Charts and News for Thursday

Happy Rosh Hashana, everybody. The start of the Jewish New Year makes for a light trading day on Wall Street and some other global markets, but there is plenty going on.

First, I'd like to point out how quickly what was a lowly tropical depression early yesterday morning is now Hurricane Humberto and slamming into Texas.

The news:
Humberto, the third hurricane of the Atlantic season, slammed into eastern Texas early today with winds of 85 miles (135 kilometers) an hour.

also ...

Gasoline Jumps After Valero Shuts Port Arthur Refinery; Oil Recoups Losses Gasoline for October delivery rose as much as 1.68 percent, or 3.39 cents, to $2.0499 a gallon on the New York Mercantile Exchange after Valero Energy Corp. closed its Port Arthur refinery in Texas because of Hurricane Humberto.

Let me emphasize this: This storm system took less than 24 hours to go from tropical depression to hurricane. And remember how quickly Hurricane Felix strengthened? Does that give you a clue how warm the waters in the Gulf are?

Meanwhile, Tropical Depression Eight should get named today (Hello, Ingrid!). This is is on track for the Caribbean and then the US, and has the potential to be a monster when it gets to our shores.


Energy prices should rise in advance of Ingrid.

Now, let's look at a chart I've put up a couple times in the past couple weeks: The S&P/TSX Composite, Canada's benchmark index ...
In other news ...

China May Topple South Africa as World's Largest Gold Producer, GFMS Says China may become the world's largest gold producer this year, toppling South Africa's unbroken century-long run, London-based researcher GFMS Ltd. said.

China Industrial Production Growth Slows for Second Month on Export Curbs China's industrial production rose 17.5 percent in August from a year earlier, slowing for a second month after the government increased taxes on exports.

Canada's Dollar Strengthens to 30-Year High on Oil, Interest Rate Outlook Canada's dollar strengthened to the highest since 1977 against the U.S. currency on speculation gains in commodities including oil will boost economic growth

Gold May Rise to $740 an Ounce by End of Year After Credit Rout, GFMS Says Gold may rise to $740 an ounce by the end of the year as turmoil in the credit markets spurs demand for the precious metal as an alternative to stocks and bonds, London-based researcher GFMS Ltd. said.

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