Stephen Leeb Quotations

There are no real visible signs of economic weakness. It's a wonderful world except for oil.

It doesn't take a lot to get people worried. It just comes down to oil and interest rates.

I think the market very much revolves around oil, which backed off a bit this week, but remains over $65 a barrel. Higher oil is a double whammy for the market, slowing the economy and increasing inflation.

The problem is I don't think you're going to get that kind of break, ... There's no way supply is going to keep up with demand.

We are probably on the verge of an economic recovery.

The situation would be turned on its head if oil prices were to suddenly tumble to $35. You'd see a stronger economy, higher corporate profits and higher stock prices.

The stock market is looking at a pretty benign economy, low interest rates and a 10-year note yield that is below 4 percent, all positives. But then there's the big negative -- oil.

The stock reaction over the next few weeks is likely to be fairly neutral, with a lot of the damage already factored into prices.

You would normally expect that lower energy prices would boost the stock market, but it hasn't, ... Lower energy prices and lower energy stocks suggest that there is a broader worry about economic growth.

First of all, (AOL) stock is down ... 50, 60 percent from its high, ... And it really hasn't changed its spots. I mean my grandchildren, if I'm lucky enough to have grandchildren, and their grandchildren are still going to know about Bugs Bunny and Time magazine. AOL is here for the count. (The stock) could end up earning a buck a share next year, maybe even a little bit more than that, 15-to-18 percent growth. Where do you get that kind of quality at that kind of price? (That's) very, very difficult to find.

There's some pressure on the Fed now to move faster because of the stronger reports,

You're getting AOL for less than nothing. Time Warner's assets are worth substantially more than the price of the valuation of the stock. It's that simple,

If the retail sales number is a little lighter than forecast, that may be seen as bullish for stocks in that it takes the edge off the inflation issue,

Everyone has talked about the industry making a comeback, but I never really thought it was down to begin with. There were certainly inventory issues. But, you had an absolutely blockbuster 2003 and in 2004 you saw reasonable growth - if that's bad, then we'll take it.

The Fed is going to be the key driver for the stock market next week. But additionally, the driver will be the bond market reaction to the Fed and what that implies for interest rates going forward.

Investors will adjust to the $55 a barrel range, ... but if it continues to rise, it's going to upset stocks.

The economy is on good footing, the earnings in the first quarter are expected to be better, but I can't see anything that's going to have a big impact on the market in the short term other than the price of oil.

The financial markets are pretty resilient to anything other than a recession,

It's almost like energy is leading the market higher and lower at the same time.

Heaven forbid there is another attack and the impact of this becomes broader; then you could see a longer-term effect, ... it's not going to change the basic outlook for stocks and the economy.