By Chris Gothard
London, July 17 (Bloomberg) -- The following are comments about the U.S. economy, the dollar and stocks by Tony Robinson, chief investment officer at Attica Asset Management, which runs about $200 million of assets.
``We're focusing on the consumer side for evidence of the recovery in the U.S. economy. The key for the U.S. economy will be whether consumer spending can hold up.''
``The manufacturing side is still declining, that could spill over to consumer spending and confidence but so far it hasn't. That gives me confidence.''
``There is a recovery in the U.S. economy -- the worst has been seen. I can't say the same for Europe or Japan.''
``I'm invested in U.S. consumer stocks. We made a small increase in our U.S. equity recently. Our highest conviction is about growth in the U.S.''
``Without strong action from the European Central Bank there is nothing to attract me to European assets. They're not making any effort to boost growth and there is an inflation problem. It's not attractive to the investor.''
``The new twist is the Latin American problem. We are keeping an eye on the dollar. The dollar could take it on the chin -- the U.S. is the lender of last resort to any country. There may be a slide out of the dollar because of the U.S. exposure to Argentina.''
``In the absence of a meltdown in South America, the dollar will continue to strengthen this year because of relative growth prospects and its aggressive monetary policy.''