Archive - Mar 2015

In recent weeks, the Fed and its apologists in Congress and the media have launched numerous attacks on the 'Audit the Fed' legislation. These attacks amount to nothing more than distortions about the effects and intent of the audit bill. For over a century, the Fed has operated in secrecy, to the benefit of the elites and the detriment of the people. It is time to finally bring transparency to monetary policy by auditing the Federal Reserve.

Fearing Grexit and an outright economic collapse, former Greek FinMin moved nearly €500,000 out of the country in 2012. Authorities in Athens suspect tax evasion was the motive.

That a handful of extraordinarily rich and powerful oligarchs as well as mega-corporations have completely hijacked the American political process is hardy news; but of all the commentary written about Netanyahu’s embarrassing political stunt in front of the U.S. Congress last week, the most important angle was largely overlooked. That is, it sort of represented a coming out party for the American oligarch from behind the curtain.

A survey of 40 financial institutions shows that BoJ purchases are sapping liquidity and making it difficult for dealers to fill orders. Defiant to the end, the central bank pledges to stay in the market until inflation hits 2%.

Greenspan believes that in five years gold will be “measurably higher” than current levels because of the excess liquidity that will eventually be released into the open market. Such an event will undoubtedly lead to riots across America as the general public, woefully unprepared for rapidly rising prices when the pin finally pops the dollar bubble, loses access to affordable critical supplies like food, gas and other resources. The collapse of the dollar, an inevitability suggested by Alan Greenspan, will be a game changer that results in the quadrupling of the cost of living for the average American.

It’s a remarkable irony, notes Sharyl Attkinson, that the same U.S. president whose administration has gone to great lengths to monitor journalists, whistleblowers and the public, claims to be oddly in the dark regarding basic information on some of his biggest controversies. Here are eight instances in which President Obama said he heard it on the news - or way after-the-fact - just like ordinary Americans.

Having been shamed what seems like numerous times now by the Eurogroup in recent weeks, Greece suffered its greatest humiliation today. First, the farcical renaming of 'Troika' to 'Institutions' was summarily dismissed as "semantics," as France played good cop (asking for the group not to call it Troika) while Germany's bad-cop Schaeuble used the T-word four times in one interview. And second, Eurogroup chairman Dijsselbloem stated that "technical teams will begin considering Greek reform plans on Wednesday," adding that some of the negotiations will have to take place "in situ in Athens." So instead of discussing reforms with institutions in Brussels, the Varoufakis-defined "cabal of technocrats" Troika will be back on Greek soil to straighten out the nation.

How can the government be telling us that we are nearly at “full employment” when so many people can’t find work? Could it be possible that the government numbers are misleading? It is our contention that the official “unemployment rate” has become so politicized and so manipulated that it is essentially meaningless at this point.

There is a story being told to the masses about Chinese gold demand that is grossly incorrect. The huge discrepancy between numbers from the World Gold Council (WGC) and actual gold demand is so wide yet cunningly hidden I must conclude there is essential information about physical gold demand deliberately kept privy.

"To make money in the markets, you have to think independently and be humble. You have to be an independent thinker because you can’t make money agreeing with the consensus view, which is already embedded in the price. Yet whenever you’re betting against the consensus, there’s a significant probability you’re going to be wrong, so you have to be humble."

Just when you thought it was getting better (or so you would believe if you listened to the mainstream media's punditry) Greece faces what ekathimerini reports is a "situation worse than in 2012." From well-known Belgian beer to electronics equipment, the first occurrences of shortages in imported goods and raw materials have arisen as a result of Greek enterprises’ inability to pay with cash in advance. But Greece is not Venezuela... yet.

"There are gaps of months and months and months," exclaims Rep. Trey Gowdy (who leads the committee investigating Hillary Clinton's handling of the Benghazi attack in September 2012) as the 'transparent' release of Clinton's email includes no emails at all from a seemingly critical Tripoli visit (where she has been photographed using her Blackberry). Gowdy ranted on CBS "Face The Nation" yesterday that "it strains credibility to believe if you’re on your way to Libya to discuss Libyan policy that there is not a single document to turn over to Congress." Clinton, for now, is staying very quiet on this matter...

The GDPNow model forecast for real GDP growth (seasonally adjusted annual rate) in the first quarter of 2015 was 1.2 percent on March 6, unchanged from its March 2 reading. The nowcast for the contribution of net exports to first-quarter real GDP growth fell from -0.5 percentage point to -0.8 percentage point following this morning's international trade report from the U.S. Census Bureau. This was offset by increases in the nowcasts of equipment investment and inventory investment.

The current set of dominant market narratives are so well known as to be cliché.  Invest where central banks are pumping liquidity, and short the currency of those countries or regions.  Look for growth, and pay any valuation multiple that seems half way reasonable in today’s market.  Expect any spike in volatility to wilt like cut flowers in the hot sun, and the Fed to care intensely about stock prices.  And maybe that will continue to work in this last month of the first quarter…  But it always pays to question the foundations of market assumptions...