Early in the Year, and Already Surprised

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bull market: a market characterized by rising prices for securities
consensus: agreement in the judgment or opinion reached by a group as a whole
fiscal stimulus: A tax cut and/or an increase in government spending. So called because it tends to increase aggregate demand and therefore the level of economic activity in the short run.
public sector: the part of the state that deals with either the production, delivery and allocation of goods and services by and for the government or its citizens, whether national, regional or local/municipal

After 2009's positive uprise in global stock markets, many investors felt that they had a definite idea of how the stock market would behave in 2010. Many believed that the credit crisis was over, if not coming to an end, that the overall global economy would improve, and that nations other than the United States were coming on the rise. But two months into 2010, it has become apparent that many of these assumptions have backfired, one of the main problems being because of economic struggles suddenly on the rise in many European nations. One particular country with a crippling economy, Greece, has many investors concerned about the recovery of Europe's economy - even if the country doesn't fall into a major recession, the general nation won't see a full economic recovery until 2012, at the very least. 2012's beginning economic statistics are reinstating what market strategists often believe: if people form a strong consensus towards something, it is likely that they are wrong.

My prediction for the global economy is that things will continue to worsen before they get any better. While the overall global economy sees some improvement in the stock market and world trade, the high unemployment and low consumer statistics are big factors in what holds the worldwide economy from a consistent recovery.