Puerto Rico ‘in midst of economic collapse’ – G.G.
o o o
Keith Neumeyer – Triple Digit Silver Is Coming – The Daily Coin
o o o
Items from Professor Preponomics:
US News
Evidence Mounting that the Fed Made a Mistake (Washington Examiner) In light of the decisions made across many years involving everything from monetary and fiscal policy to international trade and other global financial agreements, it could easily be argued that any Fed decision at this point would have produced adverse consequences. The take home message may be that there is no easy way out of the economic conditions we have created, directly and indirectly, for ourselves. Excerpt: “Overall, the picture is one in which the Fed’s key premise — that inflation expectations are stable — is at risk of falling apart, and that the Fed may have signaled too much tightening.”
A Recession Worse than 2008 is Coming (CNBC) Excerpt: “… the ability of government to save the markets and the economy this time around will be extremely difficult, if not impossible.”
Arch Coal’s Bankruptcy Could Leave Millions in Clean-Up Costs to Taxpayers (Taxpayers for Common Sense) Excerpt: “Arch is also responsible for $640 million in reclamation bonds – which “guarantee” the company’s ability to pay for the clean-up (reclamation) of its mines.” …and $450 million of those are self-bonds which may not receive any priority over other obligations in a bankruptcy proceeding. Taxpayers should brace themselves for yet another bill, anticipating that the country will pick up the tab.
International News
Crude Dive Deepens as Markets Brace for More Iranian Oil (Reuters) Perhaps even more interesting than the question of oil prices from within this story are the implications for the ways in which oil is connected to changing geopolitical relationships around the world. Excerpt: “Tehran is expected to target India, Asia’s fastest-growing major oil market, as well as its old partners in Europe with increased exports once sanctions are lifted.”
Chinese GDP to Worry Central Banks at Home and Abroad (Reuters) Excerpt: “China is set to report its weakest full-year growth figure in 25 years on Tuesday on the back of slowing output and sagging investments, troubling news that will likely dominate discussion at the European Central Bank and Bank of Canada policy meetings.”
With Economy at Risk, Bank of Canada’s Stephen Poloz Remains on Dovish Path (Financial Post) Excerpt: “While many observers had already acknowledged the rout in global oil prices would hurt the economy, few appreciated at the time just how steep the collapse in growth would be, or how long it would linger.”
Personal Economics and Household Finance
Black Rock’s Larry Fink Expects Volatility to Lead to Lay-Offs (Business Insider) Learn to be a saver… Fink asks an interesting question in this article about why consumers aren’t spending their energy savings and wonders if this might be, at least in part, tied to the realization that they have too little in savings. We should all pray that lessons learned in this regard are not lessons learned too late.
5 Spendy Trends to Avoid (Clark Howard) Yet again, it’s hard to imagine… As you read through the list of “spendy trends”, you’ll understand ever more deeply why the country is in so much trouble.
o o o
SurvivalBlog is not a paid investment counselor or adviser. Please see our Provisos page for details.