How Will Census Workers Affect the Jobs Report?

It was a ping-pong day for the currencies, back and forth over the net… The net being the “level of the dayâ€�… For instance, the Aussie dollar (AUD) played over the 91-cent net all day, and the euro played over the 1.2820 level all day.

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How Japan and Switzerland Could Reshape the Currency Markets

Japan and Switzerland are facing the same threat to their economic health. And so far, every step they’ve taken to make things better has only made them worse.

But there is one way they could conceivably get out of this mess. And even though no one is talking about it yet, a mere hint of the possibility could send China-sized shockwaves throughout the global currency markets.

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US Manufacturing is Stronger?

As I turn on the currency screens this morning, I see that the euro (EUR) is higher than it was yesterday morning, but lower than it was mid-day yesterday, as the single unit rallied to 1.2850 yesterday, only to see that figure slip slidin’ away, and then watch it rise again…

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Roubini: 2nd Half Looking Worse, Double Dip Over 40% Likely

Nouriel Roubini, or “Dr. Doom” as he’s also known, is a New York University professor and co-founder of Roubini Global Economics. As his nickname implies, his opinions tend to be on the gloomy side, and in this recent interview he describes “monetary policy as impotent” and estimates a GDP growth rate in this year’s second half of, well, just about zero percent.

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Aussie GDP Prints Strong

Front and center this morning, Australia printed a moon-shot second quarter GDP report, that has the risk aversion campers running for cover this morning. All currencies, except the risk aversion currencies of dollar, yen (JPY) and francs (CHF), are getting sold, and the Aussie dollar (AUD) has gained 1 1/2-cents!

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An Addendum to the ‘Flations – Gold $5,000

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke delivered a much-anticipated speech on Friday, August 27, 2010. There was no reason to think this talk would be more or less important than his other talks except for the degree of hysteria whipped up by the media in advance.

Bernanke was addressing an audience of fellow central bankers and their camp followers at an annual gathering in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. There have been memorable comments at these late summer getaways, such as, in 2005, when past-Federal Reserve Board Vice Chairman Alan Blinder claimed then-current-Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan might be the “greatest central banker who ever lived.”

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Personal Spending Outpaces Income

Well, the happy morning for the commodity currencies turned sour on the day, as the risk assets all got slapped around by the markets. The risk assets went sour after the personal income/spending data printed…

Say it ain’t so, Joe!

Is this a case of “here we go again?�

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Figuring out the Real Importance of Gold

Gold remains in high demand among individual investors, hedge funds, and central banks all swapping cash for the yellow metal. This past weekend, an FT reportage looked into what the latest money flows into gold can tell us about it’s real importance.

Among others, the Financial Times spoke with Texas Republican Congressman Ron Paul:

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Policy Solutions, Part Four of Four

The elites who are above the grip of the gluttonous taxes on ordinary income and estates in the United States have a huge vested interest in continuance of the fiat money system operated at the hands of a central bank, for it enables profit to uniquely accrue through appreciation rather than through income.

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