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Bond Market - Phone Home
If the U.S. Federal Reserve were a hedge fund, its phones would be ringing off the hook with prospective investors wanting fresh allocations and Ben Bernanke would be zipping around the French Riviera in a gold-plated helicopter. The Fed’s multibillion-dollar position in Treasuries is nicely in the money with the recent moves to record lows risk-free yields, after all. But it’s policy outcomes, not returns, that the Fed is after. By that measure, the current record low payouts in “Safe Haven” bonds (U.S., Germany, U.K, for example) are troublesome. There is, of course, the worry that they portend a global recession. This concern cannot be waved away with the notion that a worldwide flight to quality totally upends the bond market’s historical function as a weather-vane of economic expansion and contraction. Beyond this concern, however, Nic Colas of ConvergEx sees two further worries. The first is that the Fed has needlessly compromised its independence by pursuing bond purchases that, in hindsight, were unnecessary in the face of the current economic outlook and investment environment. The second is that interest rates have been demoted to a supporting role in kick starting any global economic recovery.
Movies about aliens usually come during the summer blockbuster season of lightweight entertainment, but the history of this science fiction genre is solidly grounded in the world of social commentary. That’s the upshot of an article by Laura Miller in a recent edition of the The New Yorker, and it got me thinking about everything from Darwinism to the state of the global capital markets. She traces the history of fictitious accounts of alien invasions all the way back to 18th French literature; Voltaire wrote of a 6,000 foot alien who comes to Earth simply to examine life here. After Darwin’s publication of On the Origin of Species in 1859, the story lines change to invasions of deadly creatures from outer space, hungry for either natural resources or human blood.
The landmark book of this version of evil aliens, of course, H.G. Wells War of the Worlds, published in 1898. Made even more famous by Orson Welles’ compelling radio adaptation in 1938, it told of an invasion of Earth that was only defeated when the aliens succumbed to bacterial infections to which they had no defense. At the time England was still a colonial power, subjugating millions of indigenous peoples around the world while occasionally suffering from the local diseases against which they had little defense. That made War of the Worlds a thinly veiled criticism of colonialism, of course, but the notion that Darwin’s theory of “Survival of the fittest” might apply across planets was another subtext a reader in turn-of-the-century Britain would also understand.
To stretch the allegory of alien invasion to the capital markets, I would put bonds – specifically government securities of less-risky sovereign nations – into the role of the unwelcome newcomer. The recent drop to record-low interest rates for U.S., German, Swiss, Swedish and other government issuers over the last 10 days is a powerful signal that much has changed in global capital markets. A few supporting points here:
- Consider that current U.S. 10 year Treasury rates are roughly 100 basis points lower than the depths of the last recession. A yield of 1.45% on this security certainly indicates that markets have soldered closed the “Risk on/Risk Off” switch which has governed market action over the last three years. Long dated Treasury yields are also a bet on inflation, however, and such paltry payouts certainly make the U.S. government bond market a significant Doubting Thomas on the topic of domestic economic expansion.
- Similar action in the German bond market – sovereigns there now yield just 1.17% - is a large flapping red flag on the sustainability of the euro in its current form. Buyers of this debt are no only seeking out a safe haven – U.S. Treasuries yield more, after all. They are also handicapping the direction of a currency, the euro, and expecting that future actions will strengthen it. Lastly, yields on German bonds are an indictment of the safety of similar sovereigns in periphery countries.
- While the U.S. and German bond markets get much of the press, we cannot ignore the fact that the last 10 days have seen sharply lower sovereign yields everywhere from Hong Kong to Australia to Sweden and even marginal credits such as France. Just like the old Elvis record – “50 Million Fans Can’t be Wrong” – there is something daunting about any move in capital markets to new highs/new lows. “Return of principle” has won the day.
As with unfriendly aliens unpacking their bags at a landing site, the move to record low rates around the world is a truly menacing development. It says, essentially, that there is real trouble ahead. Those who are bullishly inclined to risk assets might counter with the notion that these recent moves are just the latest round of hand-wringing in what is still a slow growth recovery with reasonable profits need to consider the following points:
- The U.S. economy is weakening, as exemplified by – but not limited to - last Friday’s Jobs Report. The Federal Reserve’s primary weapon – Quantitative Easing/Operation Twist – has proven more shotgun than phaser-set-to-kill when it comes to creating sustainable growth. Granted, the Fed’s +$2 trillion book of bonds must be nicely in-the-money. But central banks aren’t hedge funds, so this is a pyrrhic victory at best. The Fed may not be out of bullets/shells, but a third round of Quantitative Easing will likely be greeted with more yawn than rousing cheer by markets already scared deep into their rabbit hole. And there is the question of whether the Fed even had to pursue such a strategy. If QE has lowered interest rates by 30-50 basis points, as the Fed claims in several papers, then its moves take second fiddle to what the market has accomplished on its own.
