Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. Most of these items are from JWR’s “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective. Today, we look at the twilight of dollar dominance. (See the Forex & Cryptos section.)
Precious Metals:
California readies for treasure hunt as floods wash up ‘Gold Rush 2.0’.
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Gold stuck at $2,000, caught between high inflation and recession fears – Quant Insight.
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At Gold-Eagle.com: Gold, Oil & Global Currencies Entering a Watershed Moment.
Economy & Finance:
I fully expect more turmoil in the banking sector, in the coming months. There are dozens of regional banks and hundreds of smaller banks that are precariously under-capitalized. The blame for all this lies at the feet of the Federal Reserve, which kept interest rates artificially low for much too long. Now that they are gradually ratcheting-up rates, The Fed is putting the squeeze on banks that “lent long”, at low rates. Their depositors are leaving them in droves, lured away by Federal government debt paper that is now paying higher yields. These “troubled” banks are at great risk of both bank runs and sell-offs of their stocks. I believe that the unfolding banking crisis will last for many months to come.
The aggregate deposit dollar value of the banks collapsing in 2023 already exceeds that of the 2009 crisis. The end result of this protracted crisis will probably be that the biggest banks will gobble up a lot of smaller banks. This will consolidate money and power in the hands of the Eastern banking establishment. As with any other major financial or political crisis, we should ask: “Cui bono?” In this case, it is some of the biggest coastal banks that will benefit the most, and it will be the interior banks that will suffer. – JWR
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IWB: How to Tell If Your Bank is in Trouble.
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Federal Reserve Raises Interest Rates by 25 Basis Points, Opens Door to Pause.
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Josh Walkos: The Long Shadow of BlackRock.
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Over at the Whatfinger.com news aggregation site: American Disaster: Credit card debt explodes at 2nd-fastest pace in history.
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The BRICS alliance is expanding.
To summarize, the following nations have formally applied for acceptance into the BRICS cooperative:
- Algeria
- Argentina
- Bahrain
- Egypt
- Indonesia
- Iran
- Saudi Arabia
- United Arab Emirates
In addition, interest has been expressed by at least 17 more countries.
Commodities:
“A freight recession”: It will be ‘really tough’ for trucking companies to stay in business if things don’t pick up by Memorial Day, says an American trucking association.
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CBS accidentally commits journalism with honest “tsunami of renewable waste” report.
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From OilPrice News: The $1 Million Math Problem Undermining Wind Energy.
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Europe’s Ambitious Hydrogen Plans Face Challenges.
Derivatives:
Inflation Has Firms Using Derivatives to Lock In Funding Costs.
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ISDA: Single-name CDS Market Update.
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ISDA: SwapsInfo First Quarter of 2023 Review: Summary.
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What Does the CDS Market Imply for a U.S. Default?
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A Fitch webinar: QT, Shrinking Banking System Liquidity & Tightening Credit Conditions.
Forex & Cryptos:
A BRICS Currency Could Shake the Dollar’s Dominance.
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At Currency Thoughts: ECB Interest Rate Increased by 25 Basis Points.
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New York Attorney General Proposes New Crypto Regulatory Act.
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Kazakhstan collected $7M in crypto mining taxes in 2022.
Tangibles Investing:
I’ve been surprised to see ammunition prices come down, despite some chronic shortages. Stack it deep, while availability is good, and prices are low. How deep? I’d advise “stack it for the potential grandkids”-depth, if you can afford it, and if have sufficient storage space. But of course tuck that all away in quality mil-surp ammo cans, to protect it from moisture. That way, it will indeed last for generations. Please check the ammo prices at SurvivalBlog’s advertisers. And if you place orders with any of them, please mention where you saw their ads.
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Palmetto State Armory (one of our affiliate advertisers) has some great specials this week. Presently, they have a special on PSA 16″ 5.56 NATO 1:7 Midlength Nitride 13.5″ Lightweight M-Lok MOE EPT Rifle Build Kits with MBUS Sight Sets. These have everything needed to build a quite capable M4-style AR except a lower receiver and a magazine. They normally sell for $799, but for just a short time, they are priced at just $479. To find these build kits at the PSA website, just put the item number “516446780” in their search box.
Provisos:
SurvivalBlog and its Editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for our detailed disclaimers.
News Tips:
Please send your economics and investing news tips to JWR. (Either via e-mail or via our Contact form.) These are often especially relevant because they come from folks who closely watch specific markets. If you spot any news that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers, then please send it in. News items from local news outlets that are missed by the news wire services are especially appreciated. Thanks!