Archive - Dec 2014

Just 15 months after Detroit's Black Out 2013 debacle, spokespeople for the city and DTE Energy confirmed at around 11:00 a.m. local time on Tuesday that most of Detroit’s municipal grid is offline:

*DETROIT CITES 'MAJOR CABLE FAILURE' FOR POWER OUTAGE
*DETROIT: OUTAGE IS AFFECTING ALL CUSTOMERS ON THE PLD GRID

The outage is preventing power from being delivered to police stations, schools, traffic lights and other city-run facilities and services.

It's good to be king (or Europe). Former European Council President Herman van Rompuy, derided for "damp rag" ineptness by UKIP's Nigel Farage, will receive around $900,000 over the next 3 years as a "transition allowance" for doing absolutely nothing in retirement. What is even more egregious, as The Telegraph reports, Van Rompuy will pay a reduced "EU Community" tax rate, considerably lower than the Belgian income tax rate on his ill-gotten gains. As Farage exclaims, having driven millions of Europeans into poverty and unemployment during his reign, Van Rompuy "hit the jackpot."

One of these will be wrong...

Once upon a time, the only place where a western fighter jet could come within meters of a Russian MiG was on Top Gun. However, according to a video released earlier today by the Norwegian Armed Forces, that is no longer the case. In the clip, a Russian MiG-31 "suddenly cut in front of one of two Norwegian aircraft sent up by NATO to intercept Russian aircraft in international airspace north off Norway. “What the hell,” says the Norwegian F-16 pilot in the video, as he dodges the MiG-31 passing him at a distance estimated to be closer than 20 meters (65 feet)."

"I'm not very worried," explains Fed Vice Chairman Stan Fischer in a very Bernanke-"contained"-like nonchalence about the total collapse of oil prices (and US oil producer stocks). Sharply lower oil prices will boost spending and aid U.S. growth, Fischer stated in a mind-blowingly naive speech for the 2nd-most-important-monetary-policy-maker-in-the-world, adding that lower oil prices were "a phenomenon that’s making everybody better off." We don’t understand his ignorance: as we noted earlier, Fischer is talking about money that would otherwise also have been spent, only on gas. There is no additional money, so where’s the boost? This is just complete and bizarre nonsense.

All the analysts chortling over the "equivalent of a tax break" for consumers are about to be buried by an avalanche of defaults and crushing losses as the chickens of financializing oil come home to roost.

Total U.S. national debt hit a new record high overnight at over $18 trillion as the Obama administration continues to pile debt onto the back of the U.S. taxpayer at a rate that would have made George W. Bush look prudent.

Where's zee gold...Bitch!

When the 5th largest dark pool trading venue (by volume) in America is shuttered, as Citi notes because its "capital, resources and efforts would be better redeployed elsewhere," you know there is a problem in US stock trading volumes and liquidity. Everyday we get 'glimpses' of this collapse - most recently yesterday's AAPL flash-crash - as human traders (who provide the 'fish' for the machines) disappear and HFT liquidity-providers pull liquidity in a flash. Crucially, as we hinted previously, we wonder if the large firms are exiting the dark pool business before some engineered market collapse is pinned on these opaque 'markets' who have come under increased regulatory scrutiny.

Can there be a currency war without victims?  Why hasn't any official accused Japan of a currency war? 

Those seeking proof that Abenomics is working are advised to look elsewhere.

"Let me be clear, there is no Fed equity market put." Bells are ringing for stocks...

Wondering where the inflationary impact of The Fed's massive monetary policy experiment is leaking out (aside from stock prices)? Look no further... The Fed's credit-fueled exuberance has inflated basic costs for US oil producers dramatically...

Our nations (Western nations) are rapidly going bankrupt. This is not a suggestion or an assertion. It is a simple fact of arithmetic, for anyone capable of operating a calculator, and who can understand the concept of “compound interest”. Indeed, the bankruptcy of these already-insolvent regimes has only been delayed via permanently (fraudulently) keeping interest rates frozen at near-zero – to minimize their already gigantic interest payments.

Dudley’s overall message is that the US economy is doing great, but it’s not actually doing great, and therefore a rate hike would be too early. Or something. "The sharp drop in oil prices will help boost consumer spending?" We don’t understand that: Dudley is talking about money that would otherwise also have been spent, only on gas. There is no additional money, so where’s the boost?  This is just complete and bizarre nonsense. And that comes from someone with a very high post in the American financial world. At least a bit scary.