- Recent moves to record low yields are a loud vote of “No confidence” when it comes to European policymaker steps to stem the ongoing problems in Greece and Spain. There is a no-polling rule in Greece which will limit visibility this week on the outcome of the next round of voting there on Sunday. The state of Spanish banks, beset by a horrible local economy, seems to weaken by the day. Germany hasn’t yet changed its tune on Eurobonds. I can go on, but you get the idea.
The most optimistic bit of our aliens-bond market analysis is that, in the end, the humans always win. Sometimes we find the mother-ship and destroy it. And, as with War of the Worlds, sometimes victory is the result of time and lucky happenstance. It seems like we are heading down the second narrative. Historically, low interest rates have generally sparked economic recovery. In the current environment, this gas-down-the-carb approach seems to have simply flooded the engine of growth. Other factors are at play, as I have outlined here. The real answer is simply more time.
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Germany may be open to euro-zone bonds: WSJ
SYDNEY (MarketWatch) -- Germany has signaled that it may be open to euro-zone bonds or further support for the region's banking sector, The Wall Street Journal reported late Sunday. Any lifting of Germany's objections to such moves would depend on other countries agreeing to transfer more power to Europe, the report stated, citing a unnamed German official. "The more that other member states get involved with this development and are prepared to give up sovereign rights to get European institutions more involved, the more we will be prepared to play an active role in developing things like a banking union," the official told the newspaper.
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/germany-may-be-open-to-euro-zone-bonds-wsj-2012-06-03
Duh. Germany wants total control over Europe OR ELSE...
Typical of the crazies running Germany.
I call bullshit on the WSJ story citing an unnamed German.... blah fucking blah. But since its in the WSJ would should just drink it down and take their un named source over Merkel's own word's just yesterday.
Wouldn't it violate the German Constitution to approve Euro bonds without a vote of the people? And aren't 60-70% of Germans against the idea? I think your bullshit call is correct.
But but but but but
1. Mayhaps nobody's noticed, but been a while since last time a government listened to its subjects.
2. This horse shit has been linked to (and not properly noted in all of the articles thereupon) utilizing the PIGGIES gold reserves as collateral against the loans.
Which changes the whole fucling dynamic.
Living proof that women, even the Merkels and LeGardes of the earth, like shiny stuff.
Once a downward move is begun with enough force, it will hit bottom before rolling back up. Just like core interest rates leaking lower since early 80's, this operation twist cannot be reversed easily. Macro patterns are habit forming.
when backward is forward, downward is up. Look out below....
And Knuckles, right here: "government listened to its subjects" is the problem.
In a Govt. for, of and by the people, there should be no Sub-Ject.
Ergo, democracy is nothing but diseased monarchy in disguise. Else why are they called ruling parties? Prime Minister?
Second, Calling creatures like Merkeel, Laggard, NoClit, SoNear GoneDi and the rest of the ruling ilk of creatures with female characteristics is unfair to women.
These are constructs and given their glee at killing, death and dying, which in essence is the very opposite of what women do best, forst adn fore-most and uniquely (create life)... I suspect they all either have or aspire to Gold Man-Sacks and suffer tremendous penis envy to boot!
ori
There will be no zombiemeal served at my residence.
It'll be just like Woody Harrelson in the movie Zombieland.
No need to worry about zombies as the residents have been thoroughly conditioned on what to do with zombies. Zombies will think twice before doing it.
Even I shoot zombie posters at the gun range with my SR9.
Zombieland Movie Trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihKsgBy3LIk
The honest policy solution as I have said a few times is to replace QE(n) with negative coupon bonds. This would allow us to find the true, non-repressive price of treasuries pretty quickly. The reason they dont do this is because yields would quickly go through the roof in the absence of Fed purchases. Great for the economy, not so great for the mortgage holders and hence the banks or for the government trying to pay its various egregious bribe programs.
So the existence of an honest market solution to the ZIRP crisis is pretty clear from which we conclude what? The chaps in charge are not being honest about their motives for ZIRP (financial repression NOT economic recovery).
