Wednesday, December 16, 2015
Stock Market Expanding Bubbles / Stock-Markets / Stock Markets 2015
By: Barry_M_Ferguson
Thursday, 12/10/15, stock indices rose because (so all the pundits reckon) Fed Chair Yellen made a speech reinforcing her determination to begin raising interest rates on December 16. Friday, 12/11/15, the next day, stock indices plummeted because, well, for the same reason. In bubbles, indices can rise or fall for exactly the same reason.
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Wednesday, December 16, 2015
Fed Interest Rate Hike Stock Market Crash Bear Apocalypse? / Stock-Markets / Stock Markets 2015
By: Nadeem_Walayat
It's D-day for the stock market according to the bears when an Fed interest rate hike of 0.25% is expected to at least confirm a stocks bear market is already underway and even said will herald a stock market apocalypse crash, 'End Times', which has been consistently re-iterated by the consensus and BlogosFear since the August stocks plunge (correction). Though as the below chart illustrates that reality does not match the intensity of bear market rhetoric, that of double and triple tops, head and shoulder patterns, 5th waves and domed houses, all utilised each month as irrefutable proof with religious zeal that the stocks bull market is finally over, that this month has coalesced around today's FOMC meeting decision, with the apocalypse scheduled to occur at 2pm eastern time, 7pm UK.
Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Share Buybacks just another Wall Street Scam / Stock-Markets / Stock Markets 2015
By: Sol_Palha
Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without one.
Chinese Proverb
Wall Street has a new hobby use good money to create the illusion that all is well; only unlike most hobbies, the intent is to distort reality and reward lazy insiders for doing next to nothing. Gone are the days of actually trying to improve the bottom line, by improving efficiency, find new markets, etc.; now the idea is simply cut the supply of outstanding shares, thereby magically boosting the EPS. Why are executives doing this with such impunity? The “safe harbor” rule passed in 1982, essentially allows corporations to repurchase shares without having to face charges of manipulating the price of their shares. Before the passage of this rule, stock repurchases were next to zero. In fact, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Tammy Baldwin both share the sentiment that stock buybacks should be forbidden by the SEC because they are a form of market manipulation.
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Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Silver: Until Paper Currencies Stop Losing Value / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2015
By: DeviantInvestor
Alasdair McLeod wrote an excellent article in which he said,
“So if anyone asks you when you might take your profits in gold and silver, smile sweetly and just say, ‘When paper money stops losing its value.’”
When will paper money stop losing its value? I submit that unbacked fiat paper money will, based on history, never stop losing value – as long as it is backed by dodgy sovereign debt issued by governments descending deeper into debt ever year. A viable alternative is currency backed by gold and silver, but even though precious metals have been used successfully as money for centuries, there is far more profit for TPTB when they use the paper stuff. Consequently paper and digital currencies will not disappear anytime soon.
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Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Have You Considered What Wil Happen If the Fed DOESN’T Raise U.S. Interest Rates? / Interest-Rates / US Interest Rates
By: Rodney_Johnson
We’ve gotten it into our heads that Fed Chair Janet Yellen is on her way down from the mountain top carrying stone tablets etched with the details of a rate hike. We don’t know exactly what form it will take, but let there be no doubt – the financial gods have spoken, so a rate hike there will be!But it’s not that simple.
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is the group that determines monetary policy. This group must reach a consensus on policy changes before anything new can happen.
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Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Is This Just the Beginning of the Euro Debt Crisis? / Interest-Rates / Eurozone Debt Crisis
By: Harry_Dent
I've been shocked over how much QE and stimulus the central banks have signed on for in the last seven years, but they’re finally starting to reach their limit.The U.S. already did in 2014 when the Fed finally tapered. And this week, the markets are betting on a rate hike – never mind the trouble brewing in China, other emerging markets, and now Europe.
