Archive - Sep 2015

The evening started on a high note when Janet Yellen's survival giving a speech warranted a 100 point rip in Dow futures (and USD strength). Then Japan stepped up with its first deflationary CPI print since April 2013 (which of course was met with stock-buying because moar QQE is overdue but that soon faded). EM FX is tumbling further (with Malaysia leading the charge). Chinese credit risk jumps tro a new 2 year high (as SHIBOR remains entirely manipulated flat) as China halts its 4-day devaluation with a tiny nudge stronger in the Yuan fix.

While crude and copper have been christened the great economic forecasters of our time, the data shows that there is another, more highly correlated, commodity to the economic cycle. Lumber prices are the most correlated with ISM and GDP of all industrial commodities and that is a problem...

"The capability to maintain continuous deterrent patrols is a big milestone for a nuclear power. Once deployed it will provide China with a capability to strike targets in the continental U.S."

Government poses a threat to liberty, that much is clear. But what may be surprising is that almost half of Americans clearly identified government as a clear and “immediate” threat, and are obviously outraged about what is going on. It is time that Americans embrace their anger at government, and focus their attention past the politicians to the real problem. Start with the bankers, follow the money, and see where it goes...

When you tie the reflexivity problem in with the fact that the excessive use of counter-cyclical policy is leading to the creation of ever larger asset bubbles by effectively short circuiting the market's natural ability to purge speculative excess and correct the misallocation of capital, what you get is a never-ending loop whereby the consequences of unconventional monetary policy serve as the excuse for doubling and tripling down on those same policies.

There is growing turmoil in buybacks that threatens the very fabric of the stock bubble. That was always the primary transmission of the foundation of its current manifestation, corporate debt, into asset prices; especially the huge run following QE3 and QE4. The problem once momentum fades is that investor attention turns toward valuations that were repeatedly ignored before. As long as everything is moving upward and any fundamental downside is completely contained (in perception) as “transitory” then valuations are easily set aside as one form of rationalization. The effect of reversing momentum is for a more honest measurement; particularly by force of change in economic sentiment which is almost always concurrent.

"...the federal funds rate and other nominal interest rates cannot go much below zero, since holding cash is always an alternative to investing in securities. ... the lowest the FOMC can feasibly push the real federal funds rate is essentially the negative value of the inflation rate. As a result, the Federal Reserve has less room to ease monetary policy when inflation is very low. This limitation is a potentially serious problem because severe downturns such as the Great Recession may require pushing real interest rates far below zero for an extended period to restore full employment at a satisfactory pace."

Emissions testing at it's best

When risk sold off last week in the wake of the Fed’s so-called “clean relent,” it signalled at best a policy mistake and at worst the loss of any and all credibility. Tonight, Yellen gets a do-over.

The ongoing oligarch theft labeled an “economic recovery” by pundits, politicians and mainstream media alike, is one of the largest frauds we’ve witnessed in my life. The reality of the situation is finally starting to hit home, and the proof is now undeniable. So now we know what has kept meager spending afloat during this pitiful “recovery.” A combination of “alternative loans” and a bleeding of retirement accounts. The transformation of the public into a horde of broke debt serfs is almost complete.

"Good morning. Nothing extraordinary happened yesterday in the building of Banco de España in Barcelona"...

We have all watched the dramatic and disturbing scenes from Venezuela as 'average joes' fight over the last bar of soap or sheet of toilet paper as prices soar beyond anyone's control... and said "that could never happen here." Well with stealth-flation leaking into everyday prices wherever you look (as long as 'you' are not The Fed), we may have just witnessed the awakening. With prices for chicken having hit record highs, residents of America are brawling over the last winged feast...