What a load of fucking gibberish. Aliens? Interest rates? and this 'Historically, low interest rates have generally sparked economic recovery'. Do me a favour.
Historically low interest rates have generally flooded the market with cheap credit thereby distorting the real prices of ALL assets temporarily.
All of these bonds (sold at low interest rates) are now coming back onto the cash market for sale, hence the Fed buying them up at the rate they are. Once this cash, (currently hoarded) is speculated in other assets the real impact of these 'historically low interest rates' will become very clear, very fast.
One thing they didn't do was spur any economic recovery. Just sit back and watch the show...
Greenspan alledged quote..
"the housing bubble.. was the next to last bubble.. bonds will be the final one.." ( paraphrased from memory.. )
this is all a rounding up the sheeple effort... so they can more easily destroy it all in one bomb as opposed to many ..
expansion and contraction in the money supply has only done one thing... consolidate what wealth is not in the hands of the central planners.. this moment is just another example..
one word... PURPOSEFUL
Merkel is full of it. I bet it comes to a vote, it passes very easily. Merkel is full of hot air. Talk tough but when it comes to voting, they vote EVERY SINGLE TIME to screw the German taxpayers.
Fact is, Merkel is an Europhile, she doesn't give a flying duck about Germany, she loves the EU way more... in the end, she's gonna stab Germany in the back and suck the EU's dong.
Merkel is a typical politician.
She says one thing (what the public wants to hear) but do another (what her cronies, banksters, and plutocrats want her to do).
B.S. or not B.S., but the market is extremely oversold, sentiment is extremely bearish, and it does not take a lot (a B.S. rumor will do it) to engineer a ~50-100 S&P points short squeeze.
Looks like a high probability technical bounce:
Dow futures are oversold, RSI is 15, high probability it will bounce off lower line of the channel.
http://chart.ly/uploads/k2bae6t.png
Market was oversold in 2008 too! How did that work out for you?
BTFD if you want, but never fuck with Mother Nature. When you use every man-made device imagineable to avoid a recesssion, eventually Nature will hand your head to you on a platter. Just ask any engineer - every dam built is eventually going to fail.
Mother Nature?!
If Bernanke hints QE-3 or Draghi hints LTRO-3, you will get squeezed. Your mother or your Mother Nature will not save you.
Sentiment trades work, until they don't.
How did LTRO work for the Euros? It was a disaster - more bad bonds concentrated with the banks. The more they fight it, the harder the fall.
I'm betting you're right but I won't be surprised if the waterfall continues on downward. The 200 dma is behind us for everything but the Nasdaq. There is bad news that's real. Trend lines, RSIs and support levels and such don't mean much when really bad news hits. Will more hit? Without that news I think we'll bounce, but I thought the 200 would hold against the first push.
As far as market sentiment I'm hearing it's remarkably complacent. Everyone thinks Ben will fly in with his helicopter. If he doesn't it will be a summer to tell your grandkids about.
The central planners are actively oiling their printing presses. Now, Bernanke has an excuse (rising unemployment rate) and a political cover to print (to monetize the debt).
Last week's AAII Sentiment Survey Results:
Bullish: 28.0%, down 2.5 percentage points
Neutral: 30.0%, down 0.9 percentage points
Bearish: 42.0%. up 3.4 percentage points
Historical averages:
Bullish: 39%
Neutral: 31%
Bearish: 30%
As I said earlier, a stick save was in the works. Never said it had to be factual.
well.. there are a load of English idiots fawning over a German family well established in central London...completely brainwashed. First there was the Roayal wedding, now we have have the Diamond jubilee...oh aren't they just wonderfull
Not two hours ago Merkel was quoted on Bloomberg as saying "UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES" would she permit Euro bonds.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-06-02/merkel-rejects-debt-sharing-as-obama-urges-end-to-crisis-cloud.html
With Europe’s debt crisis cited last week for canceled IPOs, weaker-than-expected Chinese manufacturing figures and a rise in the U.S. jobless rate, Merkel rejected joint debt issuance in the 17-nation euro area as a solution, saying “under no circumstances” would she agree to Germany-backed euro bonds.
Meh
The day is young.
Noticed that it gets gorier and worse every time they, the Leaders of The Vaunted EU speak to no one in particular? Even themselves?
Best way to get this over with is a 24/7/365 Pan EU Economic Confab Broadcast Live.
Have you ever lived through a complete and total worldwide bond market collapse?
