Wednesday, December 14, 2016
Shariah Gold Standard Is “Revolutionary” – Mark Mobius / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2016
By: GoldCore
One of the world’s leading investors, Mark Mobius told a gold conference in Dubai that the new ‘Shariah Gold Standard’ is both “innovative and revolutionary” and importantly will bring “transparency” to the physical gold market which suffers from a lack of trust.
Wednesday, December 14, 2016
China's Unfinished Trade Revolution / Economics / China
By: STRATFOR
Dec. 11 marks the 15th anniversary of China's accession to the World Trade Organization. Measured by its impact on the Chinese economy, which has grown almost tenfold since 2001, accession to the WTO was no less momentous than the epochal changes ushered in by the start of "Reform and Opening" in 1978 or the fiscal and political recentralization that followed the 1989 Tiananmen crisis. In the scale and speed of changes it wrought on Chinese society and politics, WTO accession was hardly less revolutionary than the Great Leap Forward of 1958-1961 or the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution of 1966-1976. And in terms of their import for the structure of the global economy, few events in recent memory equal China's entry into the organization. By virtually any indicator, Dec. 11, 2001, was an inflection point not only for China's economy but also for much of the world's. But the anniversary also highlights how Chinese integration into the global economy remains incomplete.
Wednesday, December 14, 2016
Stock Market Very Strong Session Despite Profit-Taking / Stock-Markets / Stock Markets 2016
By: Harry_Boxer
The stock market indices had very nice big gains until the last few minutes when they sold off, especially on the Nasdaq 100, which gave up about 25 points off its big gains today, still finishing up at 4935, with a good trade and double top around 4960 by midsession, before the late pullback.
Net on the day, the Dow was up 114.78 at 19,911.21, a new all-time at 19,953. The S&P 500 was up 14.76 at 2271.72. The Nasdaq 100 was up 61.54 at 4935.82.
Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, December 14, 2016
Why Market, Economic Collapse isn't on the Menu / Economics / Economic Collapse
By: Clif_Droke
The word "collapse" instantly conjures primal feelings of both fear and excitement whenever we hear it. We fear it because it evokes our collective belief that collapse is fatal and final, yet it excites our imagination to the possibility, however, remote, that perhaps we'll be among the lucky few to survive and even prosper from it.
Whether in reference to a financial market crash or the collapse of government, the very idea has given birth to a plethora of writings on the subject. Indeed, some of the top selling books in the financial literature category in recent years have had collapse as the subject matter, for writers instinctively know they can always count on a visceral reaction from their readers whenever they write of it.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
There is money to be made / Companies / Mobile Technology
By: Submissions
Online gaming is a booming industry. In 2016, the value of the global entertainment and media market was valued at over $1.8 trillion. Out of that 10% of the value is generated from online gaming across the globe. We’ve had a look at some highlights and most popular gaming brands that lead to this remarkable figure.
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Deutsche Bank Turns Over Proof of Metals Price Rigging / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2016
By: MoneyMetals
Some say there is honor among thieves. Perhaps, but apparently not among the banking class of criminals when they are under serious legal and regulatory pressure.
German behemoth Deutsche Bank agreed last spring to assist plaintiffs and regulators by ratting out their co-conspirator banks in a wide-ranging scheme to rig prices and cheat clients.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Do Larger Federal Budget Deficits Stimulate Spending? Depends On Where The Funding Comes From / Economics / US Debt
By: John_Mauldin
I’d like to share a counterintuitive argument against the concept that fiscal deficits and/or infrastructure spending consititute effective economic stimulus. It comes from Paul Kasriel (one of my favorite reads when he was at Northern Trust, before he retired). He always has a way of looking at things from different angles than everybody else does.
Paul notes that the post-election US stock market rally has been due in part to the expectation that the Trump administration will enact stimulative fiscal policies, which in turn will jumpstart growth. But Paul begs to differ on that last point.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Trump’s Private Sector Appointments Signal A Rollback Of The Regulatory State / Economics / Market Regulation
By: John_Mauldin
BY JARED DILLIAN : I feel good about the nomination of Steven Mnuchin for Treasury Secretary. A banker (a not a political hack) in that seat is all right by me. Seriously. And Wilbur Ross as Commerce Secretary? Terrific.
I can’t tell you how happy I am to have private sector guys in these positions of power.
I’ll be candid—for eight years, under Obama, business was the enemy. That mindset is changing. It seems foreign because it’s been so long.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Italy’s Banking Crisis Is Nearly Upon Us / Economics / Financial Crisis 2016
By: John_Mauldin
There is a high degree of probability (approaching 90%, I’d say) that Italy will experience a severe banking crisis in the next few quarters. Perhaps they can stave off the problem for a year, but something will have to be done about the banks.
Italian GDP per person lagging the rest of Europe
Italian citizens haven’t had much fun the past decade, judging from their GDP. You can see on the left side of the chart below that GDP per person has lagged the EU since 1995. Worse, it kept falling after 2009, even as Italy’s neighbors recovered.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Will welcome bonuses become as prevalent in spread betting, as they are in sports betting? / Personal_Finance / Gambling
By: Submissions
...
