Economics and Investing:

Russia Gold “Buying Spree” Continues; Buys 22 Tons In November

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U.S. Exports More Gold To Hong Kong Than It Produces

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Russia keeps pumping Could we see oil go below $30? – P.S.

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Items from Professor Preponomics:

U.S. News

50 Examples of Government Waste (Waste Fraud and Abuse) This truly sums up the problems at hand! Article Excerpt: “Reducing wasteful spending is not easy. Even the most useless programs are passionately supported by the armies of recipients, administrators, and lobbyists that benefit from their existence. Identifying inefficiencies and abuses is much easier than devising a system to fix them. Many lawmakers focus more on bringing home earmarks than on performing the less exciting task of government oversight. Exasperated taxpayers see the cost of government rise with no end in sight.”

Fall Out from Oil Job Losses is Starting to Reach Other Sectors (Houston Chronicle) From the Article: “The energy disease is spreading to other parts of the economy.”

International News

U.K. Economy in Shock Slowdown as Recovery Loses Steam (The Telegraph) From the Article: “Britain’s recovery is losing steam, according to official data that showed growth this year was weaker than previously thought.”

The Dollar Shortage Has Arrived: Africa Runs Out of Dollars (Zero Hedge) From the Article: “…in an unexpected turn of events, the disappearance of not just synthetic but very physical dollars has hit one region much harder and much faster than we expected. Africa.”

This is Canada’s Depression: Surging Crime, Soaring Suicides, Overwhelmed Food Banks and “the Worst is Yet to Come” (Zero Hedge) From the Article: “…the real casualties in Canada are no longer metaphorical economic objects, but the very people who until recently enjoyed comfortable lives only to succumb to an unprecedented collapse in the local economy.”

Personal Economics and Household Finance

Print Media Plagued by Subscription Scams (Clark Howard) This is an older posting but well worth the review and reminder, since so many subscribers do not track their renewal dates or necessarily know to whom they are sending funds!