They've really muzzled CNBC World's Steve Sedgwick these past couple of months and it looks like his head is ready to explode.
If CNBC un-muzzled Steve, their ratings would go through the roof.
Have you ever lived through a complete and total worldwide bond market collapse?
Unless the doctor told you your prognosis is very bad, you will.
Have you ever lived through a complete and total worldwide bond market collapse?
Have you ever lived through a complete and total worldwide 700 trillion dollar derivatives market collapse?
Have you ever lived through both at the same time?
What a great story you'll be telling your grand children if you live through it.
In order to be a trillionaire you have to be a Zimbabwean for now, until...
Yes Dead Fread you are on it indeed.
Global economic earthquake of 08 (starting in 06) has been shaking since and the bond market collapse is the global tsunami. The more it hurts the larger the bond bubble will get. Maybe when the 10yr reaches -0.05 yield in a couple of years it will be the end. Pure insanity.
I am not even a doomer but when you have psychopaths running the world....
The so-called jobless recovery.What is a jobless recovery? It is a misinformation term for The big boys are getting their money out and exchanging it for other assets - then we drop the world on you (main street motherfuckers).
The vampires are not American, or European - they owe you no allegiance. They go where there is plentiful blood, could be Asia and Africa in the future. Call it the Central Bank plague sweeping accross the earth. They will pump you and dump you.
ha, ha, ET, phone home, bitchez!
USD? TBILLS? --> TURKEY PROBLEM
But Treasuries are denominated in Fed credit. How can the ever increasing liabilities of the Fed be 'in the money'?
Go on, explain how that is not a Ponzi scheme.
Because We The Taxpayer are on the hook for the Treasuries.
That just proves it is a Ponzi scheme.
The Fed may be able to book profits based on mark to market, but they can never sell their portfolio. Their profits will evaporate as the notes and bills mature.
I believe that's the point Tyler was trying to make by the comparison to the hedge fund. IF the Treasury was a hedge fund, they'd have a nice profit. But they aren't, so they won't.
didn't Robo_T hava recent comment comparing the FED to a hedge fund on one of tyler's pieces?
Happening right now, every week, with maturing mortgage bonds. The Fed "reinvests" the maturing face value of ~6B/week and never say how much principal was actually repaid to it. And of course, the Fed never reported who sold them the $1.5T originally, or at what price.
Thankfully, it's not like lots of people are stiffing the man on their mortgages. Oh wait.
Is the Euro Ending or Beginning?
http://www.cnhedge.com/thread-6926-1-1.html
4th Reich in Europe, ZOG in America. Who ever thought Germans and Jews would get along so well. Not: the debt overhang is simply too great, and time has about run out. Euro will collapse whatever the Germans do, and then the dollar as well. Within 90 days the operative currency is going to be be: lead. Invest accordingly.
Are you top calling the Government Treasury markets within 90 days?
I'm calling the IranWar, then total Ponzi Collapse w/in 90 days. The ducks are all lined up.
I'll take the other side of the bet:
no Iran War within the next 90 days (drone strikes, assassinations, computer viruses that blow up equipment, trade sanctions, oil embargos, all do not count as war) and no total Ponzi Collapse within 90 days (as long as a Big Mac can be purchased within North America for under $20, the system is still going).
Bibi wants Barack Hussein to go away. BigWar sometime in August, shortly followed by oil price spike and dollar collapse.
Disclose your source, or state opinion
Who would have thought?
German magazine Der Spiegel: Israel outfitting German subs with nuclear weapons - @dw_englishYou realise they have had these subs (and earlier subs ... had them for decades) and their nukes and missiles for decades, right?
Why is that 'news'?
As usual, the Bank-Of-Last-Resort is the U.S. Treasury, it's printing press, and the American Taxpayers Pocket.
If you think the current insane Berkeley et al, radicals in the White House won't sell-out America's Economic future to win in November, you are sadly mistaken.
If Europe Collapses before November, Obama LOSES, there is no other possible outcome. If they can stave this off by printing like crazy until then, they will.
REMEMBER SOMETHING VERY IMPORTANT.
These classroom Socialists honestly believe that for the Sheeple to accept the New Socialist World Order, (which they will head, of course), that the world's Democracy's must be BANKRUPTED, and the people literally begging for tyranny to save them from chaos.
What the hell did you think Obama meant when he said "Fundamentally Transform!", anyway?
All decepticons say that before changing their shape...
