Unable to Escape 2008, FOMC Boosted Rates a Quarter-Point, Nonetheless,
Amidst Fed Projections of Lower Unemployment and a Stronger GDP

Yet, Fundamentals Still Point to a Weaker Economy as
Fed Chair Janet Yellen Described the Economic Outlook as "Highly Uncertain"

Prospects for U.S. Economic and Financial-Market Activity Continued to Darken;
Faltering Real Consumer Credit and Earnings Do Not Support the Purported Boom

Amidst Downside Prior-Period Revisions, Fourth-Quarter 2017 Real Average
Weekly Earnings Were on Track for Second Consecutive Quarterly Contraction

Monthly and Annual Jumps in CPI and PPI Were Due to Gasoline Price Swings;
Headline Inflation Gains Were Not Due to Strong or Over-Heating Economic Activity

November 2017 CPI-U Monthly Inflation Jumped by 0.39% (Was 0.11%)
Pulling Annual CPI-U Inflation Higher to 2.20% (Was 2.04%), with
CPI-W at 2.32% (Was 2.06%) and ShadowStats at 9.9% (Was 9.8%)

November 2017 Final-Demand PPI Inflation Monthly Gain of 0.44%
Pulled Annual Gain to a 70-Month High of 3.07%, versus 2.79% in October 2017

Continuing Monthly Jump of 0.44% in November PPI was Dominated by
Gain of 0.98% in Goods Inflation (4.63% Energy Gain), Versus Gain of 0.17% in Services

Inflation Will Soften November Real Retail Sales Growth versus Nominal Growth by
0.4% (-0.4%) Month-to-Month, 2.2% (-2.2%) Year-to-Year