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Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Stock Market Due for a Pop-n-Drop? / Stock-Markets / Stock Markets 2015
By: Anthony_Cherniawski
It appears that SPX may do a pop-n-drop that may be over by or near 10:00 am. The reason is that the decline from 2080.33 has taken 42 hours so far. 10:00 completes the 43rd hour.
I have additional conflicts today. A dear friend of mine died and his funeral is later this morning. I may not return to my office until later this afternoon.
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Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Yorkshire Building Society New 3.68% Two-year Fixed Rate Mortgage / Housing-Market / Mortgages
By: MoneyFacts
Below is a new product, which has been rated ‘outstanding’ by Moneyfacts.co.uk, the highest rating we award.
Yorkshire Building Society has just launched a new two-year fixed rate mortgage priced at 3.68% until 31.1.18. This deal is for first and second-time buyers who borrow £50,000 up to a maximum of £500,000 at 95% loan-to-value (LTV). A fee of £975 is payable, of which £845 can be added to the mortgage.
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Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Dow Transports Re-Enters Stocks Bear Market, Caution Warranted / Stock-Markets / Stocks Bear Market
By: Christopher_Quigley
Arnold Toynbee “A Study of History”:
“Civilizations die by suicide not by murder”.
Very few people today know that between 1934 and 1961 the British historian Arnold Toynbee wrote “A Study of History” describing the rise and fall of the 23 civilizations he had identified in human history. In contrast to Oswald Spengler, who thought that the rise and fall of civilizations was inevitable, Toynbee maintained that the fate of civilizations is determined by their response to the challenges facing them. In fact the unifying theme throughout the book is challenge and response. One of the ground-breaking discoveries by Toynbee is the fact that there have been so many highly developed civilizations. Understandably in the West our history lessons focus on our own civilization with its roots in Greek and Roman cultures, but in addition there have been Chinese, Indian, Mayan, Islamic, Sumerian and Orthodox civilizations, to name but a few.
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Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Santa Claus…. Where’s My Interest? / Personal_Finance / Savings Accounts
By: MoneyFacts
Data from Moneyfacts.co.uk can reveal that rate reductions in the savings market are now outweighing rate rises for the first time since daily rate change monitoring began.*
In the month of November, Moneyfacts recorded 36 savings rate rises, with only one deal posting a significant increase of 0.80%. Disappointingly, these rises were eclipsed by the 73 rate reductions that took place over the same period, with some rates falling by a massive 0.86%.
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Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Vietnam Sails Smoothly Through The Commodity Storm / Economics / Asian Economies
By: Submissions
Dylan Waller writes: While the gloom faced in commodity prices has created slowed economic growth throughout frontier and emerging markets, there is one global market in Asia in particular that has not been deterred: Vietnam. Low commodity prices have been gruesome for some companies, and on a much larger scale has led to a global economic slowdown for commodity based economies. While the current environment has created a flurry of buy opportunities in commodity based economies, investment in Vietnam provides a similar opportunity with substantially lower risk. Vietnam’s economy, driven by its strategic advantage of low cost manufacturing, is continuing to maintain its position as one of the fastest growing economies in Asia, and is poised for stronger economic growth throughout 2025.
Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Stock Market THREE is a number, Good or Bad, Well that Depends / Stock-Markets / Stock Markets 2015
By: Submissions
Denali Guide writes:
Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Will Lower Crude Oil Prices Cause the Fed to Delay Tightening? / Commodities / Crude Oil
By: Bob_Kirtley
The FOMC has been moving towards the beginning of a new tightening cycle for a considerable amount of time. Throughout this year Fed statements and the accompanying press conferences have been preparing the markets for the first rate hike. Since the October FOMC various Fed speakers have signalled to the market that the first hike would come at the December meeting, which is this week.
Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Hybrid Lindsay Christmas Gift / Stock-Markets / Stock Markets 2015
By: Ed_Carlson
My Hybrid Lindsay model calls for a low near last Friday (chart) and a high on Thursday, December 24. This matches typical option expiration behavior seen this year when equities tend to rally into OPEX (this Friday) and change trend soon after.