Flyover, while I agree with you here mate. They have to go through people like me first. Take heed mother fuckers, you want a NWO?? Then come and fucking get it.
This is going to get real nasty before it gets better folks, be prepared for it I wish you all well. One more thing though, fuck you NSA, and fuck you twicw GCHQ. Pick your sides, history will prove one of right.
Maybe the fed should take all that bond profit and help Americans buy tvs like the Chinese are doing. http://www.marketwatch.com/story/china-to-subsidize-tv-ac-buys-to-spur-c...
We're already subsidizing flat screens and ithings. It's called SNAP and student loans.
Ya but indirectly, might as well go full retard and cut people checks to buy tvs.
If Bernacke had a half brain he would be selling some bonds into this rally. It would leave the Fed with more capacity to conduct operations after Zero is gone.
LOL that is so rich, Bernanke himself should use it!
Come on. The Fed IS the rally.
Did you Americans know you can hide stuff in Canada -- like a home :-)
In the basement of the home you can store gold.
We are so screwed.
Wait, I thought Canada was the attic.
Bullish for zombie apocalypse supplies...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4awVqRr1eCo
At the end of the vid, guy brandishes a gun in his waistband, then chases the fleeing zombie, who suddenly seems to gain a sense of self-preservation - totally un-zombie-like.
The Fed is learning that longer strings are even harder to push.
Elite-usurped markets, red in tooth and claw....
Seriously what are the odds that a powerful group of international policy and mover and shakers meet and the next thing you know the market is crashing?
Conspiracy theories!! Bilderberg doesn't exist, fool!
/that was sarcasm... :)
By the way, Tokyo at 28-year low this morn. Oh, the paradise of low rates.
Going down.
--
--
Basically, try not to panic so much on the way down this time.
Yes, struggling just makes it worse. And all that adrenaline makes your meat bitter.
lol ... AUD 0.965 ... that at least is something good for the domestic economy ... hopefully it'll drop to 0.75 range over the next six months ... it'll make input prices in Asia go lower too, which will help to ease the pain.
with sticky inflation. aud bonds will tumble.
Right, what she is asking for is more of a lose of sovereignty by increasing the power of the various Euro institutions. This is of course bad for the constituent populations but good for the politicians and corporations. The is terrible, the people that run these institutions are unelected technocrats that don't even live in the countries they govern. But, as we saw in Ireland it seems rather easy to scare an entire population into making a really bad decision about giving up their sovereignty for the idea of stability. Its really a shame for Ireland, they would have been better off saying No to the fiscal pact. They'll find out soon enough that it was a terrible decision, wait until the next round of bailout, they have ZERO barganing power now. They'll be asked to go further with austerity.
It really makes me sick to watch this shit happen. Looking at the people that are running Europe, I mean the technocrats, and you see the same types of clowns we have here - clearly incompetent and clearly pursuing a separate agenda that doesn't include any benefits for the population - just the corporations and the political elite. Fuck 'em all. I saw a great bumper sticker that applies I think:
"Kill 'em all and let God sort 'em out"
When it comes to the political elite, that's not a half-bad idea...
$ and Gold still uncertain what to do....
Up until 3 weeks ago, Bernanke was on track to be the greatest Central Banker of all time.
However, he failed miserably by not printing fast enough and buying stock futures to arrest the decline.
Krugman is laughing, he was right all along.
Sniff, sniff...do I smell bait?
Oh wait, it's your avatar.
He and Leo just sold their solar stocks...they blew it all at a Crackerbarrel in Newark.
@RobotTrader
You back? Thought you abandoned the account. BTW, MDB is a much, much better troll.
Early June ...
... the annual time for you to pop your head up and give us your market prognostication for the next three months!
All you noobs, gather round! This is the ZH version of Groundhog Day!
OK. We're waiting ............................
barliman
Unless I'm misremembering, RobotTrader gives reports of what was successful in the recent past, not what is going to happen in the future. Cherry Picking the past, with 20/20 hindsight FTW.
As a rule, true ...
... however, last year this time RT was stating how the market was looking at nothing but upside for H2 because the retailers have not shown ANY significant pullback and ANY idiot knows the retailers lead the way with regard to market pullbacks.