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
A Closer Look at Our Recent US Employment Numbers / Economics / Employment
By: Rodney_Johnson
Last week the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the U.S. economy created 178,000 jobs – with 156,000 in the private sector and 22,000 in government – which is right in line with the monthly average for 2016.But let’s dig a little deeper past the headline numbers. For years we’ve argued that there’s more to the story than just the number of jobs created. We want to know, and our economy depends on, how much money people are paid.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Europe Crisis - Italy’s “No” Vote Is Just the Beginning / Politics / Eurozone Debt Crisis
By: John_Mauldin
BY ANTONIA COLIBASANU AND JACOB SHAPIRO : An important vote recently occurred in Italy. Italians said “No” to a referendum on government reforms. The vote was broadly viewed as a referendum on Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. He has since tendered his resignation.
The result of Italy’s referendum means three things. First, the slow devolution of the European Union rumbles on. Second, Italy has declared itself in open revolt internally and against the EU. This is a challenge not just for the EU, but for Germany in particular. Third, this is the beginning of a major political shift in the third largest economy in the Eurozone.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Trump Got an Edge over China with a Single Phone Call / Politics / China
By: John_Mauldin
BY GEORGE FRIEDMAN : Donald Trump spoke on the telephone with the president of Taiwan, causing deep upset. It was counter to an understanding in place since Richard Nixon opened the door with China in 1972.
This understanding included an American endorsement of the one-China policy. This policy held that Taiwan is part of China, but would continue to behave as if it weren’t. The US agreed not to have diplomatic relations with Taiwan and pretend it isn’t a close ally.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Stock Market Waiting for the FOMC? / Stock-Markets / Stock Markets 2016
By: Anthony_Cherniawski
Good Morning!
The SPX Premarket is higher, but the futures have not made a new high. Yesterday’s decline may be impulsive, but the test is whether a new high is made today or not. In addition, the Wave structure appears to be complete as of yesterday morning. We may see some residual bullishness at the open, but the jury is still pondering the verdict as of now.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
U.S. Oil Shale Faces A Reality Check / Commodities / Shale Oil and Gas
By: OilPrice_Com
The collapse of oil prices has forced the U.S. shale industry to slash production costs. In order to improve the “breakeven” costs for the average shale well, the industry has deployed three general strategies: improving techniques and technology, such as drilling longer laterals or using more frac sand; focusing drilling on the sweet spots; and demanding lower prices from oilfield service companies. All three of those strategies led to a decline in the breakeven price for a shale wells.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
WTO Debacle Heralds the End of Postwar Trade Regime / Economics / Global Economy
By: Dan_Steinbock
“China is not a market economy,” President-elect Donald Trump said in Iowa a few days ago. In the past few months, Trump has also pledged to undo the North-American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), beat back the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), impose huge tariffs on China and Mexico, and rewrite the rules of trade.
Nevertheless, the Obama White House, the EU and Japan beat Trump in the reset of the international trading regime by refusing China its market economy status (MES). The key clause in China’s agreement for joining the World Trade Organization (WTO) expired on Sunday.
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Nasdaq Leads Stock Market Lower... / Stock-Markets / Stock Markets 2016
By: Jack_Steiman
The market bulls are still in control of things, but we all know that there is this one gigantic red flag out there that will come into play at some point. The thing is, we don't know when that will happen, because there is no formula to tell us when it's coming, since every bull market is different. We can look back at history as a guide, but when folks do, it doesn't usually work out very well. The reason is simple. Nothing repeats perfectly, even though we'd like to believe it does. For instance, over the past year-plus we saw 35% on the bull/bear spread start a correction, but we also saw 46% start one.
Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, December 12, 2016
Stock Market Top?, Sucker’s Play / Stock-Markets / Stock Markets 2016
By: Brad_Gudgeon
The current rally from November 4 to December 12 (if indeed it was the top) was Minuette Wave Y of Minute Y. Minute Wave Y (of Minor Wave B) was a wxy inverted, irregular and strong bearish flat. Elliott called these B waves or irregular tops. The Trump rally is basically a "sucker's play". The internals of this rally are sick and very selective; the McClellan Summation Index is miles away from confirming it; the Dow Jones Industrials has far exceeded the SPX, which has far exceeded the NASDAQ creating a case of an inter-market bearish divergence. We also have a huge On-Balance-Volume divergence.
Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, December 12, 2016
Maps That Explain US Main Economic Strength Over Russia / Politics / GeoPolitics
By: John_Mauldin
BY JACOB L. SHAPIRO : Power is a relative concept. To say one nation is powerful means nothing. Power derives meaning only when assessed in comparison.
Two nations whose powers we constantly reevaluate are Russia and the United States. Much of our analysis is driven by how weak we believe the Russian Federation is.
There are different ways to evaluate this. Comparing US and Russian regional economies is particularly striking.
Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, December 12, 2016
2017 Will Be A Pivotal Year For Europe / Politics / European Union
By: John_Mauldin
Many people in the EU disapprove of EU economic policies. Greece is by far the unhappiest with Brussels. Italy is next, with France and Spain not far behind. The UK, where people are angry enough to have voted themselves out of the EU, looks even-tempered in comparison.
That suggests to me that if you offered these other countries a chance to ditch the EU and reassured them that they wouldn’t cause the sky to fall, there are some who might take the leap.
Read full article... Read full article...