An IEA study released on 1 July says world oil supplies will likely remain stretched with little excess capacity through 2013. This does not bode well for consumer prices, as the cost of energy generally cascades into multiple sectors of the economy; The Wall Street Journal has the details [here][1]. [1]: http:/ ... Read Full Article

The IEA (the Paris based Independent Energy Agency) is in the middle of an across the board evaluation of the condition of the world's oil fields. The study results won't be released until November, but already, industry insiders and analysts are suggesting that the results may describe a much tighter world oil su ... Read Full Article

As reported by washingtonpost.com: "In some neighborhoods, mortgage fraud became so extensive that it drove up overall home prices. That is what happened in Atlanta. Hill, 50, was convicted last month in what authorities call one of the biggest mortgage-fraud cases in U.S. history. It involved 400 fraudulent ... Read Full Article

A good article in the Washington Post: "Nineteen states and the District of Columbia have moved quickly to warn state-regulated lenders about the hazards to consumers from nontraditional mortgages." Read the [full article here][1]. The horrifying thing is that people have apparently been refin ... Read Full Article

As reported on Yahoo Finance: "What they don't talk about is a dirty little secret everyone in Washington knows, or at least should. The vast majority of economists and budget analysts agree: The ship of state is on a disastrous course, and will founder on the reefs of economic disaster if nothing is done to ... Read Full Article

An article by Suze Orman that includes alot of good information on a topic that has unfortunately become relevant recently: [Test Your Homeowners Insurance Smarts][1] [1]: http://finance.yahoo.com/columnist/article/moneymatters/11166 ... Read Full Article

A bank index site that allows you to search the country for a wide variety of banking products including the highest yield savings accounts: (as of this writing it seems to be 5.4%): ... Read Full Article

As discussed at the Motley Fool: "As of today, however, I'd better be careful, since the Orwellian-sounding "Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005" is now law. Six months ago, the credit card lobby, consisting of **MBNA** [(NYSE: KRB)][1], **Capital One** [(NYSE: COF)][2], ... Read Full Article

As reported by the Washington Post: "After extolling its new features, Citibank's Simplicity card offer warns that late payments could trigger an increase in the interest rate charged on balances as well as a negative credit report. Such reports often cause other lenders to boost interest rates on a consumer' ... Read Full Article