.41%, heating oil +5.10% and crude oil +3.65. Among metals, gold gained 0.39% and silver 1.09% while copper dipped 2.26%. Cotton prices were virtually flat in July (-0.01%). The U.S. Dollar Index was up 1.17% last month. On July 31, gold settled at $1,610.50 on the COMEX, oil at $88.06 on the NYMEX; at the pump, regular unleaded was averaging precisely $3.50 a gallon.18

REAL ESTATE
Housing sector analysts had gotten used to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index bringing depressing data and gloomy analysis, so the May edition was a real surprise - prices rose in all 20 metro markets with a 2.2% composite gain. (In fact, it was the best month the index had seen in over a decade.) Existing home sales, however, slipped badly in June (-5.4%) along with new home sales (-8.4%) and pending home sales (-1.4%). Housing starts were up 6.9% in June to a three-and-a-half-year peak, with single-family starts increasing 4.7%.19,20,21

Mortgage rates reached historical lows - again. In Freddie Mac's, July 26 survey, the average interest rate on the 30-year FRM was 3.49% compared to 3.66% on June 29. Those eyeing refinancing watched the 15-year FRM's average rate dip to 2.80% on July 26, down from 2.94% in the final June survey. Between June 29 and July 26, average rates for 5/1-year ARMs moved from 2.79% to 2.74% and average rates on 1-year ARMs went from 2.74% to 2.71%.22

LOOKING BACK...LOOKING FORWARD
The Dow ended July at 13,008.68, the S&P at 1,379.33 and the NASDAQ at 2,939.52. The gain in the blue chips is relatively impressive given the fact that the Dow had many more down days than up days last month.1,12,23

% CHANGE	Y-T-D	1-MO CHG	1-YR CHG	10-YR AVG
DJIA	+6.48	+1.00	+7.22	+4.89
NASDAQ	+12.83	+0.15	+7.10	+12.13
S&P 500	+9.68	+1.26	+7.18	+5.13
REAL YIELD	7/31 RATE	1 YR AGO	5 YRS AGO	10 YRS AGO
10 YR TIPS	-0.69%	0.33%	2.44%	3.10%

Sources: bloomberg.com, usatoday.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov - 7/31/121,24,25,26,27

Indices are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into directly.

These returns do not include dividends.

As August began, Wall Street hoped for promising announcements from the Federal Reserve and European Central Bank - two entities not known for sudden bold moves. The Fed offered carefully placed hints of possible future action in its August 1 policy statement, noting that it "will closely monitor incoming information on economic and financial developments and will provide additional accommodation as needed to promote a stronger economic recovery." That language is just a tiny bit stronger than that seen in prior FOMC statements, and bulls are taking it as a signal that the fall may bring a new stimulus of some sort. Meanwhile, it could be that August simply continues what we have seen in June and July: stocks persistently advancing in spite of the pressures on U.S. consumer spending, global manufacturing and the European banking sector and bond market.28

UPCOMING ECONOMIC RELEASES: Coming up in August, we have: the July employment report and July's ISM service sector index (8/3), June wholesale inventories (8/9), July's retail sales and PPI and June business inventories (8/14), July's CPI and industrial output data and the latest NAHB housing market index (8/15), July housing starts and building permits (8/16), the initial August consumer sentiment survey from the University of Michigan plus the July edition of the Conference Board's Leading Economic Indicators index (8/17), the release of the July 31 FOMC minutes (8/21), July existing home sales (8/22), July new home sales and June's FHFA housing price index (8/23), July's durable goods orders (8/24), June's Case-Shiller home price index and the Conference Board's August consumer confidence poll (8/28), July's pending home sales, another estimate of Q2 GDP and a new Fed Beige Book (8/29), July consumer spending data (8/30), and a report on July factory orders along with the month's final University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey (8/31).

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Citations.

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27 - treasurydirect.gov/instit/annceresult/press/preanre/2002/ofm71002.pdf [7/10/02]

28 - money.cnn.com/2012/08/01/news/economy/federal-reserve-stimulus/index.htm [8/1/12]

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