Good day. And welcome to another week. Chuck is headed out to Las Vegas today, to speak at the MoneyShow. With the travel and difference in time zones, he thought it would be best if we picked up the Pfennig for him this week, so I’ll be sharing my thoughts on the currency markets with you this week (hopefully, with a little help from Mike Meyers).
[Read more...]How Market Sentiment Moves With the Greek Debt Crisis
March 8, 2012 By Leave a Comment
A couple of hours south of Kaikoura — and the most famous crayfish picnic tables on the South Island’s east coast (Nin’s Bin) — you’ll discover the fastest growing wine region in New Zealand; 80 vineyards sprawling across more than 1,200 hectares of picturesque plantings…
[Read more...]
Seeking to Explain the Market’s Dour Mood
March 6, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Well, well… it’s a “risk-off” day in the markets. Let’s look at some quick numbers:
- All the major U.S. stock indexes are down at least 1%. According to Bespoke Investment Group, the last time the S&P opened down this much was Nov. 21
- Gold is down another 2%, to $1,671. Silver’s back below $33
What the Greek Rescue is Really About
March 5, 2012 By Leave a Comment
In today’s Daily Reckoning, we’ll do something we can barely stand to do: we’re going to write one more time about Greece. If you can stand to read it, you may come to the same conclusion we reached.
That conclusion is simple: what’s going on Europe has nothing to do with solving a debt crisis and everything to do with preserving a corrupt system based on limitless debt and growing government power. The sooner you understand that fact, the sooner you’ll be able to prepare for what happens next. There are two options for what happens next, and we’ll get to those shortly.
[Read more...]Opposing Trends in Debt and GDP Growth
February 22, 2012 By Leave a Comment
$100 billion down…
$40 trillion left to go!
Hey, don’t hold us to those figures. But yesterday European sages cut another deal to stave off the truth. Instead of defaulting openly and honestly — as Greece has done over and over again ever since 1827 — the Greeks will be ‘rescued.’
[Read more...]The Role of Youth Unemployment in Staving Off Default
February 17, 2012 By Leave a Comment
The headlines still focus on Greece. It is broke. Here is Lucas Papademos, describing what an orderly default would mean. In the Telegraph:
“The savings of the citizens would be at risk. The state would be unable to pay salaries, pensions, and cover basic functions, such as hospitals and schools, and…the country — public and private sector alike — would lose all access to borrowing and liquidity would shrink.
[Read more...]Euro Is Yanked From the Slippery Slope!
February 17, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Yesterday, the euro (EUR) sure looked as if it were headed for a ride on the slippery slope, but about one-third down the slide, the single unit was yanked back to the top by a newspaper (Die Welt) report that the ECB is exchanging Greek bonds for new securities, easing concern that Greece will get its second bailout. And that news was followed up by an announcement that German officials will approve the next bailout payment for Greece.
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Pound Sterling as a Safe Haven?
Good day. And welcome to another week. Chuck is headed out to Las Vegas today, to speak at the MoneyShow. With the travel and difference in time zones, he thought it would be best if we picked up the Pfennig for him this week, so I’ll be sharing my thoughts on the currency markets with you this week (hopefully, with a little help from Mike Meyers).
[Read more...]