Archive - Jan 1, 2014
Marc Faber 'Congratulates' Ben: "Well Done, Mr. Bernanke!"
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/01/2014 21:19 -0500
In a little under four minutes, Marc Faber explains to Fox Business' Dagen McDowell all that is wrong with the Central Planners 'current plan'. From a re-bubbled housing 'recovery' pricing real buyers out of the market ("homes do not offer a great opportunity today") to forced-renters paying increasing amounts of their stagnant wages, and the small percentage of ordinary Americans who actually benefit from a rising stock market, reducing their disposable income to which Faber sarcastically rants "well done, Mr. Bernanke." His advice, be diversified, don't BTFATH in stocks, and physical gold is always a good insurance.
Japanese Population Plunges By Record In 2013
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/01/2014 20:27 -0500
Given that young people in Japan have lost interest in sex, with 45% of Japanese women 16-24 "not interested in or despise sexual contact," it is perhaps not entirely surprising that, as Japan Times reports, Japan's population fell by a record 244,000 in 2013. This further raises concerns over an ever-dwindling workforce that supports an ever-growing number of pensioners, with the proportion of people aged over 65 reaching nearly 40% by 2060.
JPMorgan Presents "The Era Of Central Bank-Driven Equity Rallies"
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/01/2014 18:37 -0500
We have gotten to a point when even the most tenured economists have finally admitted the truth, and in the process none other than JPMorgan itself has just issued a chart titled "The era of central bank-driven equity rallies."
Things That Make You Go Hmmm... Like The Year That 'Weak' Worked
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/01/2014 17:19 -0500
Throughout 2013, the distortions created by intervention in once-free markets have left many scratching their heads. The interventions have worked - almost faultlessly - but for them to do so has required the suspension of one belief system (economic reality) and the adoption of another - namely, that everything will be OK because ... well, just because. Can the fantasy persist into 2014? Sadly, Grant Williams states "Yes. It most certainly can." Will it continue into 2014? Most likely. Will this new belief system become the new economic reality? Not a chance.
The Biggest Investment Opportunities in 2014 Will Be...
Submitted by Phoenix Capital Research on 01/01/2014 16:35 -0500While US stocks are taking off, there are other, potentially much larger opportunities outside of it.
But the Progressives Told Us Abenomics Would Be Great for Japan
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/01/2014 15:59 -0500
When newly elected Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe promised new deficit spending and pedal-to-the-metal monetary inflation, the progressive Keynesians were excited. And indeed, debasing the yen seemed to work for a few months, with analysts saying US policymakers should follow Japan’s lead. Yet now Japan’s recovery seems to be collapsing, leading its Cabinet to approve yet another “stimulus” package. Does anyone else have a sense of deja vu?
The Santa Claus Lie – A Gateway Drug to Collective (Self) Deception
Submitted by Cognitive Dissonance on 01/01/2014 15:08 -0500What is often unspoken is that we lie to others in order to be lied to by others.
Wall Street's Latest Investment: Ex-Convicts
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/01/2014 14:50 -0500
Either the Volcker Rule is making Wall Street's menu of investment choices so unbearably limited, or traditional assets are so overpriced Wall Street won't even touch them with other people's money, but when it comes to allocating capital the smartest conmen in the room are coming up with some truly unorthodox products. Such as investing in ex-convicts in the form of 2000 newly released prisoners.
Is The NSA Quartering “Digital” Troops Within Our Homes?
Submitted by George Washington on 01/01/2014 13:55 -0500Are “Digital” Troops Being Sent Into Our Digital Devices Like British Troops Were Sent Into American Colonists’ Homes?
How Will The Economy Improve In 2014 If Almost Everyone Has Less Money To Spend?
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/01/2014 13:48 -0500
Is the U.S. consumer tapped out? If so, how in the world will the U.S. economy possibly improve in 2014? Most Americans know that the U.S. economy is heavily dependent on consumer spending. If average Americans are not out there spending money, the economy tends not to do very well. Unfortunately, retail sales during the holiday season appear to be quite disappointing and the middle class continues to deeply struggle. And for a whole bunch of reasons things are likely going to be even tougher in 2014. Families are going to have less money in their pockets to spend thanks to much higher health insurance premiums under Obamacare, a wide variety of tax increases, higher interest rates on debt, and cuts in government welfare programs. The short-lived bubble of false prosperity that we have been enjoying for the last couple of years is rapidly coming to an end, and 2014 certainly promises to be a very "interesting year".
Obamacare Goes Live Today: Here Is The Next Big Problem
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/01/2014 12:02 -0500
Obamacare officially went live at midnight. This means that 2.1 million Americans will be given a chance to exercise their new plans at hospitals and clinics across the country. And then the real glitches will begin. We reported two weeks ago that navigating the healthcare.gov labyrinth successfully and "signing up" for Obamacare is one thing; actually activating coverage by making a payment is something totally different. We added that "if people don’t pay by Dec. 31, insurers may end up stuck with a disproportionate number of sicker and costlier customers." It is this "shock" realization that one's Obamacare plan is not active until after the healthcare service has been rendered, that may hit as many as 50% of all enrollees, which means that of the 2+ million Americans who believe they have coverage, up to 1 million is about to be served with a bill which they can't afford.
Bill de Blasio Inaugurated As 109th Mayor Of New York City - Live Webcast
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/01/2014 12:00 -0500Despite his various "nanny-state" failings (all of which have been prominently featured on these pages in the past) outgoing New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg has had an impressive track record: New York crime rates are at historic lows, the $72.7 billion budget is balanced, jobs are at an all-time high and a record 54 million tourists pumped money into the economy this year. Homicides have declined by almost 50 percent since Bloomberg became mayor in 2002, and this year’s total of 333 through Dec. 29 is 20 percent below last year’s record low. Of course, how much of this is due to Bloomberg's own actions and how much due to the "rising tide" wealth effect resulting from the Fed's actions that gentrified New York over the past 20 years thanks to Fed wealth-effect boosting policies and which have led to a perilously unstable financial system, is a different question. Regardless, as of midnight the billionaire mayor is no more. His replecament, Bill de Blasio, 52, is the first democrat to run City Hall in 20 years.
Palestine Ambassador To Prague Killed In Bomb Explosion
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/01/2014 10:41 -0500When it comes to political assassinations, 2014 is starting off with a bang, literally. Moments ago news broke that following an explosion in Prague, the Palestinian ambassador to the Czech Republic has just been killed.
Nom de Plumber | Volcker Rule Implementation: Mission Impossible?
Submitted by rcwhalen on 01/01/2014 10:24 -0500Because infinite permutations of risk factor movements can cause a specific asset price movement, no definitive anchor points will arise to bootstrap that mandated P&L attribution