In addition, the McClellan Oscillator closed on Friday well below its lower Bollinger Band (200, 1.5). History has shown that a quick dip to just below the lower band usually results in a conclusion of the previous correction. However, a dip closer to negative 300 (as on Friday) often forecasts a lower low in equities (after a small bounce) or at least a test of that low.
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Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Forex Markets GPS vs. Road Map: Which Works Best? / InvestorEducation / Elliott Wave Theory
By: EWI
Some thoughts on trading forex (and other markets) with Elliott wave analysis
Some of the best stories about global positioning systems (GPS) are the weird detours they sometimes recommend.
A while back, while on a family trip through Great Smoky Mountains National Park, I decided to use my GPS to drive around the park's western boundary to see the wildlife. My old-fashioned map made it look like it would take the better part of the day. But my GPS said the trip would only be about 20 miles long. Little did I know -- until I got there -- that the road from the GPS was only the remnant of an old wagon trail. I had to backtrack and take the path my paper map had originally suggested.
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Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Whither Silver Price? / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2015
By: Dan_Norcini
In a bit of a surprise today, crude oil somehow managed to pop high after falling below $35 at one point. It seems like it was more a case of running out of sellers rather than aggressive new buying.
Part of the reason for the move higher was that same pestilential macro trade that seemingly surfaces every single time the Dollar moves lower, namely the macro boyz start buying commodities in general.
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Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Santa Claus Gives Away Top 5 Junior Gold Mining Stock Picks / Commodities / Gold and Silver Stocks 2015
By: The_Gold_Report
Thibaut Lepouttre, editor of Caesars Report, knows 'tis the season for generosity, so when we asked him for his top three picks among junior mining equities, he gave us five—four gold plays and a phosphate name. Belgium-based Lepouttre also discusses different "black-swan" events and their potential impact on the gold price, as well as some naughty and nice mining jurisdictions. But this is the interview that keeps on giving, so before he left Lepouttre added two micro-cap oil names he believes would make great "stocking stuffers." He's not Santa Claus but you'll appreciate his magnanimity in this interview with The Gold Report.
Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Stock Market Short-Term Bottom?....Fed On Deck.....Wild Wednesday Coming... / Stock-Markets / Stock Markets 2015
By: Jack_Steiman
The market was up last night thanks to actions taken by the Chinese Government to get stock prices higher. We blasted up on the futures, with the S&P 500 not too far from being up 20 points at the top. Things were looking up big time for the market until reality caught up before the market opened for trading. The futures fell and went red, only to come back a bit. Once trading began, we saw a lot of fluctuations before heading lower, with a bit of force. Suddenly, and out of the blue, in a matter of seconds, the S&P 500 futures exploded nearly fifteen points, but then fell right back down again. My guess was that the fed was unhappy about losing 2020, and, thus, tried to get the market flying back up. It didn't work.
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Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Crude Oil Extends Losses / Commodities / Crude Oil
By: Nadia_Simmons
Trading position (short-term; our opinion): No positions are justified from the risk/reward perspective.
On Friday, crude oil lost 3.34% as a bearish report from the International Energy Agency added to worries over a supply glut and affected negatively investors' sentiment. In this environment, light crude dropped to a fresh 2015 low, slipping to the lowest level since Feb 2009. What's next?
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Monday, December 14, 2015
Sham Paris Climate Agreement / Politics / Climate Change
By: Stephen_Lendman
So-called COP21 discussions from November 30 - December 11 among hundreds of representatives from 196 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) countries were dead on arrival.
They fell short of a whimper, let alone a bang environmental and other civil society groups hoped for - in vain.
Meaningful results were entirely absent - impossible to achieve with America and its key allies unwilling to address a potentially catastrophic future problem without taking constructive action now.
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