Behind the Numbers, with Lincoln Anderson

“a cranky contrarian” is how the chief economist for LPL Financial describes himself. His “mantra these days is ‘worry about your winners,’” those asset classes “that have had great runs over the past few years,” including many commodities, gold, and energy. “Over all, the market is in pretty good shape right now,” Anderson suggests, citing the “high quality of corporate earnings” stemming from strict cost controls. He believes Fed chief Ben Bernanke’s done “a great job on monetary policy,” and that the budget deficit will continue to decrease, resulting in even a Democratic president finding it “hard to make an argument” for a tax increase. Finally, Anderson pooh-poohs the import of the subprime mess: “It’s not a macroeconmic event.”