Bond insurers breathe a sign of relief!

With the news that Standard & Poor's affirmed its ratings for Ambac Financial Group Inc. and MBIA Inc., the Wall Street shot off as though Popeye had eaten a whole tub of spinach. These days any news, no matter the size, big or small is bound to get the markets up and going.

Everyone had thought that the Bond insurers were going to get rated down in face of their exposure to the Subprime mess, but that does not seem to be the case at least for now. For the moment, the ratings stand especially for Ambac group. Had the ratings dropped, the consumer confidence, or what little is left of it these days, would have headed all the way down. The Dow Jones industrials bolted the corral by 190 paces or to be more precise, by 190 points. Would the momentum carry on to tomorrow, let us hope that is the case indeed!