U.S. Economy
U.S. Treasury Secretary Geithner told ABC News yesterday that the U.S. is in no danger of losing its Aaa credit rating, even with the current projections of high budget deficits. He added that the government plans to reduce the deficits after the labor market recovers. The March U.S. T-bonds closed down 18.32nds at 118.30/32nds.

Grains and Cotton
Overall, grains were steady to higher ahead of tomorrow's monthly USDA estimates. March soybeans closed up 16 cents at $9.295.

The USDA said that last week's export inspections of:
Corn totaled 27.1 million bushels, down 11% from a year ago.
Soybeans totaled 39.6 million bushels, down 18% from a year ago.
Wheat totaled 16.9 million bushels, down 12% from a year ago.

The National Cotton Council said that its survey of growers points to 10.1 million acres of planted cotton this year, up 10% from last year. March cotton closed up 2.54 cents at 69.16, rebounding strong from Friday's big drop, ahead of tomorrow's USDA estimates.

Livestock
April hogs closed up 2.05 cents at 68.77 after this weekend's winter storm hit the mid-Atlantic states. Another one is expected to develop in the central U.S. this week.

Lumber
Canada's Mortgage and Housing Corp. said that housing starts were at an annual rate of 186,300 in January, up 5.8% from December's pace and more than expected. May lumber ended down $2.00 at $289.00.

Sugar
According to Agrimoney.com, the private firm, Kingsman, increased its estimate of the 2009-2010 world production deficit from 8.3 to 11.9 million tons. March sugar closed up .43 at 26.60.

Orange juice
Temperatures in central Florida are expected to dip into the 30's on Wednesday, but no significant freezing is expected. March orange juice was up .30 at $1.3425.

Energies
Yesterday's 6 to 10 day forecast from the National Weather Service expects below average temperatures for the eastern half of the U.S. Over the weekend, the mid-Atlantic states received heavy snow. March natural gas fell 11.4 cents to $5.401.

April crude oil ended up .77 at $72.29 after Iran announced that it would begin enriching its uranium to 20%, starting tomorrow. The move is seen as a threat that puts Iran closer to having weapons-grade uranium.

Metals
April gold closed up $13.40 at $1,066.20, trying to bounce back from last week's sell-off and dollar rally.

Currencies
The Bank of Japan said that bank lending was down 1.5% in January from a year ago, the largest annual decline in over four years. The March yen closed down .0023 at 1.1193.

India's government said that it expects real GDP to be up 7.2% in 2009-2010.

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The choice is simple...
If we treat healthcare as a public good, everyone receives it and it costs the country roughly 9% of GDP. Keep healthcare as a private good and it costs at least 15% of GDP (and rising). And what does the U.S. get for spending an extra $1 trillion per year? The highest rate of preventable deaths among 19 wealthy nations.

Why are banks still permitted to trade derivatives?
The U.S. financial system will never be sound until bankers are banned from making high-leverage, unsecured bets with our government-insured deposits.

Andrew Jackson knew what to do -
In the 1830s showdown between elected officials and big banks, President Andrew Jackson went toe-to-toe with Nicolas Biddle of the Second Bank of the United States. Both sides won several rounds and finally it came down to this - could Jackson really move the money of the U.S. government away from the Second Bank? He could and did. And despite being threatened - by bankers, naturally - with dire consequences, the U.S. had a very good 19th century.

Read "Move Your Politician's Money" by Simon Johnson at Baselinescenario.com.