Archive - May 27, 2015

“You want to buy a car? There aren’t any. You want to buy an apartment? You can’t afford one. Basic products aren’t available,” he said. “The only refuge that people have is buying dollars, and because of that, the demand doesn’t stop.”

We got a glimpse of just what Yellen has in mind for the next 'monetary transmission mechanism' yesterday, when a mystery drone appeared above the Rosa Parks Circle in Grand Rapids, Michigan and literally rained down money on the people below, leading to what the Mail describes as a "cash-grabbing frenzy."

Another day, another Clinton Foundation related scandal. In the latest expose by International Business Times’ David Sirota, we learn about the explosion in weapons sales to certain nations during Hillary Clinton’s tenure as Secretary of State. Billions of dollars in sales went to autocratic regimes notorious for human rights abuses who donated generously to the Clinton Foundation. Should we be surprised? No. Should we be outraged and disgusted? Absolutely. Of all the Clinton scandals, the following is the most dangerous to peace on earth.

A day after the 2 Year auction surprised with solid demand all around, moments ago the US Treasury issued $35 billion in 5 Year paper which also came stronger than some had expected, pricing at a yield of 1.56%, 0.6 bps through the 1.566% When Issued. Like in yesterday's auction, the yield was the highest of 2015. The Bid To Cover dipped modestly, dwon from 2.56 to 2.46, and in line with the 2.47 average.

On the heels of a tough Senate fight that initially saw Democrats oppose granting fast-track authority on trade deals, President Obama was just dealt a fresh blow related to what some say is another example of Presidential overreach after the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans ruled that an executive order on immigration designed to prevent the deportation of undocumented immigrants will remain on hold.

Today's entire surge in stocks and EURUSD was predicated on nothing more than momentum ignited from rumors of a report that a deal was imminent. So now that Germany has come out and stated - unequivocally - that:

*GERMAN GOVT SURPRISED BY GREEK REPORTS OF PROGRESS: OFFICIAL

One might imagine some of the ramp would be removed.. and it is in EURUSD, but not in stocks. However, as JPMorgan warns "hope is not an investment case. The longer we go without a deal, the less likely we believe a deal becomes/the higher the chance of Grexit."

Can someone please tell us which TBTF banks were busy laundering FIFA's dough?

I just saw this exciting offer to enter a contest for the chance to meet Hillary Clinton

Of the $500 million KORS spent on buybacks in the past two quarters, it already has a paper loss of $200 million. Incidentally, KORS spent about $200 million on capex for all of fiscal 2014. Which, in a nutshell, is what happens when stock buybacks go horribly wrong.

Overnight saw yet another dip at the open that was ripped by the close in Chinese markets as Year-to-Date gains for China's Shenzhen Composite now top 105%. With IPOs rising 500% with no down days, Charles Hugh-Smith unleashes his satirical sword to 'explain' just how idiotic this situation has become, and (as we detailed here) it will get worse...

While careful to 'remain optimistic' KPCB's Mary Meeker warns that "growth rates for leaders... are slowing," and warns that global tech puiblic/private financings are now 17% above 1999 levels and "there are pockets of Internet company overvaluation but there are also pockets of undervaluation," as she unveils her latest (record-breaking) 197-page epic chartapalooza on Internet Trends...

Just when you thought you had seen it all, Nile Niami pulls another mansion out of his hat.

Meet Martin "The Hammer" Mallett, chief currencies dealer at the Bank of England in 2007, and, as WSJ reports, recipient of emails that were part of an alleged campaign to rig benchmark interest rates, according to evidence presented in a London trial Wednesday. Remarkably, as we have detailed extensively, the emails were sent out with daily suggestions for where a variety of banks should set Libor. Mallett was later fired for what the central bank described as "serious misconduct," although the bank said his departure wasn’t directly related to the currencies-rigging investigation.

Mind over disaster...

Rumored - and denied - reports of an imminent Greek deal spewed momentum into stocks but for now, the 50% retracement level of the high-to-low swing is holding the exuberant equity market back...