Come August 10, 2011 ... RobotTrader was nowhere to be found
It's late and I am fuzzy but in early June 2010 he confidently stated the Flash Crash drop was over effective immediately, the bottom was in and anyone not running to buy, buy, buy was an ... you guessed it ... idiot.
barliman
Weak and pathetic troll effort.
lol
you butnut. look, rates collapse which they are, equities will continue to be punished. the bond market is freaking out the equity market etc. And...the biggest worry for Bernanke is why on earth would asia (that is probably selling short end) buy crap bonds at no interest, which Obama needs (that being adian creditors buying on mass), problem is Asia/BRICS are in serious trouble - so they are liquidating. Asia is caught in the vice of inflation-stagflation tag team brutality.
so in summary. if the Fed do QE3 it will collapse the curve further causing a neg feedback in stocks etc + Asia saying 'f*ck this'. thus means no QE3 just massive USD swaps to the ECB.
Welcome back Robo. Thought we lost you or you finally called it quits.
What's the Over/Under on the number of times "Red Money" has been discussed in the White House Cabinet meetings?
Don't Worry- Be Happy... I know where I'll be going the streets are paved in GOLD!
TOPIX at 1983 levels... that would mean a 90% loss for the DIJA... bullish...
Did you ever take a chart of the Dow for its entire history, put it on linear instead of log scale, and just look at it? Very educational. What if the inflection points doubling the rate of growth in the early 1980s and (again) 1990s were, well, illusions borne of central banker hubris, greed and psychopathy? Easy to draw a new, straight line from say 1980.....
Dow:Gold 1:1 @ 5,000
See you there.
Seems like the best place for it.........
http://youtu.be/tWXHokANmsQ
This is like being in the middle of the "Kobayashi-Maru" with no crib-sheet.
Yeah, Japan leading the way towards reality. Their futons are over-stuffed with yen as it is...
-- Nikkei drops 2.1%, Hang Seng Index 2.4% down, S&P ASX 200 1.7% lower
-- Asian markets down on U.S. employment data
-- Hang Seng Index erases 2012 gains
"...the notion that a worldwide flight to quality..."
horse shit.....anyone who believes that the drop in interest rates is due to a flight to quality over concerns about european "contagion" is in a kool aid kind of funk....
the jpmorgan/dimon/whale fiasco points to irswaps....those derivatives have a voracious appetite for bonds which causes their prices to rise....the government has been selling more debt than it needs because the irswaps are coming unglued....that was the point of the dimon press conference although the asswipe didn't care to speak about it....instead everyone's attention has been sent rocketing to european bonds blah blah blah...
financial armageddon cometh - not from greece, nor spain, nor little ol portugal - it comes straight from the horses ass - jpm and its trusty sidekick deutchebank....the towering inferno of irswaps is the financial nuclear catastrophe which will change the face of the earth.....
"Bond Market - Phone Home"
That, just by itself, is why I read ZeroHedge.
Wow not even waiting for Europe to open and we have Merkel supporting Eurobonds and Chinese to the rescue articles! Insane.
Interesting, take a look at gold on ebay, say "$50 eagle" and notice there is some pretty substantial bidding going on which for the life of me I can't understand why anyone would buy on ebay (unless you are abroad and have no other means). There are definitely some twitchy fingers tonight.
CNN : QE3 or bust!
http://money.cnn.com/2012/06/03/investing/stocks-lookahead/index.htm?sou...
"It's all about the Fed next week," said Keith Springer, president of Springer Financial Advisors in Sacramento Calif. "If the Fed comes through with a QE program, that could save the market -- if not the market will fall off a cliff."
I am overseas, but I am building my PM stash back home by buying on eBay. If you don't fall "in love" with one particular auction, it's not so bad. On about $40,000 worth of purchases for myself and my father over the last year, with shipping, I'm averaging a 3% premium on gold purchases and a 6% premium on silver, though for silver I have some outliers like the random Kookaburras and Britannias which run at a much higher premium than what I probably should pay. But they're so pretty.
Well, they were until my father capsized his boat. :(
This is awesome! Good luck to you.
Sorry to hear about your fathers boat.
I never thought I would see the T bond at 150, but now I think it's heading for 200. We will be buried under mountains of debt and the banksters will feast on our blood for generations to come.
If influencing interest rates was either wrong, or now doesn't matter....I really hope the Fed would be selling into this strength. Cut some exposure for us tax payers...maybe even a little profit.
The Fed could possible even turn this into policy win. If long term rate keep getting crushed, so will banks as the yield curve becomes flat. Selling would not be an admission of unwinding a needless strategy, but actually helping to maintian a healthy yield curve....and if you believe that......then today's Fed really is the smartest person in the room.