Severe drought and record heat is wreaking havoc on the mid-west food harvest. Lower farm yields and dwindling inventories have resulted in a 50% surge in corn prices over the past month with little relief in sight. But record food prices have created a boom for agricultural chemical companies. The sector is up 13% in the last month with traders are betting that higher food prices will boost demand for fertilizers. Read more about Hedge Funds Are Bullish About These Agriculture Plays
Nothing seems to be strong enough to lift the market out of its doldrums. Not the shiny corporate earnings announcements from Wal-Mart (WMT) and Home Depot (HD). Not the exciting merger talks between BHP Billiton (BHP) & Potash (POT) or between Intel (INTC) & McAfee (MFE). Not the slightly improved global economic picture. Read more about What the Market Wants: Troublesome Economy Trumps Positive Corporate Mood
The low-volume “dog days of summer” have been anything but uneventful. Rather than a sleeping dog, this summer has been more like a rabid dog—gyrating wildly and scaring the heck out of everyone in its path. 
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” ~Albert Einstein