Archive - Sep 2013 - Story

"By late April 2012, JPMorgan senior management knew that the firm's Investment Banking unit used far more conservative prices when valuing the same kind of derivatives held in the CIO portfolio, and that applying the Investment Bank valuations would have led to approximately $750 million in additional losses for the CIO in the first quarter of 2012." Translated: Jamie Dimon lied to Congress.

Economic data may be completely meaningless now that the Fed is openly blowing a bubble without any qualms, but even the Fed at least pretends its policy is guided by said economic data. Which is a problem because for the second week in a row, Initial Claims data is absolute garbage, following an admission by the BLS that "two states" are still working through the claims backlog caused by the "computer-system changeover." Recall that last week's "computer upgrade" was the reason why claims plunged from 323K to 292K (on expectations of 330K). Today, the number was 309K, but instead of indicating any improvement in the economy, and hence a potential Taper catalyst (yes, we laughed too), it merely shows that at least two states have been slow to complete their computer upgrades. According to Bloomberg strategist the computer "issue" may be resolved in the next 2 weeks. Or it may not. If it wasn't such a farce, it would be funny.

"...the path of tapering is going to be tough because every time the market thinks they are going to taper, yields will likely rise and conditions will tighten" - Deutsche Bank

It has been a "Summer of Recovery" for the U.S. economy with GDP growth rising from 1.1% in the first quarter to 2.5% in the second and manufacturing surveys showed sharp jumps in new orders and outlooks.  The same occurred in the Eurozone with Markit's PMI reports showing sharp bounces higher and hopes that the recession that has plagued the region was finally coming to an end.  The question of sustainability remains. The recent uptick in the Eurozone has now ended which most likely suggests that the recent pop in domestic production is likely ephemeral.  The next couple of months of data should be telling in the regard and also suggests why employment reports have been much weaker than anticipated. With hopes once again running high that the economy is set to regain "escape velocity" in the coming year there is plenty of margin for disappointment.

"When Pravda.ru editor, Dmitry Sudakov, offered to publish my commentary, he referred to me as "an active anti-Russian politician for many years." I'm sure that isn't the first time Russians have heard me characterized as their antagonist. Since my purpose here is to dispel falsehoods used by Russia's rulers to perpetuate their power and excuse their corruption, let me begin with that untruth. I am not anti-Russian. I am pro-Russian, more pro-Russian than the regime that misrules you today. I make that claim because I respect your dignity and your right to self-determination. I believe you should live according to the dictates of your conscience, not your government. I believe you deserve the opportunity to improve your lives in an economy that is built to last and benefits the many, not just the powerful few. You should be governed by a rule of law that is clear, consistently and impartially enforced and just. I make that claim because I believe the Russian people, no less than Americans, are endowed by our Creator with inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness..."

• Bernanke Resets Policy by Doing Nothing as Markets Soar (BBG)
• Stocks Jump to Five-Year High as Metals Rally on Fed (BBG)
• Centre-left bigwig says hard to stay allied with Berlusconi (ANSA)
• J.P. Morgan 'Whale' Fine Put at Over $900 Million (WSJ)
• Banks’ $10 Billion Sweet Spot Sets Off Buying Spree for Lenders (BBG)
• Time to taper? Not if you look at bank loans (Reuters)
• Mortgage Lending Reaches 5-Year High (WSJ) ... and then plunges as Fed gives "all clear" for a few months
• Yellen Chances Grow as Obama Aides Test Senate Support (BBG)

For what it's worth, here is Goldman's Jan Hatzius with a Q&A on the Fed's announcement, which now sees the first tapering to start in December, QE to conclude (three months after their prior forecast), and expects the first rate hike to take place in 2016: 8 years after the start of the financial crisis: "We now expect the QE tapering process to start at the December 2013 FOMC meeting and to conclude in September 2014, three months later than before. Our baseline is that the first step will consist of a $10bn cut in Treasury purchases. These steps remain data dependent in all respects--timing, size, and composition. A change in the explicit forward guidance for the federal funds rate is also likely, probably at the same time as the first tapering step. Our baseline is an indication that the 6.5% unemployment threshold is conditional on a forecast of a near-term return of inflation to 2%, and that a lower threshold would apply otherwise. But there are also other options, such as an outright inflation floor or an outright reduction in the unemployment threshold. Our forecast for the first hike in the funds rate remains early 2016. The reasons are the large output gap, persistent below-target inflation, and some weight on "optimal control" considerations."

Yes, yes, only the Fed matters. Still, there was some event flow overnight which while completely meaningless for the epic liquidity bubble, may have some implications eventually when the music finally stops. In thie regard, perhaps the best summary of the the lunacy coming out of the Marriner Eccles building is the following sentence from Bloomberg: "Bernanke said he was concerned that market interest rates, driven higher by his own suggestion he would scale back QE, would curb growth." One can't make this up.

If there was any doubt whether fundamentals still matter (they don't, and in fact the worse the economic data, the better for risk) or what is the only driver of global performance (central-planners), they can all be put to rest following Bernanke's surprise announcement from yesterday which may have sent US stocks to record credit-bubble highs, and global asset soaring, but it also confirmed that the Fed literally makes up monetary policy as it goes along. As the recap below shows, a one-word summary of what has been bought this morning: everything.

"The government’s bailout plan destroyed capitalism. In a capitalist system, those who stood to gain–and already made off with large gains—would have to bear the risk. The bailouts represented a corruption of capitalism. Crony capitalism violates the spirit of democracy established by the Founding Fathers of the republic known as the United States." - Janet Tavakoli

All of the suffering and hardships the majority of Americans are experiencing today are directly related to the coup pulled off by the crony financial oligarchs in the fall of 2008, and all of the media and political minions that helped them do it. People realize we have become a Banana Republic and they have now lost all hope.

First, the bad news; the un-Taper-inspired collapse in the USD is not helping the JPY weakness that Abe desires and the NKY is now 200 points off its US day-session highs (though still green from yesterday) and the JASDAQ is red. But everywhere else there is much rejoicing... EM FX is back at 5 to 6 week highs with MYR, INR (fwds), and IDR all having major surges. Equity markets are green in general but the Philippines PSEi (+3%) and Indonesia's JCI (+4% but was +7.7% at one point) are an illiquid mess of over-exuberance. Gold, US Treasuries, and US equity futures are all holding gains or inching slightly better. Thai bonds are 22bps lower in yield, Indonesia -10bps, but Indian bonds for now are quiet. MSCI's AsiaPac Ex-Japan equity index is now back at highs from May 2011, having risen 12 of the last 16 days for a 9.7% gain. While the moves are large, they are not unprecedented and certainly don't signal a wholesale charge back in of new hot-money since volumes remain on the low side for now.

"It's Working..."

With incomes stagnating (real household incomes at 15 year lows) and gas prices hovering awkwardly near record highs (especially for this time of year), we thought a reflection on the inflationary impact of an always-activist Fed were nowhere clearer indicated than by the collapse in the amount of gas that the average US citizen can afford. Of course, there is a silver lining... the affordability of gas dropping means fewer miles driven, fewer miles driven means more walking, and more walking means less obesity... so the Fed's inflationary leakage into energy prices and implicit enabling of lower living standards of most Americans is good for a nation of fatties - always the optimists.

That which is unaffordable is unsustainable and will go away. The current system of higher education is profoundly unaffordable: it exists on an immoral foundation of student debt--$560 billion of which is Federal. Enormous expansions of student debt are required to keep the current system of higher education afloat. Thus, the key question: does the current higher education system exist to serve students, or does it exist to serve those employed by the system? Those with vested interests in the system will naturally answer “both,” but to answer this question fairly, we must ask if an alternative system that accredits each student could serve students more effectively than the current system of accrediting schools.

Putin had his NYT Op-ed. Syria's Assad, on the other hand, is going for the jugular using the "undisputed chemical weapons proof" route, aka